CHORD SYMBOLS

     Chord symbols are those funny-looking little notations above the melody line of a popular song. They indicate the chords that are appropriate for the melody during any given measure.

     Here are the most-used chords and their symbols:

     Sometimes parenthesis are used in chord symbols to indicate the existence of an altered tone. For example:

C7 (flat 9) means           C7 chord with a flat 9th

     Any extension includes all the previous intervals of the chord. For example, a C7 includes the root, 3rd, and 5th of the chord, as well as the 7th. So:

C9 includes: root, 3rd, 5th, 7th, 9th

C11 includes: root, 3rd, 5th, 7th, 9th, 11th

C13 includes: root, 3rd, 5th, 7th, 9th, 11th, 13th

     All extensions assume the dominant 7th, not the major 7th (scale 7th), unless specifically indicated otherwise.

     The chord symbols we have been discussing are the ones most used in modern music. They are known as absolute symbols, because C stands for the C chord, and so on. There is another type of chord symbol which is known as relative, because the same symbol can be used in any key and refers to different chords in different keys. When the key is changed, the relative symbols take on new meanings. This relative system makes use of Roman numerals:

I means the chord built on the 1st note of the scale

II means the chord built on the 2nd note of the scale

III means the chord built on the 3rd degree of the scale

IV means the chord built on the 4th degree of the scale

V means the chord built on the 5th degree of the scale

VI means the chord built on the 6th degree of the scale

VII means the chord built on the 7th degree of the scale

A large Roman numeral signifies a major chord

A small Roman numeral signifies a minor chord

A + after a large Roman numeral signifies an augmented chord

A º after a small Roman numeral signifies a diminished chord

     Below is a chart showing how these two symbol systems relate to one another:

     From this chart you can see that in a major scale:

     The I, IV and V chords are always major

     The ii, iii, and vi chords are always minor

     The vii chord is always diminished

     This does not mean, of course, that a I chord cannot sometimes be minor or diminished, or that a ii chord cannot sometimes be major. It simply means that in their natural state these chords always follow this pattern. They can be altered by the use of accidentals – sharps, flats, and naturals.

     So, if you were playing a song in the key of C, relative chord symbols might appear as follows:

     The indicated chords would be :C, D minor, G, E minor, A minor, D minor, G, and C.

     To these Roman numerals may be added Arabic numbers indicating an extension. For example:

1          V7        1          would mean       C,G7,C

     Often other Arabic numbers are added to indicate the particular inversion of the chord. But since this relative system is not much used in improvised jazz, we won’t go into that here.