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Sure, chords can contain major and minor thirds at the same time! We see 'em all the time in jazz. I call it a major-minor chord (which however is quite different from a major-minor seventh chord). It's also called a mixed-third chord. In jazz chords you will also sometimes see it notated as a ♯9 instead of as a ♭3, though that implies a slightly different ...

A major triad does not contain "a minor third followed by a major third" and a minor triad does not contain "a major third followed by a major third". A major triad contains the root, major third, fifth. A minor triad contains the root, minor third, fifth. Or, counting in semitones: Major triad: root, root + 4, root + 7 Minor triad: root, root + 3, ...

There is exactly one note that is a diminished 3rd above Db: Fb. Db to Eb is not a diminished third, it is a major second. Those comments are wrong. This question explains the difference between two enharmonically equivalent notes.

An article by Joe Monzo at http://tonalsoft.com/enc/s/savart.aspx defines the savart as 1/300 of an octave. A savart is calculated as the 300th root of 2, or 2(1/300), with a ratio of approximately 1:1.002313162. It is an irrational number. A savart has an interval size of approximately 4 cents. savart = 1000log10(f2/f1) cents = 1200log2(f2/f1)

A chord does not have to be made up of thirds. A chord is by definition two or more notes heard as if sounded simultaneously. Not all chords have three notes either. There are dyads (two notes), triads (three), tetrachords (four), pentachords (five), and hexachords (six). There's no limit on the number of notes, and also, by definition, there's no limits on ...

Personally, I prefer to call this aural skills phenomenon "absolute pitch," (AP) and only make use of the name "perfect pitch" when the level of skill is indeed at that point where it can not be distinguished from perfection. I was recently told that I should not always rely on my memory because it doesn't show as much "talent" as it would with a tuning ...

The aim of tuning an instrument is to make the instrument be in tune, and not "being impressive". Use whatever works - but try to be sure it actually is in tune. A pitch pipe and a tuning fork are both sources of a reference pitch, and neither is better or more "impressive" than the other. I think I would personally prefer a tuning fork, because in my ...

Fux does allow them in counterpoint. As I pointed out in one of my comments, confusion comes from voice-relationships: A minor-sixth is of course allowable between two voices because it is an imperfect consonant interval. A minor-sixth is not allowable within the same voice because it is a leap greater than a perfect-fifth and is therefore inexcusable ...

What I am going to write below is just simple jazz harmony fundamentals, and should naturally be considered as school stuff ! You have to understand the role of each voice in a chord, to define what should be played, and what can be omitted. Mandatory voices The root note defines the root of the chord, and must be played globally. I mean, if you have a ...

No experience with the method you mentioned, but I learned from the center out. P5, P4, M3, m3, M6, m6, M2, m2, M7, m7, TT (tritone). Ascending and descending in all cases. In this sense, you are starting with more consonant, "stable" intervals, then working your way into the more dissonant, "complex" intervals, if you will.

It might be useful to inject a note about the language we use when talking about music, and specifically music theory. It sounds like you are asking about why music theory would call one thing a chord and not some other thing. "Building" and "constructing" have no precise meaning when used in music. Are you talking about "building" an actual chord that gets ...

This is a great question, and one that is logical. Yes, technically, major and minor triads are indeed built that way and can be thought-of as such. They can also be built and thought-of in the way slim described in his answer as well. Interestingly enough, I would say that the majority of factors that influence how we perceive major and minor chords ...

Function, function, function. To use colors for a moment: let's say that a major third in this case is red, and that a minor third is blue. Bear with me. Say we have two squares, where for one, the bottom half is red, and the top half is blue, while on the other, vice versa. Now, turn off the logic in your brain for a moment that says, "Well, just flip ...

In equal temperament it can be either, depending on the context. If you're writing a descending D#-minor triad it's a minor third. If you're writing a descending harmonic G-minor scale it's an augmented second. You should actually write it as F#-Eb then although it will sound just the same on a piano, for example. But even pianists may play the interval ...

Cents, as the name implies, are 1/100th of a semitone (or "chromatic interval"), when working in 12-tone equal temperment (12-TET). So, as long as your definition of "savar" is in relation to a "chromatic interval" that is defined as a 12th of an octave, then you should be able to convert back and forth by simply defining 1 savar = 2 cents. However, if the ...

In a piece of music, if the melody instrument was the only thing playing an F# while accompanying instruments were playing a G chord, one might figure that the instruments together form a Gmaj7 chord, but it may be more meaningful to recognize that the accompanying instruments are playing a G chord and the melody instrument is playing something that isn't in ...

"Slash notation" is also known as Macro-analysis, which is an analytical tool sometimes used in analyzing compositions. Most of your confusion lies in the fact that the chord in question is actually mislabeled. Before I answer your question, I will briefly explain Macro-analysis. Macro-analysis is derived from the practice of Figured Bass, which was a ...

The notation can often give a hint on how to play things. If you were to play the notes E G# B G the most appropriate notation would be E#9 (or more likely E7#9 which replaces the B with a D). This indicates that the "odd" note (G) should be played on top. The slash notation puts the G bass note on the bottom, i.e. it would be played as G E G# B or maybe G ...

In my experience as a musician and using Kodaly, it's less about the intervals themselves as it is about the notes of the scales used. For instance, a minor third down is represented as "sol mi" and a perfect fourth up is "sol do". You can see how these are the notes of the tonic triad. Therefore, in ranking the complexity of an interval, I believe it would ...

Consider also the questioning of naming the unison an interval by italian music theorist Zarlino which I personally find very relevant (rather think of it as a point in geometry). Equality is never found in consonances or intervals, and the unison is to the musician what the point is to the geometer. A point is the beginning of a line, although, it is ...