You can begin to learn these skills and techniques in your lessons, but also in the pieces of music that you learn. Different songs can help you to improve everything, from playing in different time signatures to nailing rhythms and scales.

With this in mind, we have come up with 15 easy songs for beginner saxophonists, and these will help you develop as a player whilst (hopefully!) being fun and enjoyable to play. You can play all these on the soprano, alto, tenor, or baritone saxophone, so without further ado, let’s get started!

1. “Swing Low, Sweet Chariot”

“Swing Low, Sweet Chariot” is a song that was written by slaves in the USA, known as a spiritual, and is set in a call-and-response style. This perfectly illustrates the concept of question and answer in musical phrasing.

The song uses the pentatonic scale (a scale consisting of five notes) which is also a scale that is commonly used as a basis for improvisations and has good use of the octave key.

In addition, “Swing Low, Sweet Chariot” is a great beginner song as it is slow, with a simple, memorable melody, and can also be used to train dotted rhythms and practice tonguing.

Once you have got the song under your fingers, why not try improvising a new melody using the same pentatonic scale? This is a great way to start learning improvisation.

2. “Summertime”

Arguably the most well-known of songs from George Gershwin’s opera Porgy and Bess, the melody of “Summertime” melody is actually taken from a Ukrainian folk song. It has been recorded thousands of times and fits nicely into both the jazz and blues genres.

Being able to play “Summertime” is a must for every saxophone player. Again, it is based on the pentatonic scale and is the ideal way to get to grips with the 6/8 time signature.

Once you have the notes nailed, “Summertime” is a great song to help you express yourself through rubato, and you could also have a go at improvising around the melody.

3. “Fly Me To The Moon”

“Fly Me to the Moon” was a song written by Bart Howard but made famous by Frank Sinatra. Despite being a good beginner song, it is a jazz standard, and this is why it is so satisfying to play. It sounds impressive while not being overly complicated.

The melody of “Fly Me to the Moon” mainly moves in step, meaning that it is quite simple to remember, as well as being relatively repetitive. The song introduces the concept of accidentals but can be played as fast or slowly as you like.

This is a great song to help you to develop your improvisation skills, although the harmony is more complicated than the previous songs.

4. “House Of The Rising Sun”

Another famous folk song turned blues classic is “House of the Rising Sun.” The most famous versions were probably recorded by the Animals and Bob Dylan, but the song is a staple in every saxophonist’s repertoire.

Learning the song gives you extra practice in the 6/8 time signature and is great for practicing movement between octaves. It is played mostly in legato (smooth), which can help you to work on your tone.

It can be played with rubato, which can help you to perfect your expression, and once you feel comfortable with the melody, this is a great tune to use to practice your improvisation.

5. “Let It Be”

Written by the Beatles, “Let It Be” is a well-known ballad that is the title track of the band’s 12th studio album. The song, although it has a simple tune, can be made as complicated as you like and is based on a common chord sequence.

The melody of “Let It Be” is based on the arpeggio, making it a little trickier than melodies that move in step and can also help you to practice the use of upbeats. This is a song that is full of expression, allowing you to practice your dynamics and rubato.

6. “Amazing Grace”

“Amazing Grace” is one of the most famous pieces of music in the world. It was first published in 1779 and has since been used as religious as well as secular music. It has been estimated that the song is performed about 10 million times each year—so why not make it 10 million and one?

The tune has a simple rhythm, enabling you to concentrate on getting the notes right and as good as possible, and the simple melody can be embellished once you have the basics nailed.

The song can be easily divided into four separate phrases, which makes it easier to learn. “Amazing Grace” is also the perfect song to practice playing in 3/4.

7. “Tequila”

Written by the Champs, “Tequila” is one of the most famous saxophone solos that you will be almost certainly asked to play once people find out that you play the instrument. It is fun to listen to and fun to play and can be great for your playing for many different reasons.

One of the biggest bonuses to learning to play “Tequila” is that it gives you great practice in your rhythm skills. This is especially good for syncopation, and at a fast speed.

It is easy to learn and has plenty of repetition and, frankly, is a good way to practice playing loudly! “Tequila” also helps you to practice accented notes and maybe even a growl if you’re feeling adventurous!

8. “Silent Night”

The much-loved Christmas carol “Silent Night” was written in Austria and first performed in 1818. There will almost certainly be times in the festive season when you are asked to play a carol or two, so having this one under your belt is a great option.

“Silent Night” gives you a real workout in breath control and tone. Playing relatively long notes quietly and with feeling is not as easy as it sounds, and this is the perfect song to practice it. It gives you more practice in playing with a 6/8 time signature with expression, but not necessarily a lot of rubato.

9. “Blue Danube”

Composed by Johann Strauss, “Blue Danube” is a famous waltz loved the world over. It is one of the most commonly played pieces of classical music, featuring in orchestral repertoires, TV adverts, and film soundtracks.

Since “Blue Danube” is a waltz—set in a 3/4 time signature—it can be a bit tricky to get your head around at first. Tonguing is essential to ensure that you play repeated notes in the correct rhythm, and accents are vital for the piece to get the waltz feel.

It’s a great piece to learn that can help you to hone a number of essential skills. The song is one of the reasons why you should practice your arpeggios as it makes use of them throughout.

10. “Hallelujah”

Leonard Cohen’s uplifting song “Hallelujah” was originally released in 1984 and has since been recorded by other artists, most famously by Jeff Buckley. It has been used in the film Shrek and many other movies and TV soundtracks, and it has been estimated that over 300 covers of the song have been recorded.

Playing “Hallelujah” on the saxophone is as close to singing it as it gets. It is in a lyrical 6/8 and gives you the chance to express yourself with all your glory.

“Hallelujah” generally moves in step, building toward the high notes, giving you practice in playing a whole range of notes with the control that is necessary. It also gives you tonguing practice and a chance to go wild with dynamics.

11. “Stand By Me”

The song “Stand By Me” was first performed in 1961 by Ben E. King but later became the title track to the blockbuster film of the same name. It has since been covered by legends such as John Lennon, Otis Redding, and Tracy Chapman. And now you!

The song is based on the major scale, and the melody generally moves in either a step or arpeggio style, making it easy to remember. With its mixture of slurred and tongued notes, it is a great way to practice your articulation, especially at speed.

“Stand By Me” can be played as a simple or embellished version, and its chord sequence is a common one, meaning that it’s fun to try out improvisations to.

12. “Watermelon Man”

Taken from Herbie Hancock’s first album, “Watermelon Man” is a jazz standard loved by saxophonists around the world. The good news is that although the harmony can sound complicated, in fact, its base is very simple, and it is, therefore, easy to improvise over.

The song is a great place to start for budding jazz players. It has interesting harmony, makes use of accidentals, and also has some important syncopation to get your fingers around.

“Watermelon Man” can be used as a good introduction to Latin-style music and includes octave leaps that are great for training your tone and tuning.

13. “Happy Birthday”

What easy song list is complete without this one? “Happy Birthday” is arguably the most famous song in the world—it is certainly one that is sung the most often. It is also a song that you will always be asked to play—and useful, as you will already know the melody inside out.

The melody of “Happy Birthday” uses mainly a combination of step and arpeggio notes, although it does also have an octave jump. Once you have the notes under your fingers, try speeding it up and playing it faster or perhaps with a different rhythm to expand your technique.

14. “Can’t Help Falling In Love”

First recorded by Elvis Presley, “Can’t Help Falling in Love” features in his film Blue Hawaii. The melody is based on the French love song “Plaisir d’Amour” and has also been covered by British reggae group UB40.

“Can’t Help Falling in Love” has a straightforward melody that is short, repetitive, and easy to remember. Although the melody is simple, the trickier part of the song is the rhythm.

It helps you to train your triplets in 4/4 or 12/8. It also includes leaps of a 5th that are useful in training your intonation, and the longer notes are great for practicing your tone.

15. “Blowing In The Wind”

Written by Bob Dylan, “Blowing in the Wind” is world famous for being a protest song. It has also been recorded by artists such as Peter, Paul, and Mary, and even Stevie Wonder.

The ultimate hippy classic, “Blowing in the Wind” is sure to get everyone singing along with you whilst you train some core saxophone skills. The melody of the song stretches across the octave key, giving you good practice in moving between two registers.

It is also a good song for working on your syncopation skills and getting your phrasing nailed down. Try playing each phrase in one breath to work on your breath control.

Summing Up Our List Of Easy Saxophone Songs

It is important when you are learning to play any instrument, that you learn songs that you enjoy, that are at the right level of skill, and that give you a sense of achievement when you have mastered them. This way you stay motivated whilst seeing that you are improving.

We hope that you enjoy learning these saxophone songs. There are some in there that you will certainly come back to time and again as you develop your playing skills.

This is why this post will help you learn all about the different chord symbols in music. There are a lot of different chords, and learning their symbols and markings will help you read them more efficiently and understand them better. First, however, let’s recap what a chord is. 

What is a Chord? 

A chord in music is basically just two or more notes played at the same time.

Most of the time, the combination of these notes will create what we call harmony, and we can put different chords back to back in order to create a song. 

Here are a few different chords: 

As you can see in the example, the way we label a chord is with two parts.

First there is a letter, and this followed by either a small abbreviated word, letter, shape, number or a combination of two of them.

Let’s dive in to see exactly what both of these parts means.

Letters in Chord Symbols

Every chord symbol or marking first starts with a letter.

This letter represents what we call the root note of the chord.

The root of a chord is the note that the chord is built upon and is how people refer to the chord as a whole. 

Here are the notes of a C Major chord, with the root of the chord in red, because that is the note of C:

If you’ve ever heard someone say “C chord” or “Play G followed by D and then A”, these are the roots of the chords they represent, and are used as shorthand so we don’t always have to name the whole chord every time. 

If we refer to a chord by only its root, then we’re mostly likely referring to type of chord called a Major triad.

These are the most common and most “normal” type of chord, which is why we can shorten it to just the root note.

So, the phrase “Play G followed by D and then A” can be heard as “Play a G Major triad followed by a D Major triad and then an A Major triad”, as shown here:

The Second Part of Chord Symbols: Quality

The root of the chord is only one half of how we think about and notate chords.

There is always a second part of chord symbols, which we use to define the quality of the chord. 

A chord’s quality is basically a fancy way of saying what “kind” of chord it is. 

There are six main chord qualities:

• Major
• Minor
• Augmented
• Diminished
• Half-diminished
• Dominant

For each of these six chord qualities we have a symbol or abbreviation (and sometimes multiple options) that indicates to play that chord quality.

This saves us from having to write out “C Half-Diminished” on sheet music, because we often don’t have the space to write it. 

Here’s a table of each type of chord quality along with the various shorthand symbols that can be used.

Seventh Chord Symbols

Most of the chord qualities listed above are used when referring to triads (chords with three notes).

Triads use the root, third, and fifth of a scale to create a chord. 

However, you can add another note, or multiple, to a triad.

Adding the seventh of a scale gives you a four-note chord called a seventh chord. 

Because triads are the most common type of chord, we don’t have to write anything to specify a triad, but if we want to specify that a chord we’re playing or writing is a seventh chord, we need to add another symbol.

Mainly this is the number “7”, but not always. 

As you can see in the table, the qualities of “half-diminished” and “dominant” can use the same symbols to refer to a triad or a seventh chord. 

This is because one of the necessary requirements for these two qualities is to have a seventh added into the chord.

So, if you see a half-dim or dominant symbol (C^ø or C7), you should always play a seventh chord.

Extended Chords

In addition to triads and seventh chords, you can write and play chords with more than four notes.

The most common of these extended chords are ninths, elevenths, and thirteenths. 

Just like seventh chords, you can notate these chords by adding a 9, 11, or 13 to the symbols above (in the place the 7 would go). 

For example, a C13 chord (C dominant 13th), Gm9 (G minor 9th), DΔ11 (D Major 11th), or F+13 (F augmented 13th): 

Other Chord Symbols

So far we have looked at how to read and write the chord symbols for regular triads, seventh chords, and extended chords.

While these are the most common types of chords you will see, there are a lot of other types of chords that you might come across. 

You should know how to recognize these chord symbols so you know what they mean.

Added Tone Chords

Another type of chord symbol you might see is added tone chords.

This is when you want to add an extra note. 

For example, say you had a C major chord (C – E – G) and wanted to “add” the 9th (C – E – G – D) onto the chord.

If you write a C9 chord, that adds both the 7th and the 9th (C – E – G – Bb – D), and you might not want the dominant chord sound.

Instead, you simply write “add9” at the end of the chord symbol – Cadd9, for example.

This says to the player “Play a C major chord, but also add the 9th”. 

You can do the same with any note, but you almost always see it as either “add9”, “add11”, or “add13”. 

Altered Chords

Another type of chord symbol you might see is for altered chords.

Chords with altered tones in them work the same way as added tones chords – you simply add the note and the alteration to the end of the chord symbol. 

If you have a C7 chord (C – E – G – Bb), and you want to lower the 5th (G) to an Gb, you would just write a “b5” at the end of the symbol – C7b5. 

Or, if you have a C7 chord (C – E – G – Bb), and you want to raise the 5th (G) to an G#, you would just write a “#5” at the end of the symbol – C7#5. 

Suspended Chords

All of the chords we have been talking about so far have had the same three notes – the root, the 3rd, and the 5th – as the three main notes of the chord.

However, Suspended Chords are different. 

We write Suspended chord symbols with the abbreviation “sus”.

There are two types of suspended chords – we label these as sus2 and sus4 chords: 

• Csus2: G – C – D
• Csus4: G – A – D

Because sus4 chords are the more common of the two, we can take off the 4 at the end and just write “sus”.

So, if you see Gsus, you can just read it as “Gsus4”.

We can add extended chord tones, added tones, or altered tones on top of sus chords as well. 

Slash Chords and Polychords

A Slash Chord is a chord in which the lowest note is not the root note.

These can be notes that are already within the chord (in which case they’re also called inverted chords), or outside of the chord. 

Take an DMaj 7 chord as an example, D – F# – A – C#.

The “D” is the root of the chord, but any of these notes can be the lowest note when played.

For example, if we wanted the 5th to be the lowest note we’d write it as DMaj7/A: 

The “slash” part simply means that we take a slash (/) and put it between the chord symbol and the note that is at the bottom.

So, if an C chord was played with a E at the bottom, the chord would be – C/E or a G chord was played with a B at the bottom it would be G/B: 

The note after the slash can also be a non-chord tone.

Like in the case of DMaj7, you can have DMaj7/E, or DMaj7/G for example. 

Summary

As you can see, there are many different types of chords and many different ways to write them.

The best practice you can do is to just read and play lots of music, and especially jazz music and standards because they have a lot of chord symbols throughout. 

We hope this was able to help you read and write music better!

All of the music you hear on the radio or on TV uses the octave, and it has been around for centuries. 

This post will cover everything there is to know about how the Octave is used in music.

However, to best talk about octaves, we should cover what pitches and intervals are first.

What is Pitch?

When we play a note on an instrument or sing a note, that produces a sound.

We can define that sound by a few different criteria, like how loud it is, how long it is, and what the pitch is. 

Pitch is just another word for the frequency of a note, or how “low” or “high” the note is.

If we hear a note that sounds like a baby’s cry, that would be a high-pitched note.

On the other hand, a rumbling sound like thunder or train wheels would have a low pitch. 

Notes on a musical staff are ordered vertically by pitch – the higher the note is on the staff, the higher the pitch of the note is: 

A note sounds higher or lower than another if it has a higher pitch, or frequency, than the other note. 

What is an Interval? 

Now that we know what pitch is, we can discuss intervals.

An interval occurs when two notes – notes with different pitches – are played at the same time, and the interval is the distance in pitch between the two notes.

If two notes produce a really big interval when played together, then their pitches are really far apart, and if the interval between the notes is small, then they’re close together. 

There are many different names for all of the intervals. The smallest interval (shown on the right side of the picture above) is called a “semitone”, or “half step”.

If you put two semitones together, you get a “tone”, or “whole step”. 

Other intervals are given numbers as names, such as a “third”, “sixth”, “eleventh”, and so on.

This brings us to the octave.

What is an Octave? 

An Octave is a very unique interval.

It is the interval between two notes, in which one of the notes has a pitch that is exactly double the pitch of the other note.

Pitch, as we said before, is another word for frequency, and we can define a note by giving its frequency as a number.

So, say, for example, that we have a note with a frequency of 220 Hz.

We can call it A (in fact, the note with that frequency is an A).

If we want to produce another note that will create an octave interval with the A, we have to either double that number – 440 Hz – or cut that number in half – 110 Hz. 

Therefore, if we have two notes, one with a pitch of 220 Hz and the other with a pitch of 440 Hz, then those two notes create an octave: 

You can also have notes that are two or three octaves away from each other.

For example, the note with a 110 Hz pitch and the note with a 440 Hz pitch are two octaves away because you have to double 110 twice to get 440.

We can then determine the octaves above 440 by doubling (880, 1720, etc.) and the octave below 110 by cutting it in half (55). 

Octaves are sometimes heard as basically the “same” note – like if a man and a woman are told to sing a “C”, they will most likely sing C’s an octave apart.

However, it still sounds like they’re singing the same note, because they sound so similar.

Note Lettering

If you’ve ever been taught music or how to read it, then one of the first things you’re taught is the note letters or the musical alphabet – A, B, C, D, E, F, G.

For example, a C Major scale uses these letters in this order, but starting on C:

As you can see, we only have 7 letters to correspond to all of the different notes and pitches that are in music.

So, we have to repeat them sometimes, and this is where octaves come in. 

One way to remember an octave interval is that it is two different pitches with the same letter note.

As you see in the C Major scale, the C note on the bottom left is different from the C note on the top right, but they’re both labelled C.

This is because they form an octave. 

We can say the C on the top right is an “octave higher” or an “octave above” the C on the bottom left, and the C on the bottom left is an “octave below” the other C. 

The pitches of the two C’s are half/double each other – the bottom left one has a frequency of 262 Hz, and the top right has a frequency of 524 Hz. 

Examples:

In “Somewhere Over the Rainbow”, the first two notes “Some” – “where” create an octave interval. 

Another example is Chopin’s “Etude in B Minor”, in which the majority of the song – especially in the upper staff – is played with octaves: 

Summing Up

To sum up, the octave is one of the most common and easily-identified intervals in music.

Each instance of the same note (but different pitch) on a piano or guitar occurs as an octave, and each octave doubles the frequency of the one before it.

In this post, we’ll explore what exactly the Altered Scale is, and how to use it in music. But first, let’s go over what a scale is in the first place, and how to create one.

What is a Scale?

A scale is a specific combination of notes, played either ascending or descending in order of pitch.

A scale in ascending order means each note is higher in pitch than the one before it, and a scale in descending order means each note is lower than the previous note.

There are many different types of scales, but the most common kind is the diatonic scale – this means a scale that has seven notes in it (the eighth note has the same letter as the first note).

For example, all major and minor scales are diatonic.

Here are the ascending C Major and C Minor scales, and notice how there are seven different notes in each:

These scales follow a set series of whole steps and half steps, which means that regardless of what note you start on, each following note will always be a specific interval away from it.

In Major scales, the series of intervals (whole and half steps) goes like this – W W H W W W H. 

You can start on any note – C#, Eb, A – and use this pattern to find out the major scale that starts on that note. 

Dominant Scale 

The Altered Scale that we’re learning about today is specifically a type of ‘Dominant scale’.

A dominant scale (also known as the mixolydian mode) is a Major scale with the seventh note in the scale – what we call the leading tone – a half step lower than normal.

So, in the case of the C Major scale above – C D E F G A B C – the B is lowered a half step to Bb:

What is the Altered Scale? 

The Altered Scale is a Dominant scale in which all of the “non-essential” tones have been altered.

There are three essential tones in the Dominant scale:

• the first (root)
• the third (mediant)
• the seventh (leading tone)

This means the remaining four notes – the second, fourth, fifth, and sixth notes – are all “altered”, meaning they are either raised or lowered by a semitone (half step).

Therefore, the C Altered Scale would look something like this: 

As you can see, the third scale degree (mediant) – the note E in a C scale – is moved to the fourth position in an Altered scale.

This is because the second scale degree (supertonic) is split into two notes – the Db and Eb in the scale above. 

The pattern of whole and half steps in an Altered scale are: H W H W W W W.

It is written as the note of the chord followed by “7alt”, so the C Altered Scale above would be seen in music as: C^7alt. 

The Altered Scale is used almost exclusively in jazz music.

Alternate Names 

The Altered Scale is “enharmonically equivalent” (meaning it has the same notes, but they might be written differently, like F# and Gb) to the scale of the Locrian mode with the fourth note (subdominant) lowered by a half step: 

As you can see, the C Locrian scale and the C Altered scale are almost the same, the only difference being the “F” note in the locrian scale is a half step higher than the “E” in the altered scale. 

Because of the similarities between the two scales, you might sometimes see the Altered Scale called the “Super-Locrian” scale, or the “Locrian flat four” scale. 

The Altered Scale is also enharmonically equivalent to the 7th mode (Locrian mode again) of the melodic minor scale.

So, with the Altered scale above starting on C, it is the same as the Db melodic minor scale starting on C: 

Summing Up the Altered Scale

That is basically everything you need to know about the Altered Scale.

Now you know how to use it, what notes to play, and where it is most often found if you happen to come across it in class or in a piece of music.

Let us know if you have any questions! 

This post will cover everything we need to know about a Picardy Third, like what it is and what reasons it’s used for. To help us learn more about it, we should recap what major and minor mean. 

What are Major and Minor? 

The two main adjectives used to describe scales, chords, or keys in music are major and minor.

Something is major if the third scale degree is major – that is, it is four semitones above the tonic note of the song.

For example, a C Major scale and chord has an E♮ in it, which is four semitones above C: 

In a minor scale and chord, the third scale degree is minor, which is only three semitones above the tonic: 

In addition to the third scale degree, the 6th and 7th scale degrees are also flattened to be made minor.

This change from the major third to the minor third makes the C Major chord (C – E – G) C minor instead (C – Eb – G). 

It also changes the related chords one can use in a song.

For example, a song in C Major will have chords like F Maj, G Maj, A min, E min, and D min.

A song in C minor will have chords like F min, Eb Maj, Ab Maj, Bb Maj, and D dim. 

Picardy Third Definition

A Picardy Third is a very specific ending, or cadence, to a piece of music.

It happens when a piece of music that is in a minor key ends on a Major tonic chord instead.

For example, a piece of music in A minor has a Picardy Third when it ends on an A Major chord: 

All of the chords in the above example are taken from the key of A minor, which has a C♮ as well as an F♮ and a G♮.

However, the final chord is an A Major chord, which has a C# in it, a note not used in the rest of the piece. 

Because music in a Major key is often heard as happy and bright, and music in a minor key is heard as sad and somber, a Picardy Third acts as a happy resolution to an otherwise darker and sadder song.

It is like a “happy ending” in a film, expressed through music. 

Here is an example from Bach’s “Jesus, Meine Freude”. Listen for the final chord with the Picardy Third at 1:36: 

Why is it Called a Picardy Third? 

As a harmonic device the Picardy Third was first introduced in the Renaissance Era, which is between years 1400-1600.

It was often thought at this time that the Major key and major chords were more “correct”, stable, and consonant than minor chords, so audiences and musicians expected the music to end that way. 

The Picardy Third was first labelled as such by Jean-Jaques Rousseau in 1797, written as the “Tierce de Picarde”.

Some scholars believe it is called this because the practice of ending minor music in the major key originated from the Picardy region of France. 

Other scholars, however, believe that “Picardy” is derived from the old French word “picart”, which means “sharp” or “pointed”.

Therefore, cadences that ended with a raised, or sharpened third were called Picardy Thirds.

Notable Examples

Picardy Thirds are found a lot in sacred choral music and hymns, especially those from the 15th to 17th centuries.

One famous example is “Heu Mihi, Domine” from Heinrich Schuetz’s Cantiones Sacrae, in 1625.

The piece starts at 0:11 in the key of A min, and the Picardy Third occurs at the end of the first phrase, at 0:21:

The majority of Chopin’s Nocturnes that are in a minor key almost always ended with a Picardy Third.

For example, here is his “Nocturne in F minor”, op. 55 no. 1.

Although the whole piece up to the end has been in the key of F minor, Chopin ends the piece on four long-held F Major chords: 

Beethoven’s final piano sonata, “Piano Sonata No. 32 in C Minor”, ends its first movement with many Picardy Third cadences in a row, with the final and most dissonant one happening at 9:34-9:37: 

Summing Up 

That is all there is to know about the Picardy Third.

It is a useful and interesting tool that composers have used for centuries to end a minor piece on a major tonic chord.

This slight change at the end of a song really affects the entire piece and leaves the audience with a whole different feeling when they’ve finished listening to it.

We hope this article has been helpful to learn about the history and uses of Picardy Thirds.

In this post, we’ll look at one specific notation style called Figured Bass. We’ll explore what it is, how to read and write it, and when it is used and why. 

Figured Bass Notation

Figured Bass is a specific kind of notation in which the composer writes numbers below bass notes in the lower staff, and those numbers represent the chords made above the bass notes.

Also called throughbass, this notation style was used predominantly during the Baroque Era in the 17th and 18th centuries, but it is still used and taught today.

Here’s an example: 

So, like in this example, the numbers are connected to the bass notes (the notes in the lower staff) and they tell us what the harmonization is above the bass notes – which is written out in the upper staff.

How to Read and Write Figured Bass

There are two different sets of numbers that can be found below a bass note in figured bass notation, depending on if the chords above it are triads or seventh chords.

With triads – chords with three notes – there are three different notes the chord could start on, and therefore three different notes that could be the bass note.

These notes are the root, the 3rd, and the 5th: 

If the bass note is the root of the chord, then there is no number below it. 

If the bass note is the 3rd, then there is a “6” written below it. 

If the bass note is the 5th, then there is a “6 4” written below it (vertically, with the 6 stacked on top of the 4). 

Here is an F Maj triad (F – A – C) with the root, 3rd, and 5th in the bass: 

Because Seventh chords have 4 notes, there are 4 notes that can be in the bass – the root, 3rd, 5th, and 7th. 

• If the bass note is the root of a Seventh chord, then there is a “7” written below it. 
• If the bass note is the 3rd of a Seventh chord, then there is a “6 5” written below it. 
• If the bass note is the 5th of a Seventh chord, then there is a “4 3” written below it. 

If the bass note is the 7th of a Seventh chord, then there is a “4 2” written below it. 

Here is a CMaj7 chord (C – E – G – B) with the root, 3rd, 5th, and 7th in the bass: 

What Do the Numbers Mean in Figured Bass? 

The numbers under the bass note indicate the intervals of the notes that will be placed above it.

So, if you have a C in the bass and a 5 below it, that means that there should be a note a 5th above it, which would be a G (C ⇨ G is an interval of a 5th). 

A root position triad has the root, 3rd, and 5th, and is the normal position of a triad.

Therefore, a normal root position bass note would always have the numbers “5 3” below it.

Because of this, the numbers 5 and 3 are not necessary to write down in figured bass.

This is why you see root position chords either have no numbers or just a 7 for seventh chords.

Examples: 

First position Seventh chords, which is a Seventh chord built on the 3rd, has the following intervals above that note: 3, 5, and 6.

In a CMaj7 chord (notes: C – E – G – B) starting on E, the 3rd, those notes would be G, B, and C above the E.

And E ⇨ G is a 3rd, E ⇨ B is a 5th, and E ⇨ C is a 6th. 

This would mean under that bass note we could have the numbers 6 5 3.

However, we don’t need the 5 and 3, BUT we also can’t just put a 6 because that means a first inversion triad, so therefore we have to write “6 5”. 

A Seventh chord built on the 7th in the root would have notes that are a 2nd, 4th, and 6th above it.

We can minimize the numbers by just writing “4 2”, which people now know as 3rd inversion Seventh chords.

Accidentals in Figured Bass

Sometimes you see an accidental (#, b, or ♮) under a bass note, or next to a number below a bass note.

Here’s an example in context from Bach’s “Beschraenkt, ihr Weisen”.

The smaller note heads are the notes mentioned by the figured bass numbers: 

If the accidental is next to a number, it means that you add an accidental to the note that the number represents.

For example, a “b6 4” below a note will mean that the note a 6th above it is flattened. 

With C as the bass note, “b6 4” means you have an F (C ⇨ F is a 4th) and an Ab (C ⇨ A is a 6th, then flatten it to Ab).

This gives you C – F – Ab, which is a F min chord built from the 5th. 

If you have just a “#” or “b” below a note in figured bass, that means the note a 3rd above it will be sharpened or flattened.

For example, in a D min key, if you have a D in the bass note and just a “#” below it, it means the F (because D ⇨ F is a 3rd) is sharpened to F#.

Figured Bass in Summary

To sum up, all figured bass means is that you’ll see numbers and accidentals below notes in the bass clef or bass staff.

These numbers then represent what notes you can play on top of those bass notes.

Often you’ll find figured bass below music that only has bass notes, because it wants you to fill in the higher notes yourself.

Once you’ve learned the basics of harmonic function and chord progressions, you should try to expand your technique by bending or breaking some of the rules you first need to learn.

This post takes a look at one of those rule-bending or breaking situations — the tritone substitution. What is a tritone substitution, how do you use it, and what is its function? First, however, let’s go over what a tritone is.

The Definition Of A Tritone 

A tritone is an interval of six semitones (half steps) or three whole tones (whole steps).

In fact, the name “tri”tone comes from the fact that it is an interval made by combining three whole tones.

If you look at the chromatic scale, which is a scale consisting of only semitones, you can start at any note and combine it with the note six notes away to create a tritone:

For example, starting on C, we can go up six notes (C, C#, D, D#, E, F) to get to F#, and the C-F# interval creates a tritone.

The same works for going down as well (for example, Bb ⇨ E is a tritone).

What Is A Tritone Substitution? 

A tritone substitution is when you substitute a dominant seventh chord (like G7 or D7) for another dominant seventh chord that is a tritone away from it.

For example, above we said that D – G# forms a tritone, and Bb – E as well.

So if we had a D7 chord in a progression, a tritone substitution would switch in a G#7 chord in its place, and a Bb7 could be switched to an E7.

The same is true the other way — a G#7 could be swapped for a D7 chord, and an E7 could be switched to a Bb7.

Here is a D7 chord next to a G#7 chord.

The reason a tritone substitution works harmonically, and the reason one can easily be swapped for another, is that dominant seventh chords that are a tritone apart share the same tritone notes within the chords themselves.

Let’s look at this D7 and G#7:

D7 notes — D, F#, A, C

G#7 notes — G#, B#, D#, F#

As you can see right away, they share the note F#.

They also share the note C, because B# is enharmonically equivalent to C (this means they are the same note, just written differently).

The notes C – F# form a tritone themselves, so the two chords share a pair of notes that form a tritone.

This is important because it is the tritone within the dominant seventh chord that creates such a strong tension and pulls toward the next chord in the progression.

Using a tritone substitution introduces a unique and non-diatonic chord to the chord progression, but keeps the same tritone intact, so it still creates the same tension and pulls just as strongly to the next chord. 

Tritone Substitutions In Chord Progressions

Chords in progressions are typically represented by a number, which is the scale degree that the chord is built upon in that specific key.

For example, let’s take a piece of music that’s in the key of C major: 

This is the Cmaj scale.

All the chords in a song that’s in the Cmaj key will have chords built on a note in this scale — Dmin, Amin, Fmaj, Gmaj, etc.

We can also number these scale degrees and then use those numbers in our chord progression:

Say we have a progression that goes Imaj7 (Cmaj7) ⇨ IVmaj7 (Fmaj7) ⇨ iimin7 (Dmin7) ⇨ V7 (G7) ⇨ I (Cmaj):

This is a very common chord progression, and the V7 ⇨ I is a common cadence (ending) to the progression.

However, with a tritone substitution, we can introduce a chord that is non-diatonic (not within the key of Cmaj) and therefore will sound interesting and colorful when paired with the other chords; but it also has the pull and resolution that a V7 ⇨ I cadence has. 

Hence, the note G is a tritone away from the note Db, and so we can use the Db7 chord as a tritone substitution.

As you can see above, there is no note Db in the Cmaj scale, but note D is the second scale degree and is written as ii (or II if major).

We can therefore write this tritone sub as a bII7 chord. 

Using this substitution gives us this progression: Imaj7 (Cmaj7) ⇨ IVmaj7 (Fmaj7) ⇨ iimin7 (Dmin7) ⇨ bII7 (Db7) ⇨ I (Cmaj):

The G7 chord contained the tritone B – F, which resolved to C – E in the Cmaj chord.

The bII7 (Db7) chord also contains that same tritone but is written as F – Cb, and it also resolves to the C – E in the Cmaj.

Also notice that the iimin7 ⇨ bII7 ⇨ I progression includes a descending sequence of semitones, going from D ⇨ Db ⇨ C. This also creates an additional pull to the tonic chord. 

That is the most common place you would see a tritone substitution — in the middle of a ii ⇨ V7 ⇨ I chord progression — because the descending semitones add a cool harmonic color. 

Another common usage is in a 12-bar blues progression.

A typical 12-bar blues progression looks like this: I7 ⇨ I7 ⇨ I7 ⇨ I7 ⇨ IV7 ⇨ IV7 ⇨ I7 ⇨ I7 ⇨ V7 ⇨ IV7 ⇨ I7 ⇨ I7.

A tritone substitution would occur in bar 4, when the I7 chord is about to transition to the IV7 chord, changing that I7 chord to a bV7 chord.

This would again give the downward semitone motion between bars 4-5. 

In Cmaj, instead of bars 1-5 looking like this: C7 ⇨ C7 ⇨ C7 ⇨ C7 ⇨ F7, it would instead look like C7 ⇨ C7 ⇨ C7 ⇨ Gb7 ⇨ F7. 

You can also use the tritone sub for other chords in a progression.

Given the progression I ⇨ VI7 ⇨ II7 ⇨ V7 ⇨ I, each of the chords VI7, II7, and V7 can be thought of as the “V” dominant chord of the next chord in the progression.

Thus, the VI7 chord is “V7 of II,” II7 is “V7 of V,” etc. 

Therefore, the same rules can apply for each chord, and the VI7 can be tritone subbed for bIII7, or the II7 can be tritone subbed for the bVI7.

Any chord in a progression that goes around the circle of fifths can be substituted for its tritone equivalent, adding cool harmonies and color wherever you want to in the music.

Examples Of Tritone Substitutions

There are examples of tritone substitutions in classical music.

They are usually labeled as a type of augmented Neapolitan sixth chord, in which a major chord built on the bII scale degree adds an augmented sixth note on top (the enharmonic equivalent of a b7), which creates the tritone.

One of the most widely known examples of this is the ending of Schubert’s String Quintet in C Major.

Listen for the final held chord at the fff markings (timestamp: 48:42), which is a Db7 chord rather than a G7 chord:

However, while there are tritone substitutions found in classical music, they are much more commonly associated with jazz music.

This is because jazz is more fluid and relaxed in terms of function rules, and more about color and feeling than classical music.

For example, in the jazz standard “In the Mood,” you see an Ab6 ⇨ Bdim7 ⇨ Bbm7 ⇨ Eb7 progression (listen at 0:48), with the B chord acting as a tritone sub for the “V of Bb,” F7.

Another spot is at 0:58, with the progression Eb6 ⇨ E7 ⇨ Eb7, as E7 is the tritone sub for Bb7:  

In the track “Dizzy Atmosphere” by Dizzy Gillespie, bars 17-25 contain the chord progression D7 ⇨ Db7 ⇨ C7 ⇨ B7 ⇨ Bb7 ⇨ A7 ⇨ Ab7.

Every other chord in that progression (Db7, B7, and A7) acts as a tritone substitution between the other chords because the whole progression can be thought of as repeating ii ⇨ V7 ⇨ I cadences, and the V7 middle chords are substituted for their tritone counterparts:

Summing Up

In summary, tritone substitutions are an interesting and harmonically functional way to add a unique, colorful chord into a chord progression.

They can be added anywhere there’s a dominant seventh motion, like in a ii ⇨ V7 ⇨ I progression. If you see a long progression of descending semitones (like in the “Dizzy Atmosphere” example), then that is most likely using tritone subs.

In this post, we’ll be answering the question: What is a tritone? How is it formed, and what function does it have in music? A tritone is a specific kind of interval, so to understand it, we should briefly go over what an interval is. 

What is an Interval? 

When two notes are played at the same time, the distance between them is called an interval.

If the notes are really close together, the interval is small, and if the notes are far apart, then the interval is larger. 

As seen here, the first pair of notes are farther apart than the second pair of notes, so the interval is a larger number (7th vs. 2nd). 

We can measure intervals by figuring out how many tones and semitones (whole and half steps) there are between the two notes.

A semitone is the smallest interval available in Western music, which is all of the music you would hear on the radio or in a movie theater.

A whole tone is just two semitones put together.

The first pair of notes above is E – D.

These notes are 10 semitones, or 5 whole tones, apart.

The second pair of notes, A – B, are 2 semitones, or 1 whole tone, apart. 

Names of Intervals

However, in order to label the intervals, we have to know the letter names of the notes.

In music, we use the letters A – B – C – D – E – F – G – A – etc. to label the notes: 

These notes are always labelled in this order – for example, if you have a D and you go up one note you always get an E (maybe Eb or E#, but the letter is always E), and down one note is always C. 

The intervals become numbered based on how many notes there are between the pair of notes we’re looking at.

In the E – D pair above, to go from E to D we must go up E – F – G – A – B – C – D.

This is 7 notes, so we call that interval a 7th.

Based on whether the notes are sharp (#), flat (b), or natural (♮), the quality of the interval can change between minor, major, augmented, or diminished.

But, the number always stays the same, and is based on how many notes are in between. 

In the A – B example above (on the right), A – B are next to each other on the scale, so we know that their interval is a 2nd. 

The Definition of a Tritone

A tritone is a very specific interval – it is the interval made from six semitones, or three whole tones.

The name “tri”tone is the same “tri” that we get words like triangle (a shape with three sides) and triceratops (a dinosaur with three horns) and has its name because of the fact that it is made of three whole tones.

This interval is also unique because it is exactly half of an octave, which is 12 semitones.

For example, the interval F – B is a tritone.

It can be broken up into three whole tones (F-G, G-A, and A-B):

Because it is exactly half of an octave, the inverse of a tritone is also a tritone.

This means F ⇨ B and B ⇨ F are both tritones.

This is the only interval for which this is true.

For example, C ⇨ A is a 6th and A ⇨ C is a 3rd.

Technically F ⇨ B is an augmented 4th, and B ⇨ F is a diminished 5th, but those are what we call enharmonic equivalents, which means they are written as two different things but produce the exact same note or notes.

Tritones in Scales

The example of an F ⇨ B tritone is probably the most widely-used example, and it is because it is found in the C Major scale, the most popular scale: 

In fact, in every Major scale, the 4th note and the 7th note will form a tritone, and specifically an augmented 4th.

In E Major, for example, the 4th is A and the 7th is D#, and A ⇨ D# is a tritone.

In a natural minor scale (also called the Aeolian mode), the tritone is between the 2nd and the 6th.

In C Minor, this would be the diminished 5th, D – Ab.

In the Dorian mode (a minor scale with a raised 6th), the tritone is between the 3rd and the 6th.

In F Dorian, this would be Ab – D. 

In the Mixolydian scale (a major scale with a lowered 7th degree), which creates a dominant chord, the tritone is found between the 3rd and the 7th.

In A mixolydian, this would be a C# – G interval. 

In a scale within the Lydian mode, the tritone is found between the 1st note and the 4th.

So, in G lydian, the tritone would be G – C#. 

In a Phrygian mode scale, the tritone is found between the 2nd and the 5th.

In D phrygian, this would be an Eb – A tritone.

Finally, in the Locrian mode scales, the tritone is found between the 1st and the 5th.

In C locrian, this is a C – Gb tritone. 

As you can see, any and all of the main diatonic scales you will see in music have exactly one tritone in them, though they are all in a different place. 

What are Tritones Used For? 

The main use of a tritone in music is to create instability and tension, and then to resolve this tension by moving from a tritone to the next chord in the progression.

This motion of tension and release gives a weight and a significance to the chord after the tritone, and it is often that this chord is the tonic chord of the piece of music: 

This is a very typical use of a tritone – the G7 chord (G – B – D – F) has a tritone formed by the B – F interval, and that interval resolves via contrary motion (one goes up and the other goes down) to the C and E of the C Maj chord.

The helps strengthen the dominant function of the G7 chord in resolving to the tonic C chord.

Another use in music is to create a feeling of unease or evil in the music.

This was especially the case in Classical music, and the tritone was called “diabolus in musica” (“the devil in music”) in the 18th and 19th centuries.

For example, it is used to create a theme for Hell in Liszt’s “Dante Sonata”:

Examples

There are many famous examples of tritones used in popular music.

At the beginning of the theme song for The Simpsons, the opening “Simpsons” vocal cue has a tritone in it: 

The songs “Cool” and “Maria” from the show and film West Side Story both have many tritones in them.

“Cool” especially uses it frequently at the beginning of the piece:

Both of the rock songs “Purple Haze” by Jimi Hendrix and “YYZ” by Rush open with a guitar alternating between two notes of a tritone: 

That’s All for Tritones

We hope that was an informative post, and that you can now recognize tritones when you hear them, and know how and why they are used in music.

In this post, we will be defining what a tetrachord is, how it’s used in music, and how to create one. To help us do this, we first need to define what a chord is. 

What is a Chord? 

Whenever you play or sing more than one note simultaneously, you are producing a chord.

A chord can have any number of simultaneous notes (as long as it’s more than one), and chords with different numbers of notes are called different names.

A chord with two notes is called an interval or a dyad, and a chord with three notes is called a triad. 

Triads are the most common chord you find in music, and whenever you see a chord written with just a note – for example, C chord or F# chord – it signifies a major triad chord.

There are chords with more than three notes, like Sixth chords, Seventh chords, added tone chords, and extended chords. 

Chords are generally built from scales, which are groups of notes sorted by pitch in either ascending or descending order.

For example, you most likely have seen this picture, which is a C Major scale: 

Now, from this scale you can make a C Major triad by taking the first (called the root), third, and fifth notes – C, E, and G. 

What is a Tetrachord? 

A tetrachord is unique among musical terms with the word “chord” in them, because it actually is technically not a chord as defined above.

In fact, it is closer to a scale, because it is a series of notes played one at a time.

In Greek, the word “tetra” means four, so therefore a tetrachord is a series of four notes, with the extra specification that the four notes are taken from a span of five semitones, or half steps. 

A semitone/half step is the smallest interval in Western music.

There are 12 semitones in an octave interval, as shown in the chromatic scale.

A whole tone is simply an interval of two semitones:

A span of 5 semitones is the same as a Perfect 4th interval.

C ⇨ F or G ⇨ C are examples of Perfect 4ths.

Therefore, an example of a tetrachord could be four notes spanning C ⇨ F or G ⇨ C.

All tetrachords have three intervals (in between the four notes) and these intervals are almost always either a semitone or a whole tone:

History and Uses of Tetrachords

The first people to use tetrachords and develop music theory from them were the Ancient Greeks.

They developed three types of tetrachords – diatonic, chromatic, and enharmonic.

Diatonic Tetrachords

In a diatonic tetrachord, the three intervals used are two whole tones and one semitone.

An example would be a Major or minor tetrachord (e.g. C – D – E – F or A – B – C – D).

Chromatic Tetrachords

In a chromatic tetrachord, there is one interval that is a minor third, and two semitone intervals.

This is a rare example of a tetrachord with an interval greater than a whole tone.

An example would be D – E#(F) – F# – G. 

Enharmonic Tertrachords

An enharmonic tetrachord is one you’re likely to never see used.

It has one interval of a major third (four semitones) and then two intervals of half a semitone.

Because this involves microtonal notes (e.g. B half-sharp), it is hard to notate and even harder to play.

Use of Tetrachords by The Greeks

The Greeks had specific names for the four notes of a tetrachord.

In ascending order they were:

• hypate
• parhypate
• lichanos
• mese

While these terms aren’t widely used today, you still might see them sometimes when identifying notes in a tetrachord:

Use in Classical Music 

In the Classical and Romantic Era, tetrachords were based upon equal temperament, and were used to explain many types of scales, like major and minor: 

The Major tetrachord uses the interval pattern tone – tone – semitone (e.g. C – D – E – F). 

The minor tetrachord uses the interval pattern tone – semitone – tone (e.g. C – D – Eb – F). 

The harmonic tetrachord uses the interval pattern semitone – minor third – semitone (e.g. C – Db – E – F). 

The upper minor tetrachord uses the interval pattern semitone – tone – tone (e.g. C – Db – Eb – F).

To make the average scale that we use in modern music, all you have to do is stack these tetrachords on top of each other, putting the second (top) one a whole tone above the end of the first one – for example, a Major C – D – E – F plus another Major tetrachord G – A – B – C makes up a C Major scale.

The second tetrachord starts on G, which is a whole tone above the F at the end of the first tetrachord. 

Summing Up – Tetrachords

Tetrachords are a unique brand of chord because they aren’t multiple notes being played at once.

In fact, they act more like scales, and can be combined to make many different types of scales.

Overall, tetrachords are rare and aren’t often mentioned by name in music theory, but they have a strong influence on melody and harmony writing, so it’s helpful to be aware of them.

This post will specifically look at AABA Form – what it is, how it functions, and some examples of songs that use it. First, let’s recap exactly what form in music is in general.

What is Form in Music? 

In music, the term form refers to the organization and structure of a specific piece.

The best way to analyze the form of a piece of music is by looking at the what in the music repeats.

For example, on the smallest level, beats repeat usually in groups of four, creating the standard 4/4 bar. 

On a larger level, we can look at what sections of the music repeat, how many times, and how frequently.

For example, in pop music you would hear on the radio the song would probably have a section known as a verse, which could then be followed by a chorus.

How often the verses and chorus repeat, whether there is a bridge or not, these factors are what influence the form of the song.

Within a single verse or chorus, you can have phrases and passages.

These are short to medium-length melodic lines, and in most pop music there’s 4 phrases per verse/chorus.

How is Form Analyzed? 

The most popular way to analyze the form of a piece of music is to look at the sections or passages in it.

We can then assign each unique section or passage a letter – A, B, C, etc. – and write out the structure that way. 

For example, the first verse in a pop song could be given the letter A.

Then the next section that plays is verse 2, which we can still label as A, because it’s the same structure as verse 1.

If the chorus is next, we would label that B, because it’s different from the previous verses.

If there’s a new section after this, we can call it C, and then D, and so on. 

The Definition of AABA Form

AABA Form, which is also commonly referred to as 32-bar form, is a popular song form with 4 sections.

The 4 sections take 32 bars in total, so each one is 8 bars long. 

The reason it is called AABA is because the first, second, and fourth section are all melodically and harmonically very similar, and the third section is different from the rest. 

A famous example of AABA form is “Somewhere Over the Rainbow”.

It has three 8-bar sections, all starting with the words “Somewhere over the Rainbow…”, that have the same melody, and one 8-bar section with “someday I’ll wish upon a star…” that has a totally unique melody: 

This AABA structure gives us the form of one verse.

This verse can then be repeated multiple times to make up the entire song.

If that is the case, the form of the whole song looks like this: 

AABAAABAAABA…

Sometimes just the second half of the form is repeated, in which case the song would have an AABABA structure.

The song “Make You Feel My Love” by Bob Dylan has almost two full AABA sections, producing an AABAABA form: 

The A sections don’t necessarily all have the exact same melody or harmony; sometimes filler notes or chords are added or artistic license allows the performer to sing or play one section a bit different from the other.

For example, the first A section in “Great Balls of Fire” by Jerry Lee Lewis has no piano playing behind the sung melody, but the second A section has piano throughout: 

However, the A sections are all going to be essentially the same, and the B section is going to be different and unique enough that the AABA form is fairly obvious when you hear it. 

The song “Surfer Girl” by The Beach Boys is in AABA form, but the final A section is in a different key.

However, the chord progression and melody all stay the same, relative to the key, so it still counts as the same section as the previous two: 

AABA song form is also very popular in Jazz standards and Tin Pan Alley songs.

The song “I Got Rhythm” by George Gershwin is a famous example, and the chord progression it featured is so widely-known and used that it is now simply called “Rhythm” changes: 

Another classic AABA Jazz song is “Anthropology” by Charlie Parker.

This song follows a similar structure to most Jazz standards, which is to play through the main melody twice (first 2 A sections), then play a quick bridge (B section) and finally repeat the main melody once again (final A section) before going into the solos: 

That’s It for AABA Form

To sum up, AABA form is a widely-known popular song form that has 4 8-bar sections over a 32-bar verse.

Three of the four sections are the same, and the third section is unique and usually has a more interesting harmonic progression and melody.

We hope this post was helpful and informative. Let us know if you have any questions or if you have a favorite song in AABA form!