If you listen to a melody without focusing on any of the details you typically hear chords too in your imagination, in fact several alternative possible "chord solutions". You can chose the one you like best - no need for "formula" or ear training. Just listen, it is all there.

If you try this but no chords come to mind, then use a couple of hours to improvise chords and melodies freely - just making up music to your own taste, as a funny game. That will build up your personal references of how certain chord vs melody combination feels and next time you listen with the general ear to a melody you will hear possible chords too. (This of course works the other way around; listening to chords makes possible melodies come to mind).

Hey Per,

I'm fairly certain about the chord voicings being spelled that way but it also makes sense to say it's a ninth if it's in the position of a 9th in the second octave, but then what do you call it when it's in the third octave or the octave below?

Hi Harpo,

When making music there are two basic approaches one is to add a melody to an existing chord progression which could all be in one key or not, and the other is to harmonize an existing melody.

Generally, it's better to compose a melody before harmonization because then you don't have chords controlling which direction the melody is going to take.

That said, as composer you can choose if you'd like your melody to fit all in one key. The chords which go with the key of C Major are CM Dm Em FM GM Am & Bdim. Extending those to the sevenths results in CM7 Dm7 Em7 FM7 G7 Am7 and B half-dim 7.

You can harmonize some of the important notes in your chosen scale like the 1,3 or 5 aka the notes C, E or G OR other notes if they land on a strong beat such as the first beat of a measure and have sufficient duration to add importance to them like if they're longer than an eighth note.

Let's say you're looking at the note D and your scale is in C Major. It could be part of a chord spelled GBD or BDF or DFA for the most obvious solutions. It depends on what chord came before if you can use these chords after. It also depends on what way you'd like the chords to progress.

You may choose not to harmonize the D at all with such basic methods and make it the 2nd/9th in a CMajAdd2 chord or alter the chords that would normally have a D in them such as G Bb D or D F# A for starters to deny the C major scale you're using. This is where things can get a lot jazzier because you can just go off the deep end with chords from off the wall/out of nowhere that would have no relation to the C scale you're playing except for the one note in common between that chord and the one melody note. Say a chord spelled C DDb E G# Bb to harmonize your D.

btw if you don't know all the chords in a major key, that's basic musicianship and everyone here will be happy to help you out.

Tatsu. You are wrong.

Don't think so but O.K. you think so. Care to back up that statement?

Well...I read about what everyone has to say here and it's not easy to tell who's got reason. The way to write music in jazz or popular music has its own way to do it. It's different from classical music where all the notes are written.

Someone wrote about this second or ninth and what about if this second is one octave below or the third octave...and he's right. Not easy to put it on this system we use...almost all of us here.

I give my opinion...it's not better than the other ones...

On my side when I use Dadd2 or Dadd9 it doesn't involve a third...but it surely can...

Example. Dadd2 with a third means that you have the tonic, the second and the third at the same time...a cluster...even though sometimes I think that chord witout the 3rd. Easy on piano, tough on guitar and probably possible on stick with these crossed hands. Without this third (major or minor by the way) you have more a feeling of suspended chord. I always see a close relation between the second and the fourth of this suspended feeling. This term of D9 is just to identify that we don't have this cluster anymore but the 9th is one octave higher. If I put this second or 9th below...we do have another situation. First a second below is a dominant (or major) 7th in the bass but I know what this musician meant. He was talking about an E in the bass over a D as a chord. So that means it becomes a D/E.

Like I said, this way to write music, with letters and numbers is really a system developped by jazz and popular musicians to have a fast way to recognize chords and play them right. I have to confess that when I see something like G7#5b9...well...for me that means I can play a lot of chords different than this one. I know the 5th and the 9th are altered. Instead of #5 I can play the b5th and do the same with the altered 9th. So, many musician write G7 alt...lol...this way they can play what they want. Harmonically speaking that will fit with the band.

For this third 2 octaves higher I don't have any explanation but it's possible to write it on your part. And even there it wouldn't sound great...well, that is my opinion. Chords use to be with notes more "inside" a certain range to create a nice sound. Or with notes between the root and this 2nd located at 2 octaves higher.

Nobody's right and nobody's wrong in this way to call or spell a chord. If each one understand what he has to play, it's perfect.

As soon as I put a seventh it's different. Cmaj9 means a major third, a major 7th and a 9th for me. C9 is the same with a dominant 7th instead of a major 7th. There are other situation where it's not easy to say what's wrong or right...G7sus for example...is it the same that F/G? I like this last way to write it but I know I will play it different if the composer write G7sus. The difference for me is the 5th which is involved in G7sus and it's not in F/G. But this last one has a more modern sound. I love it in fact.

Many times when I read chords I play it in a different way to do exactly that action...to sound more modern.

Well...nice conversation guys...good day...

It's grammar. Traditionaly add 9 is the most used for 1 3 5 9. If someone writes. 2 instead we know what they mean. Dadd9. And Dadd 2 is the same thing. Sus is usually used when raising the 3rd to the 4th. Semantics.
Steve A

So you say that a Dadd9 is a chord that does not exist? That it´s called add2 if there is no 7th? Either it´s me that don´t understand what you are writing or you that are vague in your writing. It´s probably me. Please explain.

Exactly. Spot on.

It's a great piece BasV. Maybe it could be the first part of a trilogy?

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NgViOqGJEvM[/youtube]

Indeed it is! Sorry but I forgot to write that earlier. A great piece indeed.