EPISODE 49
SECONDARY DOMINANTS PT. 2
V / II, V / VI, V / II

HOST- Jeremy Burns, Matthew Scott Phillips

GENRE- Theory

DURATION- 86:34

BUMPER MUSIC- "Waltzing With Purpose" (Area 47)

ANNOUNCER- Mike Cunliffe

LISTEN

DESCRIPTION

Join us, as we continue to venture toward the coming mountain of chromaticism. We will approach the foothills as we resume our discussion of secondary dominants. We will talk about how these chords can be used in the tonicization of chords other than the tonic, with their dominant function. In this episode, we will focus on the V of ii (V/ii), V of vi (V/vi) and the V of iii (V/iii)

KEYWORDS

DIATONIC- When a triad, chord or melody consists of notes solely from the given key, it is considered to be DIATONIC.

CHROMATIC- When a triad, chord or melody consists of notes from outside the given key, it is considered to be CHROMATIC.

TONICIZATION- When a chord, other than the tonic of the given key, is temporarily given a tonic function.

SECONDARY DOMINANT- When a chord, other than the V chord of the given key, is temporarily given a DOMINANT function.

TONIC ( I )- A note in a melody or a chord in a progression based on scale degree 1 of the given key.

SUPERTONIC ( ii )- A note in a melody or a chord in a progression based on scale degree 2 of the given key.

MEDIANT ( iii )- A note in a melody or a chord in a progression based on scale degree 3 of the given key.

SUBDOMINANT ( IV )- A note in a melody or a chord in a progression based on scale degree 4 of the given key.

DOMINANT ( V )- A note in a melody or a chord in a progression based on scale degree 5 of the given key.

SUBMEDIANT ( vi )- A note in a melody or a chord in a progression based on scale degree 6 of the given key. SUBTONIC ( VII ) - A note in a melody or a chord in a progression based on scale degree b7 of the given key. LEADING TONE ( vii° ) - A note in a melody or a chord in a progression based on scale degree 7 of the major key or #7 of a minor key.

SEVENTH ( 7 )- This would be the 4th chord tone added to a TRIAD. It will be a 7th above the root of the given chord. It can be major, minor, augmented or diminished.

*It should be noted that all the above Roman numeral examples given were shown as uppercase (major) or lowercase (minor) as they relate to the MAJOR SCALE, as seen below:
I-ii-iii-IV-V-vi-viiº

*In the MINOR SCALE, the diatonic chords will be built as seen below:
i-iiº-III-iv-v-VI-VII-i

EXAMPLES

CHROMATICISM

-So far, all of the chords we have discussed have been DIATONIC. All the notes invovled are within the given key.

-MELODIC and HARMONIC minor scales involve notes with accidentals foreign to the key signature. But those are still considered DIATONIC.

-CHROMATIC HARMONY (from the Greek root "chroma"="color") introduces CHROMATIC notes from outside the key signature.

REFER BACK TO EPISODE 45
Secondary Dominants Pt.1-V/V, V/IV
FOR MORE DETAILS ON BASIC THEORY AND VOICE LEADING CONSIDERATIONS

Here are some things to keep in mind as we discuss secondary dominants:


-The SECONDARY DOMINANT chords usually contain CHROMATIC notes, which don't belong to the given key signature.

-These chords achieve the function of TONICIZATION, making a chord sound like the tonic by \ preceding it with a chord of DOMINANT function.

-V/V is the most commonly used of the secondary dominants.
     -In major, the ii chord is made into a II, or a II7, and followed by the V.
     -Likewise, in minor, the ii• chord is made into a II, or a II7, and is followed by the V.

-We also discussed the V/IV chord.
     -In major, it will be a I, or I7, chord that resolves to IV.
     -In minor, it will be a I, or a I7, chord that resolves to IV.

-Sometime the secondary dominant aids in voice leading tension.

-All the previously discussed voice leading and counterpoint rules will still apply with all secondary dominant chords.

-Where there is a secondary dominant, there will also be a secondary leading tone.

SPELLING A SECONDARY DOMINANT


1. Find the ROOT of the chord you want to tonicize.

2. Go up a P5 (or down a P4) from that root note.

3. Spell a major triad (or Mm7 triad) from the note discovered in the previous step.

IDENTIFYING A SECONDARY DOMINANT


When you encounter an altered chord, (be it via accidentals on sheet music or just a chord that sounds more colorful and a bit outside of the given key), try the following steps:

1. Is this a major chord or a Mm7 chord? If so, it may be a secondary dominant.

2. Find the note a P5 below (or a P4 above) the root of this altered chord.

3. Would the chord built on the note, discovered in step 2, be a diatonic triad in this key?

V / II


-There is only one V/ii and it happens in MAJOR. The vi chord be comes a VI and tonicizes the ii.

-In MINOR, the ii• chord is a diminished chord. Therefore, it can NOT be tonicized.

V / VI


-This can occur in major or minor.

-In MAJOR, the iii chord becomes a III, or III7, and resolves to vi.

-In MINOR, the III (already a major chord) resolves to VI. To distinguish it further as a secondary dominant it can be made into a III7 chord. If it is not followed by a VI, it is probably just a III rather than a V/ VI.

-This chord can be effectively used to add tension, or color, to a DECEPTIVE CADENCE (V - vi). .

V / III


-This is fairly uncommon, as the III chord is fairly uncommon.

-This can occur in major or minor.

-In MAJOR, the viiº chord becomes a VII, or VII7, and resolves to iii. Sometimes, this results in DOUBLE SHARPS in a sharp key.

-In MINOR, the VII (already a major chord) resolves to III. To distinguish it further as a secondary dominant it can be made into a VII7 chord. If it is not followed by a III, it is probably just a VII rather than a V/ III.

THINGS TO REMEMBER

-The same rules of voice leading apply to the secondary dominants as those that apply to dominants.

-Where there is a secondary dominant, there will be secondary LEADING TONE.

-Try practicing progressions using these chords, using CHORALE or KEYBOARD styles.

-Don't neglect the MINOR keys while working on these progressions.

-We won't see a V/vii• in MAJOR for the same reason we won't see a V/iiº in MINOR. Diminished chords can NOT be tonicized.

-The chord that follows a SECONDARY DOMINANT can often reveal it's function.