Chords & Harmony – Building Musical Depth - Free MCQ Practice Test

The V-I progression creates the strongest conclusive cadence, known as an authentic cadence, because the dominant chord (V) contains the leading tone that pulls strongly toward the tonic. When V7 is used, the tritone between the third and seventh of the chord creates additional tension that demands resolution to I. The IV-I plagal cadence is weaker and sounds more like an "amen" ending, while vi-IV-I and ii-V don't complete the resolution to tonic. The dominant-to-tonic motion is the fundamental harmonic relationship in Western tonal music.

Parallel perfect fifths violate the principle of voice independence in traditional counterpoint and harmony. When two voices move in perfect fifths throughout their motion, they lose their individual melodic character and essentially become one reinforced line, reducing the texture from four distinct voices to three. This weakens the harmonic richness and contrapuntal interest of the composition. While parallel fifths were common in early medieval organum, Classical-era composers avoided them to maintain clear voice independence. The issue isn't about acoustic beating or tonal ambiguity—it's about preserving the independence and integrity of each melodic line.

The bVI chord (F major in A minor) is a chromatic mediant borrowed from the parallel major (where it would be the vi chord). Chromatic mediants share one common tone but have roots a third apart and differ in quality, creating colorful harmonic shifts. F major shares the note A with A minor but introduces C natural and F natural, brightening the sound. The C major chord is actually the natural III in A minor (not borrowed), E major is the dominant (also diatonic to A minor when raised), and D major would be IV borrowed from the parallel major but isn't a mediant relationship. The bVI is particularly popular in contemporary composition for its warm, uplifting quality.

A fully diminished seventh chord consists of stacked minor thirds, creating equal spacing of 3 semitones between each adjacent chord tone: root, minor third, diminished fifth, and diminished seventh. For example, B diminished seventh contains B-D-F-Ab, where each interval is exactly 3 semitones. This symmetrical structure means the chord divides the octave into four equal parts, creating its distinctive tense, ambiguous sound. This symmetry also allows the chord to resolve in multiple directions and makes it enharmonically equivalent to three other diminished sevenths. Major thirds would create an augmented seventh chord, while perfect fourths aren't used in tertian harmony construction.

The #11 (F# in Cmaj7) is the ideal extension for major seventh chords because it creates a bright, modern sound without clashing with the chord tones. The natural 11th (F) is typically avoided on major chords because it forms a dissonant minor ninth interval against the major third (E), creating muddy harmony. The 9th (D) and 13th (A) are both acceptable extensions but don't create the distinctive "dreamy, suspended" quality described—they simply expand the chord. The #11 is particularly favored in jazz and contemporary composition because it's derived from the Lydian mode and adds sophisticated color while maintaining harmonic clarity.

A secondary dominant is defined by its use of chromatic alterations (notes outside the key) to create a dominant-function chord that resolves to a chord other than the tonic. For example, in C major, an A7 chord (A-C#-E-G) contains C#, which isn't in C major, and functions as V7/ii, temporarily treating D minor as if it were a tonic. This creates brief tonicization of non-tonic chords. Secondary dominants don't necessarily involve inversions (option C), aren't limited to subdominant areas (option B), and while they connect harmonies, their defining feature is the chromatic alteration and dominant function, not simply passing motion. The temporary tonicization through chromatic alteration is what makes them "secondary" dominants.

In a sus4 chord resolving to a major triad, the suspended fourth moves down by semitone to the major third of the chord. For example, in Csus4 (C-F-G) resolving to C major (C-E-G), the F moves down a semitone to E. This demonstrates the principle of tendency tones, where dissonant or unstable notes resolve by stepwise motion to stable chord tones. The sus4 creates harmonic tension because it replaces the defining third of the chord with a fourth, and resolution occurs when this fourth moves to the third. This descending semitone motion is the defining characteristic of sus4 resolution, not a whole step descent or upward motion. The suspended fourth creates expectation that's satisfied by its resolution.

In natural minor, the ii chord is diminished, but when the sixth scale degree is raised (characteristic of the Dorian mode), it creates a major II chord. For example, in A minor, raising F to F# creates a B major chord (II) instead of B diminished (ii°). This is modal borrowing from Dorian, which naturally contains a raised sixth degree. This chord provides a brighter, more stable supertonic function than the diminished ii°. The Neapolitan sixth involves the lowered second degree (not raised sixth), augmented sixth chords use altered notes but aren't simply built on the raised sixth, and while IV can be borrowed from parallel major, that doesn't involve the sixth scale degree. Dorian mode's raised sixth is the source of this particular borrowed harmony.

In four-part harmony, the dominant seventh chord contains four different notes (root, third, fifth, seventh) but typically the fifth is omitted and the root is doubled. This is because the fifth is the least characteristic tone—it doesn't participate in the tritone resolution that defines the dominant seventh's function. The root, third, and seventh must be present: the root establishes the chord identity, the third and seventh form the tritone that resolves to the tonic (third to tonic, seventh down to tonic third). Doubling the root strengthens the bass and provides better voice leading options. Omitting the third or seventh would destroy the dominant function, and doubling dissonant tones (like the seventh) violates traditional voice-leading principles.

The chord containing scale degrees 6-1-3 is the tonic chord in first inversion (I6), where the bass note is the third of the chord (scale degree 3). For example, in C major, this would be C-E-G with E in the bass (6th scale degree relative to that bass note is C, 1st is E, 3rd is G). This creates a I-I6-V-I progression, where the I6 prolongs tonic harmony through bass motion while setting up the dominant. First inversion triads create smoother bass lines and maintain harmonic function while adding melodic interest. The vi chord would contain different scale degrees (6-1-3 from the tonic root), and IV would contain 4-6-1. The I6 is a fundamental technique for creating bass motion while maintaining tonic function.

In V7 resolving to I, the tritone consists of the third and seventh of the dominant chord. The seventh resolves down by step (a whole tone), and the third resolves up by step (a semitone in major keys), with both moving to notes of the tonic triad. For example, in G7 (G-B-D-F) resolving to C major, the F (seventh) descends to E, and the B (third, also the leading tone) ascends to C. This inward resolution by contrary motion satisfies the tension inherent in the tritone interval and creates strong voice leading. Both notes moving in the same direction would create parallel motion and weaker resolution, violating traditional voice-leading principles. The convergence of the tritone into stable tonic intervals is fundamental to functional tonality.

The I - bVII - IV progression is characteristic of the Mixolydian mode (which has a lowered seventh scale degree) and is commonly called a Mixolydian vamp or rock progression. The bVII chord is borrowed from the parallel minor or represents Mixolydian modality. This progression appears extensively in rock, blues-rock, and classic rock because it creates a strong, grounded feeling without the tension of traditional dominant function. Examples include "Sweet Child O' Mine" and countless other rock songs. The Andalusian cadence is i-bVII-bVI-V in minor, and the Phrygian progression involves different scale relationships. While this progression can appear in various contexts, its association with rock and blues-influenced music is most definitive and widely recognized.

This chord is Cmaj13(#11): it contains the root (C), major third (E), perfect fifth (G), major seventh (B), ninth (D), #11th (F#), and 13th (A). In extended tertian harmony, we stack thirds to build beyond the seventh: ninth, eleventh (typically sharpened on major chords), and thirteenth. This creates a rich, sophisticated sonority derived from the Lydian mode (which contains #11). The chord functions primarily as a tonic or subdominant in modern jazz, providing lush harmonic color. It's not augmented (G is natural, not G#), doesn't function as a dominant substitute (dominant chords typically have different structures and tensions), and while the fifth might be omitted in voicing, the chord itself isn't incomplete—all extensions are present in the theoretical structure.

The progression I-vi-IV-V represents tonic to tonic substitute (vi functions as a tonic substitute because it shares two notes with I), to subdominant, to dominant. This creates a complete functional progression moving through all three harmonic functions before returning to tonic. The vi chord (relative minor) can substitute for tonic because of their common tones, the IV chord provides subdominant function (pre-dominant), and V provides dominant function. While vi is the relative minor, its functional role here is as a tonic substitute. The term "circle progression" isn't standard for this particular progression, though the root movement does follow strong harmonic patterns. This progression is foundational in popular music and represents clear functional harmony moving through tonic prolongation, subdominant preparation, and dominant tension.

Between C major (C-E-G) and F major (F-A-C), the note C is the only common tone—it's the root of I and the fifth of IV. In optimal voice leading, this common tone should be sustained in the same voice while other voices move by step. The E (third of I) moves up by step to F (root of IV), and G (fifth of I) moves up by step to A (third of IV). This creates smooth, conjunct motion with the common tone held. Option B incorrectly identifies G as common (it's not in F major), and option D incorrectly states both C and G are common. Option C is wrong because a common tone does exist. Proper voice leading emphasizes smooth motion, common-tone retention, and primarily stepwise movement to create the most musical and efficient connection between chords.