Contents
This interpretation issue is so heavy that categorizing Blk chords must be the first thing to be done. I made a quick chart for that. (I’m gonna explain each category later on so you don’t need to read them thoroughly!)
I made 6 category in total. Theoretically, there re even more (like diminished 3rd types).
OK, a long way preparation is now done. Let’s listen to Blk chords!
3. Wholetone Type
Wholetone Scale has all the Blk intervals in it so you can put Blk whenever you play this scale.
Or rather, you can create Blk from any tone of the whole-tone scale.
This time, f♯, g♯, and b♭ were chosen for convenience, but this is arbitrary. The wholetone scale, which is a hexatonic scale with equidistant intervals, is a special case that deviates from the seven-note-based spelling system, and there is no clear logic to determine the spelling.
Since specific chord names cannot be assigned, I decided to use “Blk” as the chord symbol itself. In this respect, the whole-tone type can be said to be the context form in which Blk appears as the most abstract Blk instance.
At any time during a performance on the whole tone, you can easily insert this Blk Chord.
This is an example of wholetone scale song. Now change this piano backing all to Blk!
No incongruity at all😉 Since wholetone scale itself has as a strange type of sound, it’s quite natural for Blk to stay there.
Instances
The real instance of this type is “Guilty Eyes Fever”.
In this part the melody plays “mi–re–do–re“. Utilizing this wholetone line, wholetone scales & Blk chords are eccentrically interplated. Really shocking usage!
4. Slash Chord Type
The slash chords type correspond to cases where the bass exhibits independence from the overall chordal context.
Accidental Chord Types
One of the forms of occurrence is the “accidental chord“. This refers to chords that occur accidentally and momentarily when each tone of a chord undergoes (particularly chromatic) movement.
For example, when a chord transitions from V to IV, inserting chromatic movement between them creates a Blk.
In this way, the chord I+/
IV momentarily emerges. The chord does not define the phrases; rather, the sum of phrases forms the chord. This is what is described as “accidental”. Therefore, this is a classical harmonic interpretation that is far removed from chord scale system theory. Let’s take a look at some examples.
どんなときも (Donna Tokimo)
Listen to the chord just before the chorus. The strings going up & the bass going down, which creates the structure of ♯IV Blk. The encounter rate with this type is not high, as it only occurs in deliberate orchestrations.
Flipped Bass Type
Similar to the accidental chords yet a bit different is the “flipped bass” type, where only the bass plays the tone tritone away from the original root while the upper part playing [aug].
世界はそれを愛と呼ぶんだぜ(The World Calls It Love)
The riff in the intro and the verse, the second chord uses “Aaug/D♯”.
Just simple I→Iaug seemed to be boring for the bassist, so he tried going to ♯IV. It feels like a playful experiment.
Given that they are a punk-ish rock band, it’s nonsense to think they deliberately designed “♯IV7alt” as a substitute dominant. It would be more natural to see this as “aug with flipped bass”1.
What sets this type apart from “accidental chords” is that it has a longer duration and phrases are born from chords, making it difficult to describe the chord as “accidentally derived from the flow of voices.”
灼熱スイッチ (Shakunetsu Switch)
Another example. In this song, the chorus starts with the III+/
VII chord2.
In jazz theory, there is a concept of “tritone substitution,” where III7 is replaced by VII7, and it is simple to consider that the bass here conducted that technique alone.
Actually, the technique of such individual part “escapes” exists as explained in the VI chapter’s article on tritone substitution. This aspect, arising from a jazz-like “outside” sensation, is also one of the reasons for distinguishing it from the classical technique of “accidental chords.”
5. Tension Chord Type
If there is no basis to consider it as a slash chord, it is highly likely to be a “tension chord with the 3rd absent”. In that case, the interpretation varies depending on whether the missing 3rd is a major 3rd or a minor 3rd.
Of course, if the 3rd were to sound acoustically, then it wouldn’t be (strictly speaking) a Blackadder Chord anymore, so the consideration would be more like “if it were to sound, which one?” Or in the process of composing a piece, naturally, the composer has the authority to decide it.
Dominant Ninth Type
When the major 3rd can be supplemented, it becomes a subtype of the dominant ninth chord.
For example, various dominant chords such as V, secondary dominants, and tritone substitutes can easily be converted to a Blk Chord with just slight changes.
Originally, dominant chords are prone to activating alterations like (-5) or (+11), so simply removing the 3rd at that point results in a Blk. Especially in jazz, this type of Blk chords is often observed.
Chris Connor – All About Ronnie
The key is F. After the vocal getting in, the first chord (0:15) creates a rather mysterious atmosphere, and this is the Blk. With the bass as B♭, the IV7 chord has the 9th and +11th, with the 3rd coincidentally omitted. Since the melody also includes the +11th note, it fully expresses the eccentricity of this chord.
Regarding the judgment of the type, in jazz, it is common for seventh chords like IV7 or VII7 to have the +11th, and in the next part with the lyrics “All about Ronnie,” it becomes IIm9. With the piano also playing the B♭ note, it feels more natural to interpret it as a processed dominant ninth rather than a slash chord.
Let’s create some samples using other roots.
- IIm7IIIm7VIm7VI9(+11,omit3)
This is a Blk resulting from radicalizing VI7. It can still be accepted as a sound of altered dominant.
- IIm7IIIm7VIm7III9(+11,omit3)
This time, it’s the Blk of ♭III7 as the result of that. Considering the constituent tones, (ignoring the enharmonic equivalents), this can ultimately be interpreted as “VIaug with the bass flipped,” so if you say so, it sounds like a “twisted augmented” chord.
Therefore, whether a certain Blk is a slash chord type or a tension chord type, sometimes it is really difficult to distinguish. It’s quite a continuous, gradient relationship.
Let’s try another root.
- VIm7IV
IV9(-5,omit3)III7
This is a Blk from substitute dominant IV7. I mentioned earlier that the tritone of Blk could be +11 or -5, and in this scenario, I chose the flat five. As a result, you can involve P4 interval for phrases. So the root is fa, and the performance involves ti♭ and do♭, creating a considerable sense of deviation and darkness.
On songwriting, it’s enjoyable to flesh out Blk with specific details using chord scale theory and melodic kernel theory.
Half Diminished Type
On the other hand, when the minor 3rd can be supplemented, it should be regarded as a variant of the Half Diminished Ninth. Similar to when using the dominant ninth, by slightly altering the half diminished chord, you can also arrive at Blk.
Besides ♯IV, the half diminished chord rooted in VII or III is familiar. Let’s attempt to convert it into Blk.
- IIm7V7III(9,omit3)VI7
- IΔ7IVΔ7VII(9,omit3)III7(+9,-13)VIm9V(9,omit3)I7
The first one is a conversion of III as a Rel.IIm. The fa♯ in the 9th may seem a bit peculiar, but since it’s the only unusual note, it blends in naturally.
The latter is a Blk conversion of VII and then a somewhat forced-conversion of the Rel.IIm Vm7 3.
In terms of usage, while the dominant type typically resolves to a major seventh or similar, with half diminished, it’s also perfectly plausible to place a dominant chord after it. So, in extreme cases, it seems possible to follow a half diminished type Blk with a dominant type Blk. Extreme!
Augmented Sixth Type
So far, we’ve proceeded as if the [10 semitones] were definitely a minor seventh, but it’s also possible that it’s an augmented sixth. As mentioned in Chapter VII, “augmented sixth chords” are generally ignored in jazz and popular music theory, so you won’t come across augmented sixths in pop music very often. It’s only by chance or through the influence of classical techniques that you might encounter them.
Joe Hisaishi’s “One SUmmer’s Day” is a rare example where an augmented sixth Blk is used, originating from an extremely classical context. Pay attention to the chord progression from the quiet Am.
From the fifth chord, Cm/E, it begins borrowing from the parallel minor, transitioning into a mixed state of parallel keys. The following Dm7 skillfully omits the fifth, obscuring whether it’s in the C minor key or the C major. Then, a Blk with the bass on D♭ is introduced, leading to G7.
Being “the ♭II chord preceding the dominant”, this chord strongly resonates with the context of the “Neapolitan chord”. In Chapter VII, we introduced examples where Chopin used the Neapolitan chord in its basic form rather than in its usual inverted form, which closely aligns with this example.
Although there isn’t a chord symbol for an augmented sixth chord, if forced to describe, it would be D+6(9,+11,omit3&5).
Contemporary Classical and Blk
Other examples of what appears to be an “augmented sixth Blk” in classical music include Ravel’s “Jeux d’eau”, Schoenberg’s “Chamber Symphony No.1” and Scriabin’s “Sonata No.4”. but in either case, a major 3rd is present along with the Blk’s chord notes, so it doesn’t quite fit the definition of a pure Blk.
In the context of contemporary classical music, where we find an “augmented sixth type Blk, with a major third included,” it would be natural to view it as “the French Sixth with an added ninth” from a historical perspective.
The “French Sixth” chord, in particular, is notable for its association with the whole-tone scale, making it prominent in contemporary contexts. It inherently shares similarities with Blk chords that correspond to the whole-tone scale.
In the complex harmonic landscape of the modern era, the idea of adding a ninth is natural. However, since they did not have the culture of omitting the 3rd, it didn’t perfectly align with the Blk…I guess like that.
Looking again at Joe Hisaishi’s example, using the augmented sixth chord within the context of Neapolitan harmony and omitting the 3rd to evoke elements of jazz and modernity, while also creating a sense of “fantasy yet melancholy,” seems like an incredibly delicate maneuver.
Japanese Augmented Sixth, or Japanese Augmented Sixth
With these aspects of the augmented sixth chord in mind, there has been a suggestion online to refer to the Blackadder Chord as the “Japanese Augmented Sixth.” Joshua also likes this idea.
Regarding the “Blackadder” (“Ikisugi”) Chord, I’d like to propose a formal name more fitting for analysis: “Japanese Augmented 6th” (abbreviated “Jpn+6” or “Jp+6”).
Here, I’ve shown the prototypical example. Resolves to major or minor chord a semitone below, usually IV. pic.twitter.com/DIetxQix6j
— Atelier Joshua (@joshuataipale) February 28, 2019
However, in reality, aug6 type Blk are likely to be in the minority. Therefore, equating “Blackadder Chord” with “Japanese Sixth” is not recommended at all from a theoretical classification standpoint. It should be used only in reference to augmented sixth-based Blk chords, such as those found in “One Summer’s Day” – Using the term in a way like “This Blackadder Chord is of the Japanese sixth type. It’s quite rare.” is good.
Classification of Chords
Now, the classification introduction of the six types of Blk is complete. However, this is just one way of classifying them, and other methods are also conceivable, and there may be examples that fall outside of these six types.
But the discussion on how to classify Blk into various systems and types is not crucial at this point. What we should focus on is the situation where so many possibilities and contexts converge into a single formation of [0,2,6,10].
Next, we will move on to the practical application of this uniqueness, exploring whether it can be applied in an interesting way.
