Part VIII: Add Chords and Alterations
An add chord is simply the addition of extra tones to a
chord. The most common additions are 2, 4, 6, 9, and 11. Occasionally
you will see add13 but very rarely.
Add chords have multiple applications. Either they can be
used to describe chords with missing parts or they can be used to insert
in extra tones to a chord.
For example, let’s take the extreme example of a full
thirteenth chord. First of all, that’s seven notes, more than you can
play with one hand (on a piano). Secondly, just think about what it
means to play a fully thirteenth chord: seven tones means that every
note of the scale is in the chord. Just try playing it. Depending on
your instrument you will probably not like the sound very much but it
varies from person to person. Either way, this chord is really pushing
the limit.
This is why 13th chords don’t always contain
all the seven notes. Some tones are left out to clear up the sound of
it. The chart below summarizes which tones are most commonly left out
and which tones are usually kept in. This applies to all chords beyond
the triad.
Tone |
Description |
1 (root) |
Almost always left in the chord. Occasionally
left out in larger chords |
3 |
Always
in the chord unless you are just using fifths. |
5 |
Occasionally removed depending on circumstance. |
7 |
Optional color tone |
9 |
Optional color tone |
11 |
Optional color tone |
13 |
Optional color tone |
Now let’s get back to what I was describing above. Say we
have a 7th chord of some sort, a minor seven chord in the key
of C. If the 11th tone sounds particularly nice in the piece,
we might want to add it into the chord. However, we decide that we do
not want the 9 to be in the chord.
We can call this chord different names, but one could be
Cm7add11. We could also call this chord Cm11(no 9) if we wanted since
the 9th is missing.
The other circumstance would be to insert the tone into
an already formed chord. For example, let’s take the Am chord and add a
2. We get the chord Amadd2 which would be A B C E. But wait, that B is
also the 9th!
Yes, you could
also call it Amadd9. There is a rule as to which one you should chose
but most people use them interchangeably at their convenience.
Basically, it’s just safer to use the “add9” form because it prevents
any confusion or mix-up with the sus2 chord. This is a very good rule to
follow.
This page will soon be
updated to include information on altered chords.
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