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Questions tagged [chord-inversions]

When used in contrast with root position, an inversion of a chord is any voicing where the root of the chord is not the bass note of the chord (lowest note). Chord voicings are inversions of each other when the two chords contain the same notes but are not the exact same voicing.

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Why is second inversion of a C major not a different chord?

Let's consider a C major triad: C-E-G. Its second inversion would be G-C-E. Why is this considered an inversion of C major, instead of Gsus4add6?
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How Come This Doesn't Count As An Inversion?

This is the first verse of "Just The Two Of Us". What I was wondering was why do most people see it as DbM7 C7 progression instead of a Db7 C7 C 6/5 (first inversion)? I hear the and ...
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Are chord inversions determined solely by the lowest note, even in a broken chord?

Example: Key signature of Bb Major, an F dominant 7th chord Given a chord where the lowest note is the root but a non-root degree is played first, is it considered a root chord since the lowest note ...
Henry Cooper's user avatar
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4 answers
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Why is this image from pianochord.org for A11 labeled as an inversion, when its lowest pitch note is an A?

Backstory: Programmer. Teaching myself piano. Programatically building sheet music that will comprehensively cover a great number of chords, as comprehensive as it is reasonably useful and can be ...
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Naming some inverted chords

I'm trying to break down an orchestral score (in C-minor) and describe the horn part, but I'm having troubles describing these chords (the second image is identical, but I mapped horns 2-4 onto the ...
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Inversion naming conventions

Does the name of the inversions (first, second, etc.) refer to a specific interval (3rd, 5th, etc.) or just the next chord tone? For example, a Cmaj7 chord in first inversion starts with the 3rd, and ...
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How do I read inversions fast?

picture above is D minor in 1st inversion. I usually find inversions by stacking up notes in a closed interval, but it takes too much time. Is there a fast way of discerning inversion chords and ...
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Building muscle memory for playing chords by ear, with piano chord inversions

I've started to practice ear training in order to be able to play chords by ear... while playing melody by ear is pretty easy for me, playing chords is harder. I started with the simple I-IV-V chord ...
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How Do These Decorative Chords Contribute to Diatonic Modulation in Aldwell and Schachter's Example?

I'm studying diatonic modulation via example (e) in Unit 26 of "Harmony & Voice Leading" by Aldwell and Schachter and need some clarification. The progression moves from an F major to an ...
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Specific chord confusion: why the C# in Eb7 b9 13?

needing the expert help on the forum as I simply can't understand this. Following a vid, the player mentions he plays Eb7 9b 13 chord. The melody note is C, and he plays 1-3 (Eb, G) in left hand. What ...
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Invert open voice chords

when playing open voiced chords, do I still want to invert them so they fit each other? Or isn't open voiced chords as common to invert? And when I play chords with my right hand, and bass note with ...
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I have an augmented chord in a chord progression. How do I name it correctly? How do I know which inversion it is? [duplicate]

I know the basics of constructing an augmented chord. What I don't understand is how to choose between the three inversions of an augmented chord in a specific context. For example, Bb augmented and ...
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1 answer
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Meaning of III 4/6 on this particular piece [duplicate]

Consider the initial segment of Antonio Lauro's "Nocturno": I have been reading music for a long time, but with total ignorance of music theory (meaning I spent years learning and reading ...
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Why is an inverted triad not named as another chord with the first note of the inversion as the root?

1st inversion of C is E G C. Is that not a type of E chord? Why are inverted chords not named by their root (1st) note?
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Stuck with figured bass notation for inverted 7th chord

My apologies for the "name this chord" question, but i'm stuck trying to identify this harmony. The figured bass notation indicates to me that the bass note should be the seventh of a 7 ...
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How do you tell the inversion of a diminished 7th chord?

In any chord that isn't a diminished 7th, you can tell the inversion of the chord by the intervals against the bass(eg: 6-3=1st inversion triad, 6-4=2nd inversion triad, 5-3=root position, more ...
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Formal definition of an inverted chord

Question: Is there a formal definition that would apply to all chords / genres of what an inverted chord is? Given a chord, I want to formally prove on paper (so not using my ears) that the chord is ...
orangeBall's user avatar
5 votes
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Piano chords with an octave in them

I rarely see people playing chords on the piano the way I learned in school, but they more often play chords with an octave in them. For example, instead of playing C major as C E G, they play it ...
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If a chord has a note from an extension in the bass, is that note still an extension? [duplicate]

This question stems from a recent discussion I had with a friend, neither of us are academically trained musicians. A chord was described as a Gm9/C. My point of view was that the C note makes it a ...
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Deceptive Cadence second inversion in Secondary half-diminished 7th chord

The image above (from Korean composer Byung Dong Paik's Theory of Harmonics, page 227) shows Deceptive Cadence progressions of Secondary half-diminished 7th chord As you can see, the progression in ...
guss2222's user avatar
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3 answers
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Can there be a chord with two inversions represented by the same figure?

When figures are used to describe chords, they represent the intervals above the lowest pitch, and these seem to be treated as unique. For example, basic triads come in 5-3, 6-3, and 6-4 forms; and ...
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Preparation of I7 second inversion in minor

The image above (from Korean composer Byung Dong Paik's Theory of Harmonics, page 139) shows progressions 7th chords(I7), and inversion The book explains that such a process on the second image cannot ...
guss2222's user avatar
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1 answer
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resolution of vii 7th chord 3rd inversion

The image above (from Korean composer Byung Dong Paik's Theory of Harmonics, page 130) shows progressions diminished and half-diminished 7th chords 3rd inversion But there seems to be another solution,...
guss2222's user avatar
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2 answers
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Why is this a Gm7 chord?

I am studying some jazz piano licks and there are these inversions/variations and trying to understand how this is considered a Gm7 chords. There is no G in the chords and C which is not in a Gm7 but ...
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Unanswered questions about Second Inversion and Perfect fourth

image above is show how used the triad second Inversion. and source is page 76 of paik byung dong theory of harmonics by Byung Dong Paik (Korean composer). 1. I've always wondered, there's an ...
guss2222's user avatar
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1 answer
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What is the principle of I46 progression to I7?

The above image is called a secondary 7th chord solution by Anton Bruckner. But there is an I46 there, and there are many ways to use the I46, but I've never seen it used this way, so I don't know why ...
guss2222's user avatar
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12 votes
5 answers
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Difference between Edim7 and Gdim7

I am a self taught keyboard player, and thus humbly request for guidance. While trying to learn Preludio in C Major (also, Prelude) by J S Bach, I was trying to note down the chord each bar has been ...
Shreyan Das's user avatar
5 votes
2 answers
297 views

With the melody in the bass line, what do you call these chords?

Here's an example of some chords. The two higher notes can be considered a C (power-) chord, i.e. root and fifth only. A very lazy interpretation and notation could therefore be C/A, C/B, C, C/F. ...
zebonaut's user avatar
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4 answers
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perfect 4th in third(3rd) inversion and more

I know that a perfect 4th is dissonant at above the bass, but some explanation says that: "If the note closest to the bass is not a 4, (like a 42 chord of 3rd inversion) that is not dissonant.(...
guss2222's user avatar
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3 votes
3 answers
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Intervals and Inversions

I thought I had a pretty good understanding of inversions, until I ran across this tutorial video where he plays the following "inversions" I understand that these are close triad voicings. ...
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3 answers
124 views

Inversion and alternative bass note

On the Am/G: Is this an Am with 2nd inversion and an alternative bass note G? On the C/G: Is this a C with an alternative bass note G?
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2 answers
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Voice Leading and chords without naming

I have the hobby of playing the bass guitar since 4-5 months, and for deeper knowledge of music I'm studying harmony. I have no formal education on music so please be patient. I've choosen Autumn ...
Antonio's user avatar
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2 answers
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Help me correct/understand the harmonic analysis of this

Am I missing something here? (Note: the circled notes aren't included so we just ignore that. I'm only trying to analyze the rest.) In measure 8 (the second measure in the below excerpt), after Em, I ...
mero10's user avatar
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2 answers
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Completing a chord progression

I am looking to complete a chord progression of 3 chords that I try to identify first before continuing the progression. However having no theoretical background I am struggling if you could please ...
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1 answer
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Can V65 or V6 move down to V7 or do they usually resolve to I?

I understand that the bass of V65 or V6 wants to move up to I. My text book does have some double neighbor figures where V65 goes to V43 before resolving to I or I6. However, I am unable to find an ...
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2 votes
4 answers
122 views

How to conceive 1st inversion chords: intervals vs. note-names

When writing 1st inversion chords do you write intervals above the bass (For example a 6th and a 3rd above the bass or a 6th and a 10th above the bass) or do you first spell the chord in your mind and ...
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1 vote
1 answer
384 views

What is the best way to write labels for chord inversions?

Please see this image from a textbook which asks me to label the chord inversions seen in the exercise. You will see that my answer in the second set of chords is different but this is the way that I ...
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1 vote
2 answers
54 views

Do the inversions of V7 always support the other 3 tones of the chord?

Since you can only use 4 notes in 4 part writing and the inversions of V7 must be complete then is it correct to say that V65 supports ^5 ^2 and ^4 V43 supports ^7 ^4 and ^5 V42 supports ^5 ^7 and ^2 ...
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5 votes
2 answers
2k views

Does V42 only resolve to I6 or can it move to V7 forming a stepwise bass?

If the chordal 7th needs to resolve down by step then I understand why V42 should move to I6 but cant chords be expanded and the dissonant 7th in a 7th chord move to another voice for example from the ...
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2 votes
1 answer
351 views

in 4 part harmony is it bad practice to double the bass of the I6 chord? [duplicate]

Many places say that doubling the bass of major chords in 1st inversion is bad practice. So using C major as an example the bass note E would not be doubled. please see the following from a harmony ...
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6 votes
3 answers
344 views

How to write inverted chords when given a bass note

If I am asked to write major, minor, diminished and augmented 6/3 chords on the bass note of E. What would be the best way to determine the qualities of each sixth and third? I could think about ...
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2 votes
3 answers
163 views

Is the iii chord in second inversion ever used?

In A major if I want to harmonize a descending step bassline that goes A>G#>F#>E>A I could be looking at: I iii6/4 vi V I I am not sure about that iii6/4 chord though. Is this ever used? ...
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1 vote
4 answers
363 views

If you take a dominant 7th chord and replace the 5th for a major 6th, what do you get?

I know that in dominant 7th chords the 5th is sometimes omitted but what about if you replace the 5th with a major 6th. Does that make it another chord or is it still a dominant 7 chord? Are there any ...
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1 vote
1 answer
106 views

is it common for a guitarist to play a 5/3 chord while the harmony is actually a 6/3 chord?

I often see guitar chord boxes in sheet music for rock/folk and pop songs where the chord on the guitar will be something like a G major chord but the piano part will actually be a Em 6/3 chord. In a ...
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1 vote
3 answers
112 views

Is there a similarity between inverted 7 4/2 chords and sus 4/2 chords?

I am learning 7th chord inversions and realize that the 3rd inversion of a minor 7th chord is a chord with a 4th and a 2nd above the bass. From learning a lot about sus chords recently, I can't help ...
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3 votes
2 answers
113 views

How to harmonize an interval of a 4th

I am composing a song and am used to using triads in my music with the occasional 7th chord. One problem I come across is sometimes I have a perfect 4th against a bass note and this might be an ...
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2 votes
1 answer
108 views

difficulty with chord spelling and voicing in Neumeyer's Hindemith analysis

This post is in reference to David Neumeyer's The Music of Paul Hindemith. Please refer to the third chord of m.1 in example 3.12 (below). I see this chord spelled as C E E Bb. Having said that, I ...
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Chord progression versions and categories

I'm having trouble interpreting this chord progression. For example, the three different iv chords shown: does the bass note not affect the right hand? I can see that they are only using "A-E-C&...
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1 vote
2 answers
224 views

Does the name of a chord change if the bass note changes?

In a song I am learning there is B5 chord but the bass note plays an A on the strong beats which, if I am not mistaken, would make this a Bm7/A or a B7/A (more likely if the key is E) so shouldn't the ...
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9 votes
6 answers
1k views

Em/C: Sound Notation, or Dirty Shorthand?

A recent post about slash chords got me started thinking about whether it is technically "correct" to use a slash chord to mark a root position chord. For example, in C/E, the root is C. In ...
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