First inversion

The first inversion of a chord is the voicing of a triad, seventh chord, or ninth chord with the third of the chord in the bass and the root a sixth above it.^[1] In the first inversion of a C-major triad Play , the bass is E—the third of the triad—with the fifth and the root stacked above it (the root now shifted an octave higher), forming the intervals of a third and a sixth above the inverted bass of E, respectively.

Root position, first inversion, and second inversion C major chords

Play root position C major chord ,

Play first inversion C major chord , or

Play second inversion C major chord . Chord roots (all the same) in red.

F major chord

First inversion.

Second inversion.

Third inversion F7 chord

Play .

History

In early music, what is today called a sixth chord or first inversion in classical music was considered an autonomous harmonic entity with the root named by the bass, while it was later simply considered an inversion of a chord with the bass being the third (not the root) and the root being the sixth (not the bass).

Special kinds of sixth chords

The Neapolitan sixth is a root-position minor subdominant triad with its fifth displaced upward to the flatted supertonic (second degree of the scale) – a Neapolitan sixth in C minor, therefore, consists of the notes F, A♭ and D♭. Neapolitan sixth chord preceding authentic cadence (V-I)

There are a number of augmented sixth chords. Each of them has a major third and augmented sixth above the bass. When these are the only three notes present, the chord is an Italian sixth Italian sixth moving to V. ; when an augmented fourth is added above the bass, the chord is a French sixth French sixth moving to V. ; while adding a perfect fifth above the bass of an Italian sixth makes it a German sixth German sixth moving to V (the etymology of all these names is unclear). All usually have the flatted submediant in major keys (sixth degree of the scale, A flat in C major, for example), but the normal minor-sixth submediant in minor keys (A flat in C minor, for example) as the bass note. In this case, they tend to resolve to the dominant. Another related chord with an augmented sixth is the Tristan chord.

References

↑ Walter Piston, Harmony, fifth edition, revised and expanded by Mark DeVoto (New York: W. W. Norton, 1987): p. 66. ISBN 978-0-393-95480-7.

Chords

By form

Triad	Major Minor Augmented Diminished Suspended

Seventh	Major Minor Dominant Dominant seventh flat five Diminished Half-diminished Diminished major Minor-major Augmented major Augmented minor Altered seventh Nondominant Harmonic seventh

Extended	Ninth Eleventh Thirteenth Upper structure Dominant 7♯9 Polychord Tone cluster

Added / omitted	Sixth Augmented sixth Lydian Seven six

Specific	Alpha Bridge Complexe sonore Dream Elektra Farben Grandmother Magic µ Mystic Northern lights Petrushka Psalms So What Tristan Viennese trichord

General	Mixed interval Secundal Tertian Quartal Synthetic chord

By function

Diatonic	Tonic Dominant Subdominant Supertonic Mediant Submediant Leading / Subtonic

Altered	Approach Borrowed Chromatic mediant Neapolitan Passing

Secondary	Secondary dominant Secondary leading-tone Secondary supertonic

Other	Common Contrast Primary triad Subsidiary

Techniques

Other

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First inversion

History

Special kinds of sixth chords

See also

References