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Introduction

Basics

Introduction to Cadences

Simple Prolongation

First Analysis

Decorations

More Prolongations

Analysis

Sequences I

Introduction Melodic Motion Secondary Dominants Examples

Cadence Variations

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Secondary Dominants

There is one more feature common to cycle of fifths progressions which must be examined before we look at more examples, and this is secondary dominants.

The secondary seventh chords used in a cycle of fifths can be chromatically altered so that they become true dominant sevenths in the key of the following chord. For example, the II chord can be altered to be a true dominant seventh of V. It is then called a "V of V" and this is often notated as "V/V".

Similarly, a I chord with a flattened seventh becomes a V of IV.

These chords, which have been chromatically altered to sound like dominant sevenths, are called "secondary dominants".

A minor seventh chord (e.g. II) is turned into a secondary dominant by raising the third, and a major seventh chord (e.g. I) becomes a secondary dominant when the seventh is lowered. The altered notes are most often the third or the seventh – the active tones in a dominant seventh. The chromatic alterations change common melodic motions of these notse from what would have been a whole-tone step, into a half- tone step. This is true of most chromatic alterations in music. They typically change a whole step into a half step, thus increasing the tension and the pull into the next chord.

Here is the simple example we have been using throughout this chapter, altered to use (perhaps too many!) secondary dominants.