The Major Thirds Cycle
The harmonic use of the chromatic third relation originated in the Romantic era and may occur on any structural level, for example in chord progressions or through key changes. The standard Western chromatic scale has twelve equidistant semitones. When arranged according to the circle of fifths, it looks like this:
Precisely because of this equidistancy, the roots of these three chords can produce a destabilizing effect; if C, A-flat, and E appear as the tonic pitches of three key areas on a larger level, the identity of the composition's tonal center can only be determined by the closure of the composition. —Demsey (1991)Looking above at the marked chords from "Have You Met Miss Jones?", B♭-G♭-D are spaced a major third apart. On the circle of fifths it appears as an equilateral triangle:
By rotating the triangle, all of the thirds cycles can be shown. Note that there are only four unique thirds cycles. This approach can be generalized; different interval cycles will appear as different polygons on the diagram.
Read more about this topic: Coltrane Changes
Famous quotes containing the words major and/or cycle:
“A major problem for Black women, and all people of color, when we are challenged to oppose anti-Semitism, is our profound skepticism that white people can actually be oppressed.”
—Barbara Smith (b. 1946)
“Only mediocrities progress. An artist revolves in a cycle of masterpieces, the first of which is no less perfect than the last.”
—Oscar Wilde (1854–1900)