Augmented Sixth Chords

     These chords either lead to or act like secondary dominant chords that, in effect, resolve to the dominant chord before the tonicized chord (*see note). For that reason, they are also referred to as pre-dominant chords.      If we consider the C major scale, these chords are built from the fourth degree (the subdominant) of the …

The Sub-7 Dominant Chord Substitute

     Considering the C major scale, its natural dominant chord is the G7 and we have been extrapolating chords that can be used to replace its function.      Commonly you will find references to a substitute of the V7 chord, abbreviated to “subV7” or “sub-7”, that is used to resolve to the tonic or to another target …

The Tritone

     These next concepts will crucial to understand not only tonal harmony but also to understand how we can use this knowledge to escape the tonal pull exerted by certain chord types and instead work in an atonal or modal context. That said, a tritone is an augmented 4th or diminished 5th interval with three whole-steps. …