How to play smoothly using the power of inversions Part 1

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How to play smoothly using the power of inversions Part 1

Posted on 20 October 2007 See Comments | Post Comment

First, let’s start with the basics.

As stated above, an “inversion” is simply another way to play the same chord.

…So when someone says “invert” that chord, they are basically saying to apply some changes to the chord so that it’s played differently.

Now the rule behind inverting a chord is this:

“The number of notes in a chord determines how many inversions exists for that chord”

In other words, “the number of notes in a chord is equal to how many different ways you can play the chord.”

So if you are playing a 3-note chord, C major (C+E+G), there would be three total ways to play the chord — and since you’re using one of those ways to play “C E G,” that leaves two more to go!

So let’s talk about the different types of inversions:

Root position: This is when the keynote (name of the chord) is the LOWEST NOTE.

Let’s analyze this inversion really quickly.

In C major, the keynote is C. Remember, the keynote is simply the name of the chord. So a C major chord in root position always has C as it’s lowest note:

C E G

For those who don’t know how to form major chords, I invite you to visit http://www.hearandplay.com/course or check out my free online lessons at http://www.hearandplay.com/lessons.

Recall that you can form ANY major chord by simply taking the [1st], [3rd], and [5th] tones of any major scale.

In other words, if you know all twelve major scales, then you know all 12 major chords. In fact, you know all 12 minor chords… dominant chords… major seventh chords, and more (…because all of these chords come from major scales).

“C E G” is basically the first, third, and fifth tone of the C major scale.

C major scale = C D E F G A B C

C is 1

E is 3

G is 5

1+3+5 = major chord

Now that you understand how the numbers work, I can move on to the other two inversions:

First inversion: This is when the third is the LOWEST NOTE.

In the C major scale, what is the third tone?

Answer: E

The C major chord is said to be in first inversion when the third tone (or E) is the lowest note:

E G C

Notice that we basically took the keynote from the bottom (C E G) and put it on the top ( E G C). So when someone tells you to invert this chord up, that’s would you’d do. Take the C from the bottom (root position) and move it to the top, thus creating the first inversion.

Second inversion: This is when the fifth is the LOWEST NOTE.

As you already know, the fifth of C major is G.

C major in second inversion is: G + C + E

Notice here, we just took the “E” first inversion ( E + G + C) and moved it to the top (G + C + E). This also leaves the keynote right smack in the middle.

Recap:

Root position: C E G (keynote on bottom)

First inversion: E G C (third on bottom)

Second inversion: G C E (fifth on bottom)

Quick Exercise

1) F major

F major scale: F G A Bb C D E F

F major (root position) = _______________

F major (first inversion) = _______________

F major (second inversion) = _______________

2) Bb major

Bb major scale: Bb C D Eb F G A Bb

Bb major (root position) = _______________

Bb major (first inversion) = _______________

Bb major (second inversion) = _______________

3) G major

G major scale: G A B C D E F# G

G major (root position) = _______________

G major (first inversion) = _______________

G major (second inversion) = _______________

Answers:

1) F major

Root: F A C

First: A C F

Second: C F A

2) Bb major

Root: Bb D F

First: D F Bb

Second: F Bb D

3) G major

Root: G B D

First: B D G

Second: D G B

Moving on…

Remember my inversion rule from above?

“The number of notes in a chord determines how many inversions exists for that chord”

Since we’ve only been dealing with triads (3-note chords), there have only been three total inversions.

However, when you start playing with sevenths (4-note chords), ninths (5-note chords), elevenths (6-note chords), and others, the number of inversions increase accordingly.

# of notes	Type of chord
Three	Triad
Four	Seventh
Five	Ninth
Six	Elevenths
Seven	Thirteenths

If you have the 300pg course, you’ll find more information about this on page 50.

Here’s a break down of the inversions that exist in larger chords:

Seventh chords (4-notes):

Root position, first inversion, second inversion, third inversion [More info]

Ninth chords (5-notes):

Root position, first inversion, second inversion, third inversion, fourth inversion [More info]

Eleventh chords (6-notes):

Root position, first inversion, second inversion, third inversion, fourth inversion, fifth inversion [More info]

Thirteenth chords (7-notes):

Root position, first inversion, second inversion, third inversion, fourth inversion, fifth inversion, sixth inversion [More info]

Effectively using inversions in chord progressions Part 1

Chord progressions are simply the movement of one chord to another.

Progressions generally move in fourth and fifth intervals. When you really do a study of fourth and fifth intervals, you’ll find that they are really inverses of each other. In other words, to go “up” a fourth produces a similar sound as going “down” a fifth (though one is a higher chord than the other).

Take a look at the C major scale

C D E F G A B C

Going up a fourth just means going up four notes in the scale.

C 1

D 2

E 3

F 4

So moving from a chord based on “C” up to a chord based on “F” is known as moving up a fourth.

Let’s look at the scale again (but this time, 2 octaves):

C D E F G A B C D E F G A B C

Going down a fourth just means going down four notes in the scale (starting from middle C).

C is 1

B is 2

A is 3

G is 4

So moving from a chord based on “C” down to a chord based on “G” is known as moving down a fourth.

You can also reverse the directions of both of these examples:

Moving up a fifth:

C is 1

D is 2

E is 3

F is 4

G is 5

A chord based on “C” moving up to a chord based on “G” is known as moving up a fifth.

Moving down a fifth:

C is 1

B is 2

A is 3

G is 4

F is 5

…So “C” down to “F” is a fifth.

That’s why I said “fourths” and “fifths” are actually closer than you think, depending on whether you’re going up a fourth/fifth interval, or going down.

Let’s analyze the 1st, 4th, and 5th tones of a scale.

These are known as PRIMARY CHORDS.

Out of all the triads of the major scale, they are the only major chords. When looking at the 2nd, 3rd, 6th, and 7th tones of a major scale, you’ll find that they are not associated with major chords but with minor chords (2, 3, and 6 tones) and diminished (7 tone) chords.

So indeed, there is something special about the 1st, 4th, and 5th tones of a scale. In fact, you’ll find that majority of songs move between the 1st, 4th, and 5th tones in one way or another. In fact, I can’t think of many songs where I wouldn’t play the 1st, 4th, or 5th tone. That’s how popular these chord movements are.

(…Now I’m not saying you’re only going to play 3-note major chords on them — there are certainly more variations, extensions, and alterations that can be made to the 1st, 4th, and 5th tone. You can find them in my 300-pg course).

Primary chords:

C major chord: C E G

F major chord: F A C

G major chord: G B D

Using inversions, you can actually connect these chords together very smoothly without having to lift your fingers. Instead, you can “slide” into each chord from the last one.

Note: If you’re following the melody, it may be necessary to lift your fingers at times. However, if you are playing the organ, playing in a band, or accompanying a singer, you may find it more helpful to use inversions to connect chords together easier.

Say you wanted to play this progression:

C major — F major — G major — F major — C major

How could you connect all these chords together without lifting your fingers?

Answer: Using the closest inversion from whatever chord you’re currently playing.

Example:

If you were playing C major in root position (C E G) and you wanted to progress up a fourth to F major, the closest inversion wouldn’t be (F A C).

Look how far you’re moving: [ C E G ] all the way up to [ F A C ]

Solution:

Find a closer inversion of F major. Ask yourself this one question: “Are there any COMMON NOTES between the C major and F major chords?

Answer: YES, the “C”

Key trick: When moving in fourths and fifths, there will always be a common note between the chords (unless you are leaving out certain notes).

C major: C E G

F major: F A C

In this example, “C” is the common note. The bigger your chords get, the more common notes:

C major 7: C E G B

F major 7: F A C E

Now the common notes are C and E

Bigger chord:

C major 9: C E G B D

F major 9: F A C E G

Now the common notes are C, E and G.

So instead of lifting fingers, keep your common notes in place and find out where you have to move the other notes (usually right next door) to create the next chord in the progression.

Example:

C major to F major

Root positions:

C major: C E G

F major: F A C

Common note: C

1) Keep C in place after playing the C major chord

2) Since C is permanent, what do you do with the G? Move it up to A

3) What do you do with E? Move it up to F.

4) New chord: C F A (F major, second inversion)

Another Example:

Cmaj7 to Fmaj7

Root positions:

Cmaj7: C E G B

Fmaj7: F A C E

Common notes: C and E

1) Keep C and E in place after playing the Cmaj7 chord

2) Since C and E are permanent (common notes), move B down to A.

3) Move G down to F.

4) Now that you’ve taken care of the non-common notes (”B down to A” and “G down to F”), you have a new chord: F major 7 / second inversion (C E F A).

Here’s the key rules (if moving up in fourths, like most songs):

==> If you’re playing in root position (major / minor), you can transition smoothest to the second inversion of the next chord.

Example: C E G to C F A or C E G B to C E F A

==> If you’re playing in first inversion, you can transition smoothest to the root position of the next chord.

Example: E G C to F A C

==> If you’re playing in second inversion, you can transition smoothest to the first inversion of the next chord.

Example: G C E to A C F

Recap:

Root to Second

Second to First

First to Root

Root >>> Second >>> First >>> Root