WHAT KEY IS THE PIECE IN? And is the chord written as B b5 (that is, a B with a flat 5th) or is it written as Bb 5 (that is, a B flat open 5 chord -no 3rd). THE KEY WILL MAKE THAT USUALLY OBVIOUS.

I am sorry to disagree but the key may not tell you want you want. Look at The Christmas Song, there are many chords which do not relate to the key the music was written.

It is the chord progression and like Diki has said, the notes in that measure that help you understand the chord. How does it relate to the song, the key, the written notes and the chord progression.

Sorry to disagree Diki, John C.

Well, I guess that's why I qualified it with USUALLY...... Sure, there may be occasions where a chord is a passing chord, but trying the less complicated solution FIRST is 'usually' the best thing to do......

A Bb5 is a major version of what is called a double-diminshed chord. A double-diminished chord is a stack of minor thirds Bb-Db and Db-Fb (aka Bb-Db-Fb).

Make it major and you get Bb-D-Fb.

It's pretty rare put that what it is.

I agree with John. There is usually a 7th involved and the key does not always serve as an indicator.

I love Diki's idea of a passing chord. It ensures that you never play a wrong note. I was getting to the right note, by passing through all of these other ones.

Bb and F. See these links:
http://www.torvund.net/guitar/chords/Bb5.asp
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Power_chord

Graham

The Christmas song begins and ends in the same key, with a few very tasty key changes in the middle. The simple truth is - the key IS established at the beginning of that particular song. It's also true that sometimes the first chord is NOT the key, but when that happens, USUALLY, the last chord is !

I love unusual key changes in the bridge ... try All the things you are sometime ! Fun changes !

Graham: Without a third, it's not a chord.

Power chords are constructed by playing a root, perfect fifth and, in some cases, perfect octave. Because the chord does not contain a third, the major and minor qualities are not present. They are generally played on electric guitar and are used extensively in rock music, especially heavy metal and punk rock, where heavy amounts of distortion are used. Because distortion adds a great deal of harmonic content to an electric guitar's timbre, perfect intervals are the only intervals with enough consonance to be clearly articulated and perceived at high distortion levels. Even the addition of a third can cause a chord to sound dissonant.

Ian



------------------
Remember to leave good news alone.

I don't have the sheet music, I have a LEAD SHEET (that's melody line only, lyrics, and chords), no accompaniment, no filler chords below the melody line.
It is in the key of Bb (two flats).
It starts with a Bb chord and ends with a Bb chord. I would say it's in the key of Bb. I also have it in G for guitar (capo 3). In the guitar version the chord is G5.
Intro:
Bb/D Eb(add9) F/A Bb5 (there it is) Eb(add9) F/A Bb5
Verse1:
Bb/D Eb(add9) F Bb5
Bb/D Eb(add9) F Bb5
Bb/D Eb(add9) F Gm7 Eb(add9) F Bb5

Starkeeper


[This message has been edited by Starkeeper (edited 12-06-2006).]

[This message has been edited by Starkeeper (edited 12-06-2006).]

How about "Unforgettable" - starts on G ends on C ....

If I HAD to pick one all time favorite, "All The Things You Are" would probably be it ...

t.



[This message has been edited by tony mads usa (edited 12-06-2006).]

As the song and all the related chords center about the key of Bb, I would think without a doubt they are referring to an open fifth Bb chord, that is, Bb and F notes only.

One of the problems with trying to represent chords in a font without superscript and music font capabilities is shown here..... How do you express, on a normal BBS, the difference between Bb5 (B-flat open five chord) and Bb5 (B major flat five)?

Some places use the convention of separating the chord type from the chord note, thus; Bb(5) [or sometimes just Bb5] and B(b5) which offers far less confusion. Perhaps it is one we can adopt here?