{"id":14704,"date":"2016-10-16T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2016-10-16T08:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.hearandplay.com\/main\/?p=14704"},"modified":"2024-10-07T15:28:38","modified_gmt":"2024-10-07T23:28:38","slug":"one-of-the-smartest-ways-to-learn-and-master-chord-extensions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hearplaymain.wpenginepowered.com\/one-of-the-smartest-ways-to-learn-and-master-chord-extensions\/","title":{"rendered":"One Of The Smartest Known Ways To Learn And Master Chord Extensions"},"content":{"rendered":"

What I’m about to share with you would help you learn and master chord extensions like ninths, elevenths and thirteenths.<\/p>\n

Terms like the ninth, eleventh and thirteenth are commonly used among musicians to describe the width of a chord.\u00a0<\/a> I’ll therefore assume that you must have come across them, especially if you’re an intermediate player.<\/p>\n

We’re making them our focus in today’s lesson because a vast majority of musicians are yet to learn and\/or master these chord extensions in all twelve keys. If you belong to this league of musicians, then you’re lucky to have arrived at this page.<\/p>\n

Let’s get started!<\/p>\n

A Preamble On Tertian Chords<\/h2>\n

A chord is a collection of three or more related notes [agreeable or not] that are played or heard together.<\/p>\n

In a previous lesson, we learned that chords can be classified according to width<\/a> and we classified all chords according to triads, seventh and extended chords. A triad is a product of the relationship between three scale tones that are usually apart from each other by a third interval<\/a>.<\/p>\n

A regular example is the C major triad:
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\n…which consists of the first, third and fifth tones of the C major scale:
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\nThe distance (aka – “interval”) between successive tones of the C major triad is in third intervals. C to E:
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\n…is a third interval, and so is E to G:
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\nAttention<\/strong>: The practice of maintaining third intervals between successive chord tones is known to music scholars as tertian harmony<\/a>. Consequently, chords that are formed based on tertian harmony are known as tertian chords.<\/p>\n

The width of a triad can be enlarged by the addition of another note that is a third interval above the triad. A third above C-E-G:
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\n…is B:
\n
\nSo, adding B:
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\n…to the C major triad:
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\n…produces a major seventh chord:
\n
\n…that encompasses seven degrees of the C major scale (from C to B):
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\n…which is also known as the C major seventh chord.<\/p>\n

In a nutshell, a seventh chord can be formed by extending the width of a triad by a third. The C major triad:
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\n…encompasses five degrees of the C major scale, from C to G:
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\n…while the C major seventh chord:
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\n…encompasses seven degrees of the C major scale, from C to B:
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\nBeyond seventh chords are extended chords, which are larger than the compass of an octave and the average human hand. Let’s go a step further into this lesson by learning what chord extensions are.<\/p>\n

“What Are Chord Extensions?”<\/em><\/h2>\n

Intervals that exceed the compass of an octave are generally classified as compound intervals. Due to the fact that the octave is synonymous with the number eight, compound intervals are usually bigger than the number eight.<\/p>\n

The following intervals:<\/p>\n