Chromatic Harmony
| This lesson is part of the Harmony category. |
Objectives
- Students will be familiar with common chromatic harmonic vocabulary, including the Neapolitan chord, borrowed chords and augmented sixth chords.
- Students will be able to substitute chromatic chords into a diatonic chord progression.
- Students will be familiar with enharmonic modulation and tritone substitution.
Resources
Readings
- Music Theory for Musicians and Normal People:
- Shaffer, Wharton (eds.), Open Music Theory:
- Hutchinson, Music Theory for the 21st-Century Classroom
- Snodgrass, Contemporary Musicianship:
Class Activities
- Discussion and definition of chromatic harmonic vocabulary
- Harmonic analysis of music from different genres and time periods
- Substitution or insertion of chromatic chords into a given diatonic chord progression
- Composition and improvisation of chord progressions which use altered or enharmonic modulation to modulate between two given keys
Assignments
- Notation of various chromatic chords in a given key
- Identification and analysis of chromatic harmony in written and recorded music
- Substitution of chromatic chords into a diatonic chord progression
- Composition of a chord progression which uses chromatic harmony
Files
- Spelling Borrowed and Neapolitan Chords in Basic Form (Finale | MusicXML | PDF)
- Spelling Augmented Sixth Chords in Basic Form (Finale | MusicXML | PDF)
- Spelling Chromatic Chords in Basic Form (Finale | MusicXML | PDF)
- Spelling Enharmonic Modulations (Finale | MusicXML | PDF)
- Adding Chromatic Chords to a Diatonic Piano Passage (Finale | MusicXML | PDF)
- Harmonic Analysis: "Peacherine Rag" (excerpt) by Scott Joplin (Finale | MusicXML | PDF)
- Harmonic Analysis: "Love On Top" (excerpt) by Beyoncé Knowles (Finale | MusicXML | PDF)
- Worksheets by John Paul Ito