What is the harmonic function of the bVI chord in the Aeolian minor scale?

[shanew711]

Hey guys, I'm reading a very good book called "Writing Music For Hit Songs", and the author identified the harmonic function of many of the diatonic chords in the Aeolian, Dorian, Harmonic, Melodic, and Phrygian minor keys but not all. I'm missing the function of a single chord and would love if someone could enlighten me as to its function. (IE: Subdominant(minor or major), Dominant, or Tonic)

[sammy24]

Berklee chord/scale theory calls it subdominant (minor). Their rationale is that it contains the note LE in solfege, or the bVI which is the root of this chord. Any 3 or 4 part chord in minor that contains that note has Subdominant function. I would tend to agree with this.

However, some explain it as a plural substitute of the tonic chord. it does contain 2 of the same notes as the tonic. But berklee would argue that the all-important LE always give off an active impression, and is basically the equivalent of FA in a major key. (Chords that contain FA, or the 4th degree but do not contain TI, the 7th degree, are subdominant in major.) So that makes sense to me. But just remember that it often replaces/substitutes for a I chord, even though it changes the function of the chord. (Lots of things are like that-- you can often replace a V chord in major with a III chord, being that they have 2 notes in common, even though this changes the function of the chord. Obviously that is one of the considerations in changing the chord.)

There is no reason that the bVI chord in Aeolian would function differently than the bVI chord in natural minor, which is the same scale. Even though the setting or context might be different, the notes are still the same.

[Km7]

For a fuller view at the functional theory, you should look into Riemann. This theory and system for analysis is popular in Germany and, to some degree, in Austria and Switzerland. Most formally trained musicians in USA, Canada, United Kingdom are usually not familiar with it, since it isn't taught there. According to this theory, when you analyze tonal music, you don't write Roman numerals such as I-vi-ii-V, but T-Tp-Sp-D (or, in minor, t-tP...). Riemann explains minor as an inversion of major - that is, the minor chord is build from the top and is theoretically based on the undertone series, while the major is based on the overtone series (how correct and 'good' is this, is another topic). This is the base of his theory. Chords (clangs, as called by Riemann) that lie a minor third from the main ones (T, S, D) Riemann calls parallel, and those that lie a major third from them - counter-parallel. So, in major, vi is the tonic parallel and iii is the dominant parallel, and they often have tonic and dominant functions, respectively. But iii may have a tonic function as counter-parallel (Tkp or Tg), if, for instance, it works as a prolongation of the tonic, i.e. I-iii-IV-V... Now, by mirroring the situation in major for minor, bIII would be marked as tP, bVII as dP, bVI as sP (subdominant parallel). According to this theory, A minor is the parallel tonality of C major and that's really how they call it in Germany. OK, I won't derail into more details of this.

I personally don't look at functions as a black-and-white thing as it is usually over-simplified in theory. What I mean by this? Putting Riemann aside, since bVI is build on a root that is a half tone above the 5th degree and this b6 has more tendency to 5, the chord receives more subdominant color than vi has, but both ii and iv are more intense expressions of the subdominant function. Similarly, in certain unclear contexts and in root position, iii might sound as it is in-between.

EDIT: Added:

[tapper mike]

Yeah I guess that's why Germany has so many bebop greats. The rise of the b13 and Majorb5 chords in western music over the last century can be attributed to Charlie Parkers 12 tone system.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charlie_Parker#Bebop

If you listen to Parker's antroplogy or Donna Lee

he's playing very chromatic sounding lines but his chord tones are the ones that are accentuated. Later Thelonius Monk was much more brasen with harmonic justification.

The Major b6 is a very rare occurance in contemporary music. Pop/rock gravitates around simple harmonic structures with little to no harmonic embelishments. The last time I heard a b13 in a popular song was.....Stray Cat Strut it's the last chord of the bridge.

[jancivil]

Mike, they just mean eg., an Ab major usage in C minor. In harmony class the figure is bVI.

also: bVI6 in that symbology 'figures the bass' as C, a sixth below the root note Ab, which is similar to your add m6: C Eb Ab. In classical figured bass your add m6 is considered a VI6/5, which adds the maj7 G into that construction. The G is 5 over the bass, the Ab = 6. You're right in that as an actual Cm chord, it's peculiar; because it really is that AbM7 in first inversion.
.
It's a different convention from jazz charts in that it treats something like an *add 6* or a 13th as (one or other of a type of) 'non-harmonic' tone - as these lie outside a triadic construction. IE: the b13 is expected more or less to resolve; it doesn't have to, but that's the ideation.