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Chapter 16- Chromaticism & Altered Chords

Nonessential Chromaticism: the use of chromatically altered tones as NCTs.
Essential Chromaticism: use of tones from outside the scale as members of chords i.e.: ALTERED CHORDS.
Secondary Funcion: a chord whose function belongs more closely to a key other than the main key of the passage.
  • Most secondary functions are either secondary dominants (V(7) of something) or secondary leading tone chords (vii° of,  vii°7 of, or vii∅7 of.)
  • Only major and minor triads can be tonicized by secondary dominants. (Don’t usually see secondary dominants on diminished chords.)
Because V/IV sounds like I, composers most often use V7/IV instead of V/IV.

Spelling Secondary Dominants:
1. Find the root of the chord that is to be tonicized.
2. Go up a P5.
3. Using that note as the root, spell a triad or V7.

Recognizing Secondary Dominants (if you encounter an altered chord):
1. Is the altered chord a major triad or a dominant 7th chord? If not, it is not a secondary dominant.
2. Find the note a P5 below the root of the altered chord.
3. Would a major or minor triad built on that note be a diatonic triad in this key? If yes, the altered chord is a secondary dominant.

Secondary Dominants in Context:
1. Secondary dominants resolve just as primary dominants do.
2. The only exception is that sometimes the chord of resolution contains a 7th. In that case, the leading tone may need to slide down a half-step to become the 7th of the chord of resolution.
3. Complete 7th chords in root position alternate with incomplete ones.
4. Same as circle of 5th sequences.

V7/V most frequently encountered.
V7/V – I6/4 – V: same thing.

The common deceptive progression – V(7) – vi – is often given impetus by inserting a dominant of vi between the V and the vi.
A deceptive progressions is any time a dominant chord is followed by something other than the tonic triad i.e.: V6/5 – V4/2/IV

The III chord in minor (which represents the relative major key) is often tonicized by VII or VII7 which should be labeled as V/III or V7/III.