Seventh (chord) in the context of "Eleventh chord"

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⭐ Core Definition: Seventh (chord)

In music, the seventh factor of a chord is the note or pitch seven scale degrees above the root or tonal center. When the seventh is the bass note, or lowest note, of the expressed chord, the chord is in third inversion Play.

Conventionally, the seventh is fourth in importance to the root, fifth, and third, with third inversion being the third strongest inversion and the seventh variably minor or major.

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👉 Seventh (chord) in the context of Eleventh chord

In music theory, an eleventh chord is a chord that contains the tertian extension of the eleventh. Typically found in jazz, an eleventh chord also usually includes the seventh and ninth, and elements of the basic triad structure. Variants include the dominant eleventh (C, C–E–G–B–D–F), minor eleventh (Cm, C–E–G–B–D–F), and major eleventh chord (Cmaj, C–E–G–B–D–F). Using an augmented eleventh produces the dominant sharp eleventh (C, C–E–G–B–D–F) and major ninth sharp eleventh (Cmaj, C–E–G–B–D–F) chords.

A perfect eleventh creates a highly dissonant minor ninth interval with the major third of major and dominant chords. To reduce this dissonance the third is often omitted (such as for example in the dominant eleventh chord that can be heard 52 seconds into the song "Sun King" on The Beatles' Abbey Road album), turning the chord into a suspended ninth chord (e.g. C, C–G–B–D–F), which can be also notated as Gm/C.

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Seventh (chord) in the context of Added tone chord

An added tone chord, or added note chord, is a non-tertian chord composed of a triad and an extra "added" note. Any tone that is not a seventh factor is commonly categorized as an added tone. It can be outside the tertian sequence of ascending thirds from the root, such as the added sixth or fourth, or it can be in a chord that doesn't consist of a continuous stack of thirds, such as the added thirteenth (six thirds from the root, but the chord doesn't have the previous tertian notes – the seventh, ninth or eleventh). The concept of added tones is convenient in that all notes may be related to familiar chords.

Inversions of added tone chords where the added tone is the bass note are usually simply notated as slash chords instead of added-tone chords. For example, instead of C/D, just C/D is used.

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Seventh (chord) in the context of Extended chord

In music, extended chords are certain chords (built from thirds) or triads with notes extended, or added, beyond the seventh. Ninth, eleventh, and thirteenth chords are extended chords. The thirteenth is the farthest extension diatonically possible as, by that point, all seven tonal degrees are represented within the chord (the next extension, the fifteenth, is the same as the root of the chord). In practice however, extended chords do not typically use all the chord members; when it is not altered, the fifth is often omitted, as are notes between the seventh and the highest note (i.e., the ninth is often omitted in an eleventh chord; the ninth and eleventh are usually omitted in a thirteenth chord), unless they are altered to give a special texture.

Chords extended beyond the seventh are rarely seen in the Baroque era, and are used more frequently in the Classical era. The Romantic era saw greatly increased use of extended harmony. Extended harmony prior to the 20th century usually has dominant function – as V, V, and V, or V/V, V/ii etc.

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Seventh (chord) in the context of Factor (chord)

In music, a factor or chord factor is a member or component of a chord. These are named root, third, fifth, sixth, seventh, ninth (compound 2nd), eleventh (compound 4th), thirteenth (compound 6th), and so on, for their generic interval above the root.In harmony, the consonance and dissonance of a chord factor and a nonchord tone are distinguished, respectively.

Chord factors are taken into consideration in voicing and voice leading. A chord contains exactly as many factors as it contains unique pitch names (octaves don't matter), while a voicing can have any number of voices that draw from and represent some or all the factors of a chord in various octaves. Thus, a chord with three unique pitch names always has three factors, even if some of those pitches are doubled or omitted in a particular voicing. For example, the figure to the right shows a four-note voicing of a C Major triad, which has three chord factors. The "root" chord factor (pitch name "C"), is represented twice in the voicing by voices 1 and 4 in different octaves. The chord factor called the "fifth" (pitch name "G") is represented in voice 2 (shown in red).

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Seventh (chord) in the context of Jazz chord

Jazz chords are chords, chord voicings and chord symbols that jazz musicians commonly use in composition, improvisation, and harmony. In jazz chords and theory, most triads that appear in lead sheets or fake books can have sevenths added to them, using the performer's discretion and ear. For example, if a tune is in the key of C, if there is a G chord, the chord-playing performer usually voices this chord as G. While the notes of a G chord are G–B–D–F, jazz often omits the fifth of the chord—and even the root if playing in a group. However, not all jazz pianists leave out the root when they play voicings: Bud Powell, one of the best-known of the bebop pianists, and Horace Silver, whose quintet included many of jazz's biggest names from the 1950s to the 1970s, included the root note in their voicings.

Improvising chord-playing musicians who omit the root and fifth are given the option to play other notes. For example, if a seventh chord, such as G, appears in a lead sheet or fake book, many chord-playing performers add the ninth, thirteenth or other notes to the chord, even though the lead sheet does not specify these additional notes. Jazz players can add these additional, upper notes because they can create an important part of the jazz sound. Lead sheets and fake books often do not detail how to voice the chord because a lead sheet or fake book is only intended to provide basic guide to the harmony. An experienced comping performer playing electric guitar or piano may add or remove notes as chosen according to the style and desired sound of that musician, but must do so in a way that still emphasizes the correct musical context for other musicians and listeners.

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