Sixths are consonant intervals that add stability to many situations where stability is desired. They’re beautiful sounding intervals that add richness to the music in which they are used. Things like block chords, melodic passages, and improvisations are enhanced with their use.
Hopefully, the mechanics of transforming major intervals into their other states of modification is “old hat” to you by now. With that said, we’ll quickly move through this post and the rest of this series starting from here. If you have any questions, just sign-up for a few lessons.
Construction of Major 6ths from the numerical scale steps of Hexachords
Hexachords are 6-note scales. The Major Hexachord is a major scale subgroup that’s comprised of major scale notes 1 thru 6. Extracting the 1st and 6th notes make a major 6th.
Major Hexachord Legend 1-6 = scale steps w = whole step (major 2nd) 1/2= half step (minor 2nd) 1 w2 w3 1/2 4 w5 w 6
If you start with C and follow the schematic’s instructions, step-by-step, the C major hexachord will reveal itself on your piano’s white keys. Play the hexachord in the keys of G, D, A and E too.
Construction of Generic 6ths from the 7-Letter Musical Alphabet
C D E F G A B
1. Select any letter from the 7-letter sequence (In doing that you’ve established the interval’s letter name and root… think of it as scale step “1”.)
2. Skip over the next 3 scale steps. (In doing that you’re skipping over scale steps 2, 3, 4, and 5 because your mission is to make a 6th.)
3. Having skipped over scale steps 2, 3, 4, and 5, select the very next letter in the sequence. (In doing that, you’ve selected scale step “6” as the interval’s upper note and then you extract scale steps 1 and 6.)
That’s it! You’ve constructed a 6th… a generic 6th*. *(All accidentals are excluded In generic intervals. Only letter names and staff position matters.)
6ths – These intervals may be identified by their letter names because both letter names are the 1st and 6th letters of an alphabetically sequenced 6-letter string (hexachord).
When written in standard music notation, 6ths will have exactly 4 unoccupied staff steps in between the interval’s lower and upper notes–a space/line/space/line, OR, a line/space/line/space. Also, four alphabetically sequenced letters will be skipped over.
Keep the following points in mind:
1. The staff represents a piano’s white keys only. The black keys are notated by accidentals. (Staff steps, unmodified by accidentals, are whole steps, except for the half steps at E to F and B to C) (One staff step = the distance from any staff line to the very next staff space or vice versa, up or down)
2. Every staff line and every staff space correlates to a specific white key on the piano. (This point applies to all ledger lines and ledger spaces.)
3. If 4 consecutive staff steps are skipped over, 4 correlating piano keys are also skipped over! (This “skip-over/fly-over” concept and analogy is illustrated in the key of C in the photos just below.) (Your eyes skip-over the 4 staff steps while your fingers “fly-over” the 4 correlating piano keys.)
(The video below shows 6ths being used in block chords and descending scale passages.)
The most commonly used accidentals are shown in the lineup just below followed by examples of the most common occurrences of 6ths in the key of C.
Major 6th = C to A (The major 6th is unmodified) Augmented 6th = C to A♯(The major 6th is sharped once) Minor 6th = C to A♭(The major 6th is flatted once) Diminished 6th = C to A♭♭(The major 6th is flatted twice)
This link will open an Acrobat/Adobe flash type of applet where you’ll be asked to correctly match ten intervals via a drag-n-drop process. Doing the exercise at least 4 or 5 times will give you an introductory workout on identifying and matching the intervals in C and other keys.
Of all the intervals we’re covering, perfect 5ths are among the strongest and most versatile!
The interval is so strong that, with only 2 notes, (almost like a triad having 1 of its 3 hands tied behind its back!), it can hold its own as a “power chord” and sonically cut-thru and even overshadow chords that have a much higher note density. The use of this interval on pianos, as an “anchoring” type of “power chord”, can be heard in the LH boogie-woogie stylings of pianists like James P. Johnson and Sammy Price, and also in the sheer power of either hand of Dorothy Donegan and in the LH bomb-dropping, sonic-booms of McCoy Tyner.
The interval’s versatility is shown by its chameleon-like ability to comfortably blend in with both major and minor tonalities. This special ability is due to the fact that “power chords” lack 3rds, which is one of the reasons that the perfect 5th is an ever-present tool of “top-40” poppers as well as slammin’ hard rockers! Its use and presence in playing situations is easily revealed to people with trained ears. Its use and presence are also evidenced on many of today’s pop music lead sheets and piano scores that are populated with chord symbols like C5, F5, and G5… musical shorthand that signals a perfect 5th is to be played where those chord symbols appear.
Now with all of that being said about perfect 5ths and “power chords”, I want to make sure I say a few words about the following:
Is the “power chord” really a chord?
“It takes a minimum of 3 notes to make a chord” is a point that’s taught in music theory classes.
In many instances, in its role as a “power chord”, the perfect 5th is further strengthened by doubling its root note with an octave(see *2 – just below). This reinforcement adds a third note which bolsters and gives credence to the notion of referring to these intervals as chords. However, even with an added 3rd note, “power chords” still remain classified as an interval! Why? Let’s consider the consistency and congruency of the following three scenarios.
1 – Consider middle C. Add 2 more Cs to it in ascending octaves. You’ve got 3 notes! Is it a triad?
If you said yes, you’ve got one of these coming your way with an invitation to stay after class! If you said no, you’ve got one of these coming your way with an invitation to skip class today! Three Cs spread over 3 consecutive octaves is not a triad. It’s a triple octave unison!
*2 – Consider C perfect 5th (C and G or 1 and 5). Add another C exactly 1-octave above the root.
You have 3 notes! Is it a triad? No! You have a Perfect 5th interval with a doubled root!
3 – Consider C major triad (root position, 1-3-5). Add another C exactly 1-octave above the root.
You’ve got 4 notes! Is it a 7th chord? No! It’s a triad with a doubled root, a 4-note triad if you will.
Octave-doubling any note(s) of an interval or a chord does not change the entity’s classification. The rule that says “it takes a minimum of 3 notes to make a chord” governs chord classification and the 3 notes must be 3 different notes, not an octave doubling of an original unit member.
So although perfect 5ths are also known as “power chords”, by definition, they are not chords. They are intervals, and it is my hope that that you’ll get to know these intervals a little better through the work you’re doing in this series.
Construction of Perfect 5ths from the scale steps of Pentachords/Pentascales
Pentachords and pentascales (synomous terms), are the first 5 notes of a diatonic scale. Major pentachords and/or major pentascales are comprised of major scale notes 1 thru 5. Extracting only the 1st and 5th notes of this major scale subgroup yields a perfect 5th interval.
If you start with C and follow the schematic’s instructions, step-by-step, the C major pentascale will reveal itself on your piano’s white keys. Play the pentascale in the keys of G, D, A and E too.
Construction of Generic 5ths from the 7-Letter Musical Alphabet
C D E F G A B
1. Select any letter from the 7-letter sequence (In doing that you’ve established the interval’s letter name and root… think of it as scale step “1”.)
2. Skip over the next 3 scale steps. (In doing that you’re skipping over scale steps 2, 3, and 4 because your mission is to make a 5th.)
3. Now, having skipped over scale steps 2, 3, and 4, select the very next letter in the sequence. (In doing that, you’ve selected scale step “5” as the interval’s upper note and then you extract scale steps 1 and 5.)
That’s it! You’ve constructed a 5th… a generic 5th*. *(All accidentals are excluded In generic intervals. Only letter names and staff position matters.)
5ths – These intervals may be identified by their letter names because both letter names are the 1st and 5th letters of an alphabetically sequenced 5-letter string (pentachord or pentascale).
When written in standard music notation, 5ths will have exactly 3 unoccupied staff steps in between the interval’s lower and upper notes–a space/line/space, OR, a line/space/line. Also, three alphabetically sequenced letters will be skipped over.
Keep the following points in mind:
1. The staff represents a piano’s white keys only. The black keys are notated by accidentals. (Staff steps, unmodified by accidentals, are whole steps, except for the half steps at E to F and B to C) (One staff step = the distance from any staff line to the very next staff space or vice versa, up or down)
2. Every staff line and every staff space correlates to a specific white key on the piano. (This point applies to all ledger lines and ledger spaces.)
3. If 3 consecutive staff steps are skipped over, 3 correlating piano keys are also skipped over! (This “skip-over/fly-over” concept and analogy is illustrated in the key of C in the photos just below.) (Your eyes skip-over the 3 staff steps while your fingers “fly-over” the 3 correlating piano keys.)
Perfect Intervals: What are they? Why are they called “perfect”?
Part of the answer to both questions has to do with the overtones and harmonics that only this particular class of intervals produce. Many piano tuners rely on perfect intervals in their craft. However, since the details that explain overtones and harmonics go far beyond the scope of this post, I’ll simply tell you which intervals are “perfect” and I’ll mention a distinguishing and affirming “key” characteristic of perfect intervals, (“Key” pun intended).
Which intervals are perfect?
There are only 4 of ’em! They come directly out of the major scale. Memorize ’em! (1-4-5-8)
1-1 Perfect 1st or Perfect Unison – (The 1st note of a major scale doubled directly upon itself) 1-4 Perfect 4th – (The 1st and 4th notes of a major scale) 1-5 Perfect 5th – (The 1st and 5th notes of a major scale) 1-8 Perfect 8th or Perfect Octave – (The 1st and 8th notes of a major scale)
Here’s an optional verification process you can use to confirm an interval’s “perfect” status.
Perfect Interval Evaluative Characteristics Affirmation Test (P.I.E.C.A.T.) (OK! I confess! I just made-up this tongue-in-cheek acronym but many cats have been known to eat non-cat-like foods. I had a cat that loved vinegar potato chips! Anyway, here’s how the test works…)
A “purr-fect” interval is affirmed when the upper note of any given interval is also found in the major scale that begins on that interval’s lower note, AND, the lower note of that interval is also found in the major scale that begins on that interval’s upper note. Here’s another way to say it…
If your interval’s top note is present in its bottom note’s major scale, AND, its bottom note is present in its top note’s major scale, voilà! You’ve ID’d a “purr-fect” interval via “P.I.E.C.A.T.“!
Perfect 5th = C to G (The 5th note of a major scale remains unmodified) Augmented 5th = C to G♯ (The 5th note of a major scale is sharped once) Minor 1st *(N/A) *(Minor functionality isn’t allowed on any perfect interval.) Diminished 5th = C to G♭**(The 5th note of a major scale is flatted once) **(Perfect intervals become diminished with only one flat)
This link will open an Acrobat/Adobe flash type of applet where you’ll be asked to correctly match ten intervals via a drag-n-drop process. Doing the exercise at least 4 or 5 times will give you an introductory workout on identifying and matching the intervals in C and other keys.
My short answer is yes! Definitely! I feel that anyone who is fluent in a spoken language, has the capacity to learn how to improvise. The way I see it, every time you engage someone in conversation, you are using a specific type of improvisation at which you are already very skilled! You might not even give this whole idea much thought because you do it so well on a daily basis. As you learn new things throughout your life and communicate with others about the new things you’re learning, you continue to grow, develop, and fine-tune your skills of improvisation!
Consider Dictionary.com’s first two definitions of the word “improvise”.
1. to compose and perform or deliver without previous preparation; 2. to compose, play, recite, or sing (verse, music, etc.) on the spur of the moment.
You don’t know exactly what you’re going to say throughout the day to each person you encounter, because in conversation, what you say is usually dependent on and relevant to what the other conversationalists say to you.
Although you may have excellent reading skills in your native language, you are not going to “read” everything you say to people in any given conversation, are you? Of course not!
You’re going to express yourself by tapping into and drawing upon the language data you’ve been storing in your own personal lexicon for years to organize and assemble your thoughts in a split second. Instantaneously, you express your thoughts by constructing words, phrases, and sentences–all within the confines of your current topic of discussion. In the context of music, the confines and current topic of discussion would be the song you’re playing at the moment. But again, you’ve been doing this for years with speaking and this all happens so fast that you don’t even think about the complexity of the process that takes place every time you speak. It is so “second nature” to us that we often take it for granted! But what you’re doing is spontaneously using all of the language data that you’ve stored in your brain to compose speech in real-time… IMPROVISING ! And you’re already very good at it! Now, all you have to do is to use those same improvisational principles and techniques and apply them to the language of music.
That’s right! I think of music as a language and my approach to teaching musical improvisation centers around many of the same processes that you used when you were first learning to speak and improvise with your growing vocabulary and speech data. For example: in English, you have to accumulate vocabulary and do things like conjugating verbs through all of the tenses. In music, you have to accumulate vocabulary and do things like conjugating many rudimentary items through all 12-keys. Do you remember, in elementary English class, that when you learned a new word or phrase, you had to use it in a sentence in order to fully understand it? Well, that concept is alive and well in my improvisation classes. Whenever you learn a new motif or phrase, I ask you to use it in a musical sentence–preferably after you’ve done your 12-key conjugations.
My friend, the late Sammy Price, once told me that Willie “The Lion” Smith said he “would not take a musician seriously unless he or she knew at least 100 songs”. I believe in the wisdom of that statement. Imagine a person going into a foreign country equipped with only a few words and phrases from a “handy-phrase” tourist book. He or she will never be taken seriously as a speaker of that country’s language until they build up a serious vocabulary and demonstrate that they can hold a real conversation. So learn lots of tunes as you go about the business of learning to improvise.
If you practice your lessons well every day, your improvisation skills will improve and you will begin to witness your own growth as a musician. Stay on it!
“You have to practice improvisation, let no one kid you about it!” – Art Tatum
By the way, Jeff DeLangie, a very wonderful player and student of mine from several years ago, has found his way back to me and he’s asked that we center our work around jazz theory and improvisation. Jeff has agreed to let me share his journey with you as periodic video posts. So check in from time to time and type his name into any search box on my site to view his progress on various homework assignments, songs, and special projects.
Now if you need some help and you’d like to have some fun while we go about the serious business of working on your musicianship, don’t hesitate to contact me so we can get busy!
Here’s a quick recap of what Ray Charles once said about practice…
to you by now. With that said, we’ll quickly move through this post and the rest of this series starting from here. If you have any questions, just sign-up for a few lessons.
coming your way with an invitation to stay after class! If you said no, you’ve got one of these 
coming your way with an invitation to skip class today! Three Cs spread over 3 consecutive octaves is not a triad. It’s a triple octave unison! 
