What is an essential tone?

**Ron Stern** · 12-22-2014, 06:46 PM

Bert Ligon, Connecting Chords With Linear Harmony p. 11:

The tone between the 5th and the 7th of the ii chord is the essential tone of the V7 chord.

Note: tone, singular, not tones, plural.

Assuming he means the diatonic note between the 5th and the 7th, that is the maj7 of the key, right?

So in C : iim7 = Dm7 ; between 5th (A) and 7th (C) is B which is maj7 of C ? And 3d of G7 which is V7?

OK, so it's the "essential tone (singular) of the V7 chord". V7 is G of which B is the 3d so the third is the essential tone (singular) of the V7 chord, right? 3d is good, 3d is important, 3d is essential. Why isn't the 7th essential?

Now for Part 2:

In the case of a C triad in the key of F major : C, E and G are the essential tones.

Note: tones, plural.

I thought C, E and G were the only tones of a C triad. I guess that makes them essential.

I thought a C triad had the same notes no matter what key it's in.

What's an essential tone?

Why does iim7 have only one but a triad has three? Because the triad in question is the triad of the V7? That makes all three essential?

What does "essential tone" mean?

**docbop** · 12-22-2014, 07:09 PM

I think essential tones are chord tones.

The your example: The tone between the 5th and the 7th of the ii chord is the essential tone of the V7 chord.

The note between the 5th and 7th of the II chord is the 3rd of the V chord. So 3rd is an essential tone.

You'll hear people laying for this the the note a half-step below the 7th of the II is the 3rd of the V chord. The note a half-step below the 7th of the V chord is the 3rd of the I major chord. They lay for the 7th so they can setup the chord change or anticipate the change.

**fumblefingers** · 12-23-2014, 01:54 AM

I'll have to check the book later for context but the 7th is the leading tone that pulls to the tonic.

**Stuart Elliott** · 12-23-2014, 02:14 AM

Is "essential" tone related to guide tone?

**Jonah** · 12-23-2014, 09:35 AM

OK, so it's the "essential tone (singular) of the V7 chord". V7 is G of which B is the 3d so the third is the essential tone (singular) of the V7 chord, right? 3d is good, 3d is important, 3d is essential. Why isn't the 7th essential?

I think this describes more triadic classical approch where triad is mimimum chord to establish function, and 7th chords are only to strengthen the tension - that is 7th is not essential, it is supplimentary.

But then strange enough that the author speaks about 7th chords...

jazz harmony sound has established quite firmly 7th chords as independent and self-sufficient -maj7 could be heard as a stable tonic e.g., which is not possible in classical harmony.
So I think is we speak about any 7th chords with jazz harmony (at least regarding functionality) it would be more correct to say that there are to essential tones - 3rd and 7th

But context is really imnportant here...
there are so many approches in jazz harmony and voicing and almost all of them use 'borrowed' terminolgy and systems which originally was not intended to describe jazz harmony...
and these systems system seem to be more of support in practical organization of performance than actually describing qualities of musical events from musicilogical point of view...

But on the other hand if we speak about dom. 7th chord may be it is more corresct to consider only 3rd as essential. I would say that except blues changes and later modal jazz, the function of dominant chord in jazz is still the same as in classical - it is triadic.

**matt.guitarteacher** · 12-23-2014, 09:56 AM

He's talking about chord tones as target notes in reference to neighbor tones etc.

p.11 is the chapter "Embellishing Devices".

Part of it reads, "Passing tones are the chromatic and diatonic steps between the essential tones."

Later: " in the case of a C triad, C, E and G are the essential tones"...

**Jonah** · 12-23-2014, 10:06 AM

Later: " in the case of a C triad, C, E and G are the essential tones"...

that's clear.

So in the context when he said 'The tone between the 5th and the 7th of the ii chord is the essential tone of the V7 'chord. he just meant of 'one of the essential tones of V7 chord'

**Reg** · 12-23-2014, 10:28 AM

I don't remember... but sounds like more of what the characteristic pitch or tone is... For the II chord, the tone between 5 and 7 would be the 6th which is the characteristic pitch, the maj 6th.

The reference is more in the direction of modal thinking. Each mode has characteristic pitch, the note that makes the note collection or scale different with reference to Maj. and Min.

**pamosmusic** · 12-23-2014, 10:39 AM

Originally Posted by Reg

I don't remember... but sounds like more of what the characteristic pitch or tone is... For the II chord, the tone between 5 and 7 would be the 6th which is the characteristic pitch, the maj 6th.

The reference is more in the direction of modal thinking. Each mode has characteristic pitch, the note that makes the note collection or scale different with reference to Maj. and Min.

Second that. The Natural 6 is the note that differentiates a ii chord from - say - a vi chord

**Jonah** · 12-23-2014, 10:41 AM

The reference is more in the direction of modal thinking. Each mode has characteristic pitch, the note that makes the note collection or scale different with reference to Maj. and Min.

not really sure here... from what is quoted above looks like regular functional choral-like voice-leading...

using modal approach he could just simply say 6th of Dorian, but he said between 5th and 7th of ii chord - it is definitely to identify the lvoice-lead to the 3rd of dominant chord.

**Jonah** · 12-23-2014, 10:58 AM

Second that. The Natural 6 is the note that differentiates a ii chord from - say - a vi chord

But it is not actually about the chord - it is about the mode that can be applied to the chord... but Bert Ligon says 'The tone between the 5th and the 7th of the ii chord is the essential tone of the V7 chord.'

essentional for V7, not for II... he definitely points to functionality...

the other argument is that from modality for V7 the 7th of its mode should be essential... but he definitely points out the tirad tones as essential.

**matt.guitarteacher** · 12-23-2014, 11:14 AM

He's obviously talking about chord tones. I don't think it's to be overanalyzed. Not sure the distinction in terms, but B can technically be seen as a "chord tone" of C. He's maybe trying to provide disambiguation in defining the melodic/harmonic relationship of a line such as D-B-C. All those notes can be seen as "chord tones"?

But the target is C in the C chord which he is calling the "essential" tone. Doesn't really matter what you call it that, he's targeting C, E, and G in a C Triad. Pretty simple stuff.

You can target notes other than C, E or G over a C chord. He's labeling the actual chord tones of the Triad with this term for disambiguation maybe?

Bert's a nice guy. He's answered emails from me and others here. I'm sure he'd reply to an inquiry re. Essential-Tone-gate. :-)

**pamosmusic** · 12-23-2014, 11:50 AM

Good catch! Missed the V7 part

I will say that jazz theory is not formalized ... So for someone like Bert Ligon who speaks about it very formally it involves a lot of terminology that is their own. Emailing him is a good call of you can't get it from the book. There might be an assumption that you're familiar w his teaching style and terminology.

**matt.guitarteacher** · 12-23-2014, 11:57 AM

Originally Posted by pamosmusic

There might be an assumption that you're familiar w his teaching style and terminology.

I'm sure most of his published work is adapted University material. I actually asked him about the possibility of a guitar specific book, and he commented on having a ton of material already from his teaching and that he had thought about it.

**Reg** · 12-24-2014, 10:45 AM

Yea... my mistake, Does sound like more from classical Maj/Min functional Harmony...

The use of essential tones derived from traditional functional.... Dominant, subdom and tonic functional chord tones, and the connecting aspect, would be traditional, or at least used as reference for voiceleading .... for connecting chords with melodic lines to perform Jazz...somewhat silly

I'll re-read... there must be more

**Ron Stern** · 01-16-2015, 08:55 AM

To give no definition implies that there is a commonly accepted understanding of the term.

Thanks for trying.

**matt.guitarteacher** · 01-16-2015, 12:17 PM

Just noticed in Joe Elliott's book that he uses the term in a completely different way. I don't think it's anything universal, as evidenced by all the speculation in this thread from some pretty knowledgeable people on the subject (not me). I think it's just teachers using the term for what they want it to mean.

It's probably a question whose answer is inferred in the classroom through the way it's used. Verbal communication is just so much easier than written communication. You can infer a lot of things, ask questions etc. Probably assumed that people would know what was intended, but in written form....

**matt.guitarteacher** · 01-17-2015, 10:10 AM

from Bert Ligon:
*****************************
I don't have the book in front of me so I can't refer to a page number right now [all my copies are at my office], but I'll take a stab at it.

The essential tones would be the chord tones themselves.*

A C major chord, by definition, is C-E-G. Those are the essential tones. [and E, or the third of any chord, is maybe the most important since without it the major/minor modality can't be determined]*

All the other tones are secondary or tertiary in relation to those primary pitches. Maybe I should have used the term "primary" instead of "essential".*

All pitches "work" over a C major chord, but C-E-G are primary/essential.*

D, F, A & B, as notes in the key, work as secondary pitches that point back to the primary or essential tones.*They occur as passing tones or diatonic neighbor tones.*

The tertiary tones would be any of the other chromatic tones that occur as pointers back to the primary/essential tones often in combination with diatonic secondary tones. D# points up to E; F# points up to G, etc. One could label all the tones as if they are all chord tones, but I don't think that's how we really hear them - and the hearing part is the most important part of any theory.

A melodic example:*In Joy to the World in C, the downbeat of every measure is just those essential tones. [JOY to the WORLD the LORD has COME]. All the other pitches act as passing tones. Placement of those pitches not only helps our perception of the tonality but also their placement also signals the meter.*

I hope this answers the question - and feel free to share this

Bert Ligon