Are all Dominant Chords Seventh Chords?

by Ari 27 Feb 2020 1 minute read

Do dominants, secondary dominants, or tritone substitutions have to be seventh chords?

You might think yes. But really, no….

This deserves further explanation which I provide in my response to the Quora poster.

Included in my explanation is how even single notes can imply the dominant effect. And a deeper dive into the all-important tritone.

I also touch on how and why the tritone doesn’t always imply a dominant effect either. (Hint: Think minor six chords or a simple IV chord.) And why the Blues totally drives he classical theorists crazy.

The reason seventh chords are used so often setting up a resolution to the tonic, is that they have two drivers of the need to resolve. Can you guess what the two drivers are?

That answer and my full explanation to this question can be found in my Quora answer

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Hi. I'm Ari.

As a bassist, I have toured/played/recorded with a variety of rock, Jazz, and funk bands, I have worked with some incredible producers (Keith Olsen) and musicians (Paul Hanson, Muriel Anderson) and I toured Brazil with Stu Hamm as a duo.

 

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When I started playing bass, I excelled very quickly because I had an amazing teacher who taught me using a powerful method. This method transformed my playing so quickly that I passed a bunch of high-level university auditions and even tested out of entire classes at university even though I had been playing for only a very short time.

 

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