Appoggiatura, R&B chord

[jushin]

Hi, I'm new here, and I'm an aspiring songwriter.
As I'm beginning to learn, I have tons of questions, and I'm wondering if you could help me with the music theory.

1. I learned piano chord in the book "Learn & Master Piano" by Will Barrow, and I'm now starting to learn about the R&B chord. Making R&B music without extension chords seems to be an impossible thing the more I learn about music. So I was searching for the best R&B chord courses, but I couldn't. I happened to get a chord progression course video called "Urban Phatness Gumbo", but this is way too hard for me. Here's one in the youtube.


This is like enforcing me to go from 0 to 100. Is there any course that could be adequate to my level?


2. I've searched about "Appoggiatura", but there isn't a precise examples using Appoggitura. It says using notes out of the chord, but Isn't all notes make some chord together anyway? Could this be the good example of music using Appoggiatura?

[Nystul]

Appoggiatura is a melody note that is one scale degree above a chord note, lands on a strong beat, and is followed by the chord note below it. I tried to find a pop song that has many examples of the appoggiatura and came up with this oldie:

Over an F major chord, the notes D,C,C (baby love). The C is the chord note, the D is the appoggiatura. You can imagine (or test for yourself) if the melody just went C,C,C instead of having that D, it just wouldn't pop out in the same way. Later it is an Eb going to D over a D7 chord. And finally C,Bb, Bb, over Gm.

There is nothing really extraordinary about this, but it's one of many ways to use a note that isn't considered part of the harmony by resolving it to a chord note one scale degree away.

[psenior]

I don't know of any R&B instructionals that will get you from 0 to 100. Since you are interested in songwriting, I'd suggest you just try and learn how to play your favorite R&B songs. Try to understand why the songwriter came up with those chord changes. Listen closely to the record and try to emulate some of the melodies the various musicians improvised over those chord changes. You might have to do some research and try to find interviews of the songwriters and musicians in question.
Sometimes I play charts out of a Motown fake book and it can be very educational. I don't know what your musical tastes are, but you can't go wrong learning Stevie Wonder tunes.

[jushin]

Oh, I see! so Appoggiatura is like 9th, 11th, 13th of the root of the chord! Then I could see that almost all of the jazz & r&b music are using appoggiaturas!

Over an F major chord, the notes D,C,C (baby love). The C is the chord note, the D is the appoggiatura. You can imagine (or test for yourself) if the melody just went C,C,C instead of having that D, it just wouldn't pop out in the same way. Later it is an Eb going to D over a D7 chord. And finally C,Bb, Bb, over Gm.

BTW, why's Eb a note higher than D? it's not in the D scale.

[jushin]

I don't know of any R&B instructionals that will get you from 0 to 100. Since you are interested in songwriting, I'd suggest you just try and learn how to play your favorite R&B songs. Try to understand why the songwriter came up with those chord changes. Listen closely to the record and try to emulate some of the melodies the various musicians improvised over those chord changes. You might have to do some research and try to find interviews of the songwriters and musicians in question.
Sometimes I play charts out of a Motown fake book and it can be very educational. I don't know what your musical tastes are, but you can't go wrong learning Stevie Wonder tunes.

My taste is more to urban R&B like R.Kelly, Ginuwine, Tank, etc. than the old ones. Stevie Wonder and Motown is cool, but for me it's a bit outdated. If that could be helpful to my music, then I will learn

[Nystul]

Oh, I see! so Appoggiatura is like 9th, 11th, 13th of the root of the chord! Then I could see that almost all of the jazz & r&b music are using appoggiaturas!

BTW, why's Eb a note higher than D? it's not in the D scale.

Well, in the case of the appoggiatura, the downward movement kind of "fixes" the dissonance leaving a more traditional chord. When they use extended chords in something like jazz, that complex sound is considered part of the harmony and doesn't necessarily have to resolve in this way.

Good question about the Eb. I would be content to call it a blue note, but it also fits the chord progression. Although the song is in F major, the D7 to Gm chord move is a G minor idea. In the context of G minor, it's normal to go from Eb to D. An E natural would actually sound out of key here.

[tapper mike]

BTW, why's Eb a note higher than D? it's not in the D scale.

The scale extends beyond the first octave. (9th,11th,13th) Music itself is not defined wholly by one key or scale per song. Often times embellishments occur. Sometimes those embellishments are justified by superimposing,,,, Passing, or neighboring tones. Sometimes it is an advanced form of substitution such as tritone or parallel minor and... Sometimes it's just a matter of "felt good at the time"

Contrary to Euro-centrist ideologies. American popular music was not developed on Classical dogma born in Europe. It's a Bastard child of African rhythms and syncopations field hollerer chants and itinerant musicians cobbling ideas together and justifying performance based on "it sounds good to me" rather then it applies to X value. Later as a means of justifying these rich embellishments Western musicologists introduced new concepts which supported the ideals. After all that's what music theory is supposed to be an examination of why music can work not a dogma of how it's supposed to work.


In regards to non-scale tones. I've simplified my understanding when dealing with chord progression based music. Consonance (and dissonance. Connaissance means that the melody note supports the chord. Dissonance means the melody note does not reside within the chord. If the chord is a C major and the melody plays an Eb that's dissonance. Dissonance is an effective tool for creating tension. Sometimes you want a sense of tension to gain relief (dissonance to consonance) And sometimes you want to move from Consonance to dissonance because you want to end on a feeling of pain. It's important not to focus on a single note in time because music is in motion.

Regarding Harmonic Justification.
Often times a chord is extended to justify a melody tone which is not within the key. Such as an Eb note produced above a D chord. If one uses a D7b9 the chord justifies the note it doesn't have to justify the key. You may wish to experiment with extended chords in this fashion. It helps to ease dissonance. However too many extended chords and songs lose a certain level of "vibrancy" they tend to sound mushy when connection several extended chords together over a progression.

If you are exploring for the purpose of being a "songwriter" don't get infatuated with theory. Be more concerned with flushing out what you already know adapting here and there from artists you enjoy rather then focusing on generic example education (like the video you showed) It's really a matter of doing (making music) then thinking of how music is made.

Best of luck with your pursuits.

[jancivil]

The thing of appoggiatura is, it's a linear thing; its action is actually melodic, the reason for it to occur is it means something in the line. So thinking of it as a straight chordal thing is kind of beside the point, or an idle point. For instance, its meaning in the Classical Period is typically an on-the-beat grace-note gesture, an ornament.

[jancivil]

To the point, Appoggiatura in chords in an R&B harmony, Stevie Wonder's Cause We've Ended As Lovers... it's the real feature of the tune.

[jancivil]

BTW, why's Eb a note higher than D? it's not in the D scale.

Contrary to Euro-centrist ideologies. American popular music was not developed on Classical dogma born in Europe. It's a Bastard child of African rhythms and syncopations field hollerer chants and itinerant musicians cobbling ideas together Later as a means of justifying these rich embellishments Western musicologists introduced new concepts which supported the ideals. After all that's what music theory is supposed to be an examination of why music can work not a dogma of how it's supposed to work.

Actually I don't know what music is supposed to have been born of dogma. And I don't believe the use of 'music theory' as it came to be applied to pop music derives from musicology directly. When you have I-vi-IV-V in DooWop, it is what it is; ii-V-I in show tunes and foundational in jazz from that basis, it's the exact same thing as in any 'classical' type music. It did not derive from your mythological narrative of slave music and haphazard agreement on the street subsequently. It was always there, common currency for ages. If you start with a style that needs to be met, "Here's them ice cream changes you ordered" is not less "dogmatic" than some stylistic criteria what had to be met when Beethoven did all of that V-I in his music.

Yes, music theory is a way of understanding and codifying things which we observe to do what they do rather than a recipe or paint-by-numbers. FYI, people that do get deeply into concepts in say Western Art Music ("classical" if you must) do not do this "dogma" thing. That's only a statement of a strawman. It could be that someone in your experience has done, but it's not a feature of a 'classical' school of thought or a mode of operation.

And it's not what I do when I tell you "D Dorian is not 'in C major'". That's just insistence on factuality.

Consonance means that the melody note supports the chord. Dissonance means the melody note does not reside within the chord. If the chord is a C major and the melody plays an Eb that's dissonance. Dissonance is an effective tool for creating tension. Sometimes you want a sense of tension to gain relief (dissonance to consonance) And sometimes you want to move from Consonance to dissonance because you want to end on a feeling of pain.

Regarding Harmonic Justification.
Often times a chord is extended to justify a melody tone which is not within the key. Such as an Eb note produced above a D chord. If one uses a D7b9 the chord justifies the note it doesn't have to justify the key. You may wish to experiment with extended chords in this fashion. It helps to ease dissonance. However too many extended chords and songs lose a certain level of "vibrancy" they tend to sound mushy when connection several extended chords together over a progression.

It should maybe be pointed out that harmonies can, in themselves be considered dissonant (or consonant, obviously). You of all people know how one will write such a chord 'D7b9' before Eb is extant in the tune & needing a chord that agrees. But NB: Where that type of harmony comes from in music, and this has precedence in Western Art Music along with the rest of common practice, is that we're in G minor where Eb is in key; and here's V7 and Eb happens - in melody - as suspension or appoggiatura or what-have-you to move down to your consonance, D. It may appear in more 'outside' practice, or as a thing-in itself, just that you like that there chord, but general usage will bear this out. So yes, we don't necessarily have to "justifiy" anything at all either way, but more typically than not your flat 9 is in key and it may well be melody-derived in the first place. I wouldn't focus too much on terms like "Harmonic Justification" myself. Seems a theory term for the sake of theory term to me.

I may agree with that last statement given context. I don't know that, in itself if all of the chords being chords of the ninth or taller means mushiness. That seems maybe dogmatic a teensy bit.

Actually I was able to get quite a kick out of "Later, as a means of justifying these rich embellishments Western musicologists introduced new concepts which supported the ideals" so thanks for that. That's creative. I mean, I don't think a musicologist is needed to come in for a consultation in order to talk technically about say your blues third or say "here's a major/minor thing" to justify some "Euro-centric ideals". Pass that joint why doncha.