Here are some labels we give to certain notes: They tell us the quality of the chord and good voice leading relies on these voices moving smoothly between each other.Īll of the notes in a chord have specific functions.

The guide tones of a chord are the 3rd and 7th. It’s important to note here that if a chord symbol says Cmaj13 for instance, it also includes all extensions up to the 13th the 7th, 9th and 13th would be played too. It gets a bit complicated as some tensions are allowed to appear harmonically, but not melodically in certain chords, and vice versa. That is, they can either be part of a chord, or be played in a melody. If a performer sees a simple Cm7 chord, they may choose to embellish it with extra tensions like the 9th or 11th. These extensions (the 9th, 11th, 13th and their alterations, b9, #11 etc.) are referred to as available tensions. Depending on the basic 7th or 6th chord, different 9ths, 11ths and 13ths may be added and/or flattened or sharpened based on the context. We can also go further than the 6th or 7th, and add 9ths, 11ths and 13ths.

Rhythm changes in e flat major