Chord Names and Symbols (popular Music) - Added Tone Chords

Added Tone Chords

An important characteristic of jazz is the extensive use of sevenths. The combination of 9th (2nd), 11th (4th) and 13th (6th) notes with 7ths in a chord give jazz chord voicing their distinctive sound. However the use of these notes is not exclusive to the jazz genre; in fact they are very commonly used in folk, classical and popular music generally. Without the 7th, these chords lose their jazzy feel, but can still be very complex. These chords are called added tone chords because they are basic triads with notes added. They can be described as having a more open sound than extended chords. Notation must provide some way of showing that a chord is an added tone chord as opposed to extended. There are two ways this is shown generally, and it is very common to see both methods on the same score. One way is to simply use the word 'add', for example:

• Cadd9

The second way is to use 2 instead of 9, implying that it is not a 7th chord for instance:

• C2

Note that in this way we potentially get other ways of showing a 9th chord:

• C7add9
• C7add2
• C7/9

Generally however the above will be shown as simply C9, which implies a 7th in the chord. Added tone chord notation is useful with 7th chords to indicate partial extended chords. For example:

• C7add13

This would indicate that the 13th is added to the 7th, but without the 9th and 11th.

The use of 2, 4 and 6 as opposed to 9, 11 and 13 indicates that the chord does not include a 7th unless specifically specified. However, it does not mean that these notes must be played within an octave of the root, nor the extended notes in 7th chords should be played outside of the octave, although it is commonly the case. 6 is particularly common in a minor sixth chord (also known as minor/major sixth chord, as the 6 refers to a major sixth interval).

It is possible to have added tone chords with more than one added note. The most commonly encountered of these are 6/9 chords, which are basic triads with the 6th and 2nd notes of the scale added. These can be confusing because of the use of 9, yet the chord does not include the 7th. A good rule of thumb is that if any added note is less than 7, then no 7th is implied, even if there are some notes shown as greater than 7.

Similarly, even numbers such as 8, 10 and 12 can be added. However, these double the main triad, and as such are fairly rare. 10 tends to be the most common; it can be used both in suspended chords and (with an accidental) in major or minor chords to produce a major-minor clash (e.g. C7(♭10) indicating the Hendrix chord of C-E♭-E-G-B♭). However, because of enharmonics, such chords can more easily, and perhaps more intuitively, be represented by ♯2 (or ♯9) for a minor over a major or ♭4 for a major over a minor. In any other case, an 8, 10 or 12 simply indicates the respective note from the triad doubled up one octave.