Why Learn Diatonic Harmony   by Jon Brantingham

in Entertainment / Music    (submitted 2011-10-27)

Learning Diatonic Harmony

To many people think harmony is a mystery. But there are several things that you can learn about diatonic harmony that will allow you to have a good understanding. First you need to know where it comes from. Next, how to create chords and what their functions are. Finally, how you can put them together to create your own chord progressions.

Where Does Diatonic Harmony Come From?

When we say diatonic harmony we are talking about chords derived from a scale. More than likely we are talking about two specific scales, major and minor. To get chords from the scales, all you have to do is stack 3rds on top of each note. For example, if you are using the C major scale, the notes are C, D, E, F, G, A, B and then C again. To get a diatonic C chord, you would stack C, E and G.

Naming the Chords

Each chord or note has a name. I'll give examples in C Major again. The names are:

Tonic - I, eg. C
Supertonic - ii, eg. D
Mediant - iii, eg. E
Sub-dominant - IV, eg. F
Dominant - V, eg. G
Sub-mediant - vi, eg. A
Leading tone - vii, eg. B

The Three Basic Diatonic Chords

In diatonic harmony, there are three main chords that you need to be familiar with. They are the tonic or I chord, the sub-dominant or IV chord and the dominant or V chord. These three chords are kind of like the three different areas of diatonic harmony. They also have specific functions. Tonic is known as the "home key" and establishes the scale that is used. Sub-dominant, whose function is also called pre-dominant, prepares us to hear the dominant chord. Dominant confirms what tonic established and leads us back to tonic.

The Other Diatonic Chords

The other chords also play a role. Supertonic or ii can act as a pre-dominant chord. Sub-mediant or vi, can act as a tonic in some cases. Finally the leading tone chord, or vii, can act as dominant. The mediant or iii, does not have a specific function.

Continue to Learn

Learning diatonic harmony is fun and challenging, but also very rewarding. If you continue on the path, you can get a deeper level of understanding and be able to eventually write your own chord progressions.

A great site to learn more about diatonic harmony as well as many other topics on composing music is http://www.artofcomposing.com/08-diatonic-harmony.

About the Author

Why write this article?

Because I have been composing since I was a teenager and now I want to share what I have learned.