The Complete Idiot''s Guide to Music Theory

Chapter 9:Chords 121

Another example: Let’s say you have a C minor chord and want to add the ninth
but without adding the seventh. Now, if you wanted to include the seventh,
you’d have a Cm9 chord, which is relatively standard. But to leave out the sev-
enth takes a bit more planning. Again, you start with the underlying triad—in
this case, Cm—and make the alteration within parentheses, like this: Cm(add9).
Anyone reading this chord knows to play a C minor triad and then add the
ninth—not to play a standard Cm9 chord.

The difference between a ninth chord and a triad with an added ninth.

There are an endless number of possibilities you can use when working with
altered chords. You can even include more than one variation per chord—all
you have to do is keep adding the variations onto the end of the chord notation.
Just remember to start with the base chord and make your alterations as clear as
possible. (And, if all else fails, you can write out the notes of the chord on a
staff—just to make sure everybody understands.)

Suspended Chords

We’re so used to hearing a chord as a 1-3-5 triad that any change to this
arrangement really stands out like a sore thumb to our ears. (Not that you
should put your thumbs in your ears, but you know what I mean ...) This is
what makes a suspended chordso powerful, especially when used properly.

A suspended chord temporarily moves the normal major third of a major chord
up a half step to a perfect fourth. This suspension of the second note of the
triad is so wrong to our ears, we want to hear the suspension resolved by mov-
ing the second note down from the fourth to the third—as quickly as possible.

For example, a C suspended chord includes the notes C F G—instead of the C
E G of C Major. This sets up an incredible tension, as the fourth (F) sounds
really out of place; your ears want the F to move down to the E to create the
more soothing C Major triad.

In fact, most often you do resolve suspended chords—especially at the end of a
musical phrase. You can use the suspended chord to set up the desired end-of-
phrase tension, but then quickly resolve the suspended chord to the normal
major chord, like this:

Added notes can

be notated by the

word “add” plus

the number, or just

the number—within paren-

theses, of course.

Tip

Resolving a suspended chord—the F in the first chord drops down to the E in the final chord.

As you can see from the

example, you notate a

suspended chord with the

phrase “sus4”—or, more

simply, “sus.”

Note