C
D
E
G
A
B
C
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
I
>I
<II
II
>II
<III
III
IV
>IV
<V
V
>V
<VI
VI
>VI
<VII
>1
<2
>2
<3
>4
<5
>5
<6
>6
<7
VII
VIII
do
di
re
ri
mi
fa
fi
so
si
la
li
ti
do
Tonic
Super Tonic
Mediant
Subdominant
Dominant
Submediant
Leading Tone
Octave
Perfect Prime
minor second
Major Second
minor third
Major Third
Perfect Fourth
Augmented Fourth
Diminished Fifth
Perfect Fifth
Augmented Fifth
minor sixth
Major Sixth
minor seventh
Major Seventh
Perfect Octave
Alphabetical
Arabic
Roman
Solmization
Theoretical
Interval
Summary of Scale & Degree Notation
F
22
A chord’s theoretical name indicates its relationship to the other chords of the
key and gives musicians a way to talk about chords without being specific to a
key.
A theoretical name is similar to the name given to a position on a baseball team,
like pitcher, catcher, or outfielder, etc. The theoretical name describes what func-
tion the chord will play in a piece of music. Some chords create tension, some
relaxation, while some create movement. While it is important to know all the
positions a chord can play, the most popular chords in pop music are the tonic,
subdominant, and dominant. In the key of C major these would be C, F, and G,
respectively.
For the purpose of substitution, it is important to understand what position a
chord plays so the proper substitution can be made. Musicians also refer to
chord positions by their Roman numeral equivalents. The tonic is the one chord.
The subdominant is the four chord. The dominant is the five chord.
