• How To Spice Up Your Harmonization Of The Major Scale Using Diminished Seventh Chords

    in Piano

    Can I take you by the hand and show you a spicier harmonization of the major scale with diminished seventh chord?

    If your answer is yes, then you’re on the right page.

    Using the techniques you’re about to learn, you can also harmonize songs. I’m sure you know that once you’re able to harmonize the major scale, you can also harmonize songs and this is because 99.9% of regular songs are played with the tones of the major scale.

    Before we jump into the harmonization of the major scale using diminished seventh chords, let’s quickly review the concept of stable and active tones in the major key.

    Stable Tones Vs Active Tones

    There are seven tones in every major (or minor) key and they are categorized into stable and active tones.

    In the key of C major:

    …the following tones — C, D, E, F, G, A, and B — can be categorized into stable and active tones.

    Let me show you how this works.

    An Overview Of Stable Tones And Active Tones In The Major Key

    Apart from the first, third, and fifth tones of the major scale that are categorized as stable tones, the other tones of the major scale are said to be active.

    “What Are Stable Tones…”

    Stable tones are the tones that resonate with the major key and they are the tones of the 1-chord in the major key.

    If you play the tones of the C major triad:

    …in the key of C major:

    …you’ll feel the completeness, stability, consonance associated with these tones.

    “What Are Active Tones…”

    The active tones in the major key are the tones that DO NOT resonate with the key. Talk about the second, fourth, sixth, and seventh tones of the major scale.

    In the key of C major, the following tones are active:

    D:

    F:

    A:

    …and B

    :

    When these active tones are played, they have a sense of incompleteness.

    For example, when D:

    …is played over the C major triad:

    …it tends to move towards E (which is a stable tone):

    The Harmonization Of The Major Scale Using Diminished Chords

    Before we completely harmonize the major scale, I’ll show you the harmonic reference used for stable tones and active tones.

    Attention: The harmonic reference is the chord that is used in the harmonization of a melody note.

    The Harmonization Of The Stable Tones

    There are three stable tones in the major key and each of them is harmonized by the 1-chord.

    In the key of C major:

    …the stable tones (which are C, E, and G):

    C:

    E:

    G:

    …are harmonized using the 1-chord (the C major triad):

    C:

    …is harmonized by the C major triad (in first inversion):

    E:

    …is harmonized by the C major triad (in second inversion):

    G:

    …is harmonized by the C major triad (in root position):

    So, keep in mind that once you can play the C major triad in the root position and other inversions (the first and second inversions), you can harmonize the stable tones in the key.

    The Harmonization Of The Active Tones

    There are four active tones in the major key. In the key of C major:

    …they are as follows:

    D:

    …which is harmonized by the F diminished seventh chord:

    F:

    …which is harmonized by the G# diminished seventh chord:

    A:

    …which is harmonized by the C diminished seventh chord:

    B:

    …which is harmonized by the D diminished seventh chord:

    Using these four diminished seventh chords, the major scale can be harmonized alongside with the major triad we covered earlier while harmonizing stable tones.

    The Harmonization Of The Major Scale

    Now, let’s put everything together.

    Here’s how the major scale can be harmonized using the chords we’ve covered:

    C:

    D:

    E:

    F:

    G:

    A:

    B:

    C:

    Final Words

    I know you’re probably wondering what you should be playing on the left hand.

    Well, if you go ahead and play the notes of the major scale on the left hand in such a way that the note you’re harmonizing is duplicated, you’ll have a reinforced sound.

    For example, harmonizing C:

    …with the C major triad (in first inversion):

    …and playing C an octave below the melody note (on the left hand):

    …produces a reinforced harmonization of with four notes:

    …and you can assign a voice part to each of the notes:

    Soprano (C):

    Alto (G):

    Tenor (E):

    Bass (C):

    We’ll talk more about this in subsequent lessons.

    See you then!

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    Chuku Onyemachi

    Head of Education at HearandPlay Music Group
    Onyemachi "Onye" Chuku is a Nigerian musicologist, pianist, and author. Inspired by his role model (Jermaine Griggs) who has become his mentor, what he started off as teaching musicians in his Aba-Nigeria neighborhood in April 2005 eventually morphed into an international career that has helped hundreds of thousands of musicians all around the world. Onye lives in Dubai and is currently the Head of Education at HearandPlay Music Group and the music consultant of the Gospel Music Training Center, all in California, USA.




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