# Where does an augmented chord fit in relation to a harmonized major scale?



## Charles (Jul 3, 2010)

I was just thinking about this when I was noodling, there are spaces in the harmonized major scale for dominant chords, major and minor chords, and even a slot for a diminished chord, but where does an augmented chord fit in?

I mean:

1. Maj 2. Min 3. Min 4. Maj 5. Dom 6. Min 7. min7b5 8. Maj

So where does the augmented chord fit? Is it an expansion of a major chord?


----------



## scottro202 (Jul 3, 2010)

There is no "slot" within the major scale for an augmented chord.

They aren't an "extension" of a major chord, but simply a major chord with a raised 5th


----------



## Mr. Big Noodles (Jul 3, 2010)

It's an alteration of a dominant chord. You'll see V+ and V+7 pretty often. The raised fifth acts as a sort of 'leading tone' to the third of the I chord.







In the first example, we have an augmented V+ triad going to a major I. Nothing special there, the G moves to C, the B is the normal leading tone that goes to C, and the D# is the special note that goes to E. The second is an augmented dominant seventh chord going to a major I. Same voice leading, except you have the addition of the F, which falls to the third, E. Note that I'm voicing the D# above the F - you usually want to keep more colorful tones on the top of the chord. When you deal with minor tonics, the voice leading is different. As D# and Eb are enharmonic, it would sound like an anticipation for the augmented fifth to carry over as the third of the next chord, so it falls to the tonic tone by minor third or (as here) augmented second. If that's the case, then the third of the tonic chord is achieved by one of the G's also falling by a (major) third. So, this is where the augmented dominant comes in handy: the F falls to Eb, and the D# (Eb) leaps to C. You might see the D# spelled as its enharmonic equivalent, or vice versa. It all depends on what's easier to read, and probably whether the #5 is diatonic or requires an accidental.

As far as scales that this chord derives from, it fits into the harmonic minor (you would use the phrygian dominant over it) or the whole tone scale.

G phrygian dominant: *G* Ab *B* C D *Eb* *F*
G whole tone: *G* A *B* C# *D#* *F*




Of course, nothing is preventing its use as a color chord, but this is merely the functional form of the augmented chord that I'm showing you. There is a such thing as +maj7, for example.



-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


*Edit:* Melodic minor also works. Here's the fifth mode, sometimes called 'melodic major', or 'mixolydian b6', and sometimes 'aeolian dominant' (aeolian mode with a raised third). Consider its similarities to phrygian dominant:

G melodic major : *G* A *B* C D *Eb* *F*




The neapolitan major scale also works, but that's mostly because it's the same thing as a whole tone scale, with an extra note thrown in somewhere. In reality, six of the modes of this scale work for this chord.

G neapolitan major: G Ab Bb C D E F# - no compatibility.

The modes, on G:

Mode 2: *G* A *B* C# *D#* *E#* F#
Mode 3: *G* A *B* C# *D#* E *F*
Mode 4: *G* A *B* C# D *Eb* *F*
Mode 5: *G* A *B* C Db *Eb* *F*
Mode 6: *G* A Bb *Cb* Db *Eb* *F*
Mode 7: (I'm using a double sharp as the tonic to make the rest of the notes easier to read): *Fx* G# A *B* C# *D#* *E#*

You get the point.


----------



## Trespass (Jul 5, 2010)

Because Schecter covers everything succinctly, I don't have much to add. But I will say that I fit it fits nicely as a color chord when used with maj7 and add #4 chords.

Example: 

Cmaj7: C E G B
Cadd#4: C E F# G
Caug: C E G#
Cmaj7#5: C E G# B

The last is a particularly pretty chord, in my opinion, and would sound very nice as arpeggios.


----------



## Mr. Big Noodles (Jul 5, 2010)

Also, like a diminished seventh chord, any tone in an augmented triad can be a leading tone. In fact, any tone in a whole tone scale (one source of an augmented chord) can be a leading tone, too.


----------



## Dragonfly (Jul 5, 2010)

SchecterWhore said:


> Also, like a diminished seventh chord, any tone in an augmented triad can be a leading tone. In fact, any tone in a whole tone scale (one source of an augmented chord) can be a leading tone, too.



Damn,, they could just scrap the whole Music Theory, Lessons & Techniques subforum and redirect every post to ScheterWhore 

You have a lot of knowledge and excellent explanation skills. You're awesome and if you lived in the Netherlands then I would probably have slept with you.. (wups,, that's too far ) 
No, kidding, but sorry for this being offtopic, my knowledge about this is very little but I had to applaud ScheterWhore in public for his awesome replying on this forum!


----------



## Mr. Big Noodles (Jul 5, 2010)

Dragonfly said:


> Damn,, they could just scrap the whole Music Theory, Lessons & Techniques subforum and redirect every post to ScheterWhore
> 
> You have a lot of knowledge and excellent explanation skills. You're awesome and if you lived in the Netherlands then I would probably have slept with you.. (wups,, that's too far )
> No, kidding, but sorry for this being offtopic, my knowledge about this is very little but I had to applaud ScheterWhore in public for his awesome replying on this forum!








Ooh, one more thing: augmented chords are often used as passing sonorities.


```
e-4--[color=green][b]5[/b][/color]--6--[color=green][b]5[/b][/color]--4
b-6--[color=green][b]6[/b][/color]--6--[color=green][b]6[/b][/color]--6
G-6--[color=green][b]6[/b][/color]--6--[color=green][b]6[/b][/color]--6
D-
```


Common tone relations are also possible, seeing as an augmented triad is one note away from a major or minor triad, and two notes away from a diminished triad.

C+: C E G#
C: C E G

C+: C E G#
C#m: C# E G#

C+: C E G#
A°: C Eb A (Inverted to show the contrapuntal movement of the other chord members)


----------



## Trespass (Jul 5, 2010)

I was just thinking today about this thread. The augmented chord doesn't fall naturally into the diatonic scale, but it does fall nicely into the harmonic minor scale.

D harmonic minor: D E F G A Bb C# D

You can construct an augmented triad out of the third mode (F A C#)

I found this particularly interesting because it's where the relative major would lie in the diatonic/natural minor (D minor to F major).

If you construct four note chords out of modes, you get some really interesting choices:

D - min/maj7 (D F A C#)
E - dim7 (E G Bb C#)*
F - maj7#5 (F A C# E)
G - dim 7 (G Bb C# E)*
A - dom7 (A C# E G)
Bb- min/maj7 (Bb C# F A)*
C#- dim7 (C# E G Bb)*

*Not the "kosher" enharmonic spelling. Expressed here for sake of clarity.


In fact, I'm going to be experimenting with 6-4-5-1 and other progressions and arpeggios to see what happens. If something doesn't work out, I can always substitute a four note voice arpeggio with a three voice (the min/maj7's immediately become straight minor chords; easier to work with) or revert back to the diatonic scale mode.


----------



## telecaster90 (Jul 6, 2010)

Augmented chords work really well as the III7 going to the vi chord. It uses the notes from Harmonic Minor/Phyrigian Dominant, which makes the III chord major. The #5 sound is more correctly described as a b13 in this case.


----------



## Mr. Big Noodles (Jul 6, 2010)

telecaster90 said:


> Augmented chords work really well as the III7 going to the vi chord. It uses the notes from Harmonic Minor/Phyrigian Dominant, which makes the III chord major. The #5 sound is more correctly described as a b13 in this case.



Secondary dominants. 



Trespass said:


> If you construct four note chords out of modes, you get some really interesting choices:
> 
> D - min/maj7 (D F A C#)
> E - dim7 (E G Bb C#)*
> ...




You'll get better functional chords if you use stacked thirds. What you have written are inversions of vii°7, and something that's not technically tertian. So, in D harmonic minor...

iiø7, Em7b5: E G Bb D 
iv7, Gm7: G Bb D F
VI&#8710;7, Bbmaj7: Bb D F A

Remember, Bb to C# is an augmented second, not a minor third.


----------



## Trespass (Jul 6, 2010)

SchecterWhore said:


> Secondary dominants.
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Absolutely right! I got caught up on the aug 2nd.

D - min/maj7 (D F A C#)
E - m7b5 (E G Bb D) <--- Changed
F - maj7#5 (F A C# E)
G - m7 (G Bb D F) <--- Changed
A - dom7 (A C# E G)
Bb- maj7 (Bb D F A) <--- Changed
C#- dim7 (C# E G Bb)

Which makes the progression: i&#8710;7, iiø7, III+, iv7, V7, VI&#8710;7, vii°7


----------



## Fionn (Jul 6, 2010)

my head just exploded!


----------



## ozzcows (Jul 6, 2010)

I thought they existed in the diminished scale but I guess i thought wrong.


----------



## Trespass (Jul 6, 2010)

ozzcows said:


> I thought they existed in the diminished scale but I guess i thought wrong.



The closest thing you can find is a major triad.

Octatonic (h-w): *C* Db Eb *Fb* Gb *Abb* Bbb Cbb // (C E G)


----------



## Mr. Big Noodles (Jul 7, 2010)

ozzcows said:


> I thought they existed in the diminished scale but I guess i thought wrong.



I know, I was thinking about this not too long ago. "What? I thought there was an augmented chord in here!" 

If that doesn't say I'm a nerd, I don't know what does.


----------



## Charles (Jul 7, 2010)

You guys flat out terrify me.


----------



## ozzcows (Jul 7, 2010)

SchecterWhore said:


> I know, I was thinking about this not too long ago. "What? I thought there was an augmented chord in here!"
> 
> If that doesn't say I'm a nerd, I don't know what does.


It seems nerdy but after knowing theory for a while it seems so simple. I've noticed the infinitely symmetrical minor 3rds and tritones, and noticed in the scale itself there's a couple of major 3rds but they don't go on forever like I thought.


----------



## telecaster90 (Jul 13, 2010)

SchecterWhore said:


> Secondary dominants.




Fair enough, blame my use of III7 on a teacher I had who liked to refer to chords as what they were rather than by secondary function (III7 as opposed to V7/vi) or on having been brainwashed by Nashville Numbers charts


----------



## Mr. Big Noodles (Jul 13, 2010)

telecaster90 said:


> Fair enough, blame my use of III7 on a teacher I had who liked to refer to chords as what they were rather than by secondary function (III7 as opposed to V7/vi) or on having been brainwashed by Nashville Numbers charts



I had a jazz teacher who did the same thing, and it kind of bugged me that he'd even say "it's a secondary dominant" from time to time, and not explain what he meant by that. As a result, anybody who hadn't taken the classical harmony classes didn't know what was happening. I personally think that it's better to say "this is what this is doing" (i.e.: secondary dominant), then, after that's established, say "but people who don't know this or are communicating in a popular music environment say II7, or III7, or I7, or whatever". I also think that N7, bII7, and Ger+6/I are completely different chords. Go figure.


----------



## All_¥our_Bass (Jul 13, 2010)

Trespass said:


> Cmaj7#5: C E G# B
> 
> The last is a particularly pretty chord, in my opinion, and would sound very nice as arpeggios.


Cmaj7+ is a great arp to sweep.
One of my favorite things to play on the higher end of basses.


----------



## telecaster90 (Jul 14, 2010)

SchecterWhore said:


> I had a jazz teacher who did the same thing, and it kind of bugged me that he'd even say "it's a secondary dominant" from time to time, and not explain what he meant by that. As a result, anybody who hadn't taken the classical harmony classes didn't know what was happening. I personally think that it's better to say "this is what this is doing" (i.e.: secondary dominant), then, after that's established, say "but people who don't know this or are communicating in a popular music environment say II7, or III7, or I7, or whatever". I also think that N7, bII7, and Ger+6/I are completely different chords. Go figure.



The class I was taking was an improvisation class and he was teaching it from a pop music background. That's the thing about the school that I go to and being a Commercial Music major. I've noticed different approaches in teaching the major; some people see it as learning how to survive in the popular music idiom (whether it be pop, country, rock, etc etc), whereas other teachers just see it was a glorified jazz studies major. I've noticed that the jazz approach is taken more by the saxaphone cats at the school whereas the guitar teachers who have been out on commercial gigs teach it from the survival standpoint.

I'd be interested to see what you think the difference is between the N7, bII7, and Ger+6/I is. Off the top of my head, I know N7 usually leads to the V (and is usually found in first inversion) and I recall using Augmented 6th chords to label tritone substitutions when we started looking at jazz charts in my theory class. On an unrelated note, I find that I tend to run into bIImaj7's more often than bII7's when I'm reading stuff from the Real Book (The B section of Girl from Impanema as an example off the top of my head).


----------



## Mr. Big Noodles (Jul 14, 2010)

I don't study jazz charts as much as I should. I have an aversion to standards, I guess. I take whatever education I can get, though; an improv class sounds wonderful. I figure I have enough grounding to gain something from anyone's teaching style, regardless of how they name chords.

Anyway...

N7 - A pre-dominant function. Goes to V, in other words.
bII7 - Probably a tritone sub. Dominant function, goes to I. May also proceed to III (in minor; less likely iii in major).
Ger+6/I - Same thing as bII7, but the voice-leading is implicit, and the resolution doesn't necessarily have to be to I (vi6 and IV6/4 are possibilities, perhaps even ii4/2, but having extensions down in the bass doesn't happen a lot. Secondary functions and mode mixtures are always welcome, of course.)

And then there's V7/#IV, or V7/bV, which are also the same sonority as bII7, N7, and Ger+6/I. Those, obviously, are standard secondary functions that either resolve normally or deceptively.

One reason I think you might see a lot of bII&#8710;'s is because jazz likes to approach chords by parallel voice-leading, especially of the chromatic sort. It wouldn't surprise me to see bII&#8710;-I&#8710;.


----------



## TreWatson (Jul 14, 2010)

also, just pointing out that in the major scale, 7 you have right but you can just say that it's diminished. lol


----------

