Categories: Harmony
All theory articlesWhat Is Resolution in Music: How Tension Moves Toward Stability
What resolution means in melody and harmony, how it differs from stability and cadence, why stepwise motion is so common, and how to hear delayed, partial, and redirected resolution.
Reader level: ArrangerCircle Progression: Chord Cycles in Major and Minor
How the circle progression works, why chord roots move by fifths, how its major and minor forms differ, and which songs use this pattern.
Reader level: ArrangerRelative Keys: The Same Notes, Different Tonal Centers
What relative keys are, how C major and A minor are connected, and why the same notes can sound like two different keys.
Reader level: ArrangerParallel Keys: Major and Minor with the Same Tonic
What parallel keys are, how C major differs from C minor, and which scale degrees change when moving between major and minor.
Reader level: ArrangerCommon Chord Progressions
Explore common chord progressions, their scale degrees, harmonic functions, character, and ways to adapt them for songwriting and arranging.
Reader level: ArrangerHow to Build Chord Progressions
A step-by-step method for building chord progressions by choosing a key, harmonic functions, harmonic rhythm, cadences, and smooth voice leading.
Reader level: ArrangerMain Types of Cadences
Learn the main types of cadences: complete, half, interrupted, authentic, plagal, perfect, and imperfect cadences.
Reader level: ArrangerWhat Is a Cadence in Music?
A simple explanation of cadence: how a chord pattern closes or pauses a musical phrase, with the main types and examples.
Reader level: ArrangerTonic, Subdominant, and Dominant
Learn how the three main harmonic functions work: tonic, subdominant, and dominant. Formulas and examples in major and minor keys.
Reader level: ArrangerWhat Is Chord Function?
Learn what chord function means in a key, how function differs from chord name, and how to hear stability, motion, and tension.
Reader level: ArrangerChords in a Minor Key
Learn which chords belong to natural minor, why minor keys often raise the seventh degree, and why V or V7 pulls to the tonic more strongly than v.
Reader level: ArrangerChords in a Major Key
Learn which chords belong to a major key, how the I–ii–iii–IV–V–vi–vii° pattern works, and how to build and transpose progressions.
Reader level: ArrangerWhat Are Diatonic Chords?
Learn what a diatonic scale is, how its notes form the chords of a key, and how Roman numerals help transpose chord progressions.
Reader level: ArrangerScale Degrees in a Key
Learn how scale degrees work inside a key: how they create stability and tension, change their role over chords, and help transpose music.
Reader level: ArrangerWhat Is Musical Tension?
A clear explanation of musical tension: where it comes from, how it relates to keys, scale degrees, and chord functions, and why it often seeks resolution.
Reader level: ArrangerWhat Is the Tonic?
A clear explanation of the tonic: how it creates a sense of home, why it is not always the first note, and how to hear it in melody and harmony.
Reader level: ArrangerAdded-Tone Chords
A simple explanation of added-tone chords: what add2, add4, add6, and add9 mean, how they differ from sus and seventh chords, and how to use them in music.
Reader level: ComposerWhat Are sus2 and sus4 Chords?
A simple explanation of sus2 and sus4 chords: why they do not contain a third, how they sound, and how they differ from major and minor chords.
Reader level: ArrangerWhat Is a Slash Chord?
A simple explanation of slash chords: how to read C/E, how slash chords relate to inversions, and how to use chords with a separate bass note.
Reader level: ArrangerWhat Is a Chord Inversion?
A simple explanation of chord inversions: what changes when the bass note is not the root, and how this affects harmony and voice leading.
Reader level: ArrangerMain Types of Seventh Chords
A reference guide to the main seventh chords: maj7, 7, m7, m7♭5, and dim7, with formulas, sound, and harmonic function.
Reader level: ArrangerWhat Is a Seventh Chord?
A simple explanation of seventh chords: how they are built from a triad plus a seventh, why they matter in harmony, and how to hear their tension.
Reader level: ArrangerDiminished and Augmented Triads
A simple explanation of diminished and augmented triads: formulas, sound, differences from major and minor, and practical harmonic use.
Reader level: ArrangerMajor vs Minor: What Is the Difference
A simple comparison of major and minor: how the third and other scale degrees change, how to hear the difference in chords and keys, and how to see it on the guitar fretboard.
Reader level: MusicianWhat Is Minor in Music
A simple explanation of minor in music: what minor chords, minor scales, and minor keys are, how to hear the minor third, and why minor does not always mean sad.
Reader level: MusicianWhat Is Major in Music
A simple explanation of major in music: what major chords, major scales, and major keys are, how to hear the major third, and why major does not always mean happy.
Reader level: MusicianWhat Is a Key in Music
A simple explanation of musical keys: what a tonal center is, how a key differs from a scale, why the tonic matters, and how keys connect melodies, chords, and the guitar fretboard.
Reader level: Performer