JPF Home Page Forums Musician Gear and Techniques Music Theory and Education Does this chord have a name?

If you play the third string open(G)when playing a D chord does that chord have a name. It should be some kind of D derivative.

You will be playing D G D F# while a D chord plays D A D F#.

It sounds like a valid chord (all notes are valid in Key of D).

I can't find this in any chord charts.

Thanks in advance.

Rick

Rick,

It's a D add 11. The G is the eleven. D1 E2 F#3 G4 A5 B6 C#7 D8 E9 F#10 and, voila G11. You use two and four when your making a suspended chord (contains the third) and you use add nine and add eleven when you're not.

Hope that helps.

Mike

D6/9?

Thanks Mike..

I was thinking something along that line.

Ben..

Thanks for your suggestion. I think Mike has it.

Rick

Hey Rick!

Definitely a suspension chord -(Dsus4). Normally stacked D-G-A-D , without the F# (10th) on top. No such thing as a "valid" chord. If it sounds good, it is good.

Best, John

I call it Harold.

(Usually when I play it, some smartass yells "Hark!")

Hi John..

I don't think it's a sus chord. I have F# and not A.

I found this song with Dadd11 and it matches my playing.

Fast Car - Tracy Chapman
-------------------------
Chords: Cmaj7-(x32000)
G-----(320003)
Em----(022000)
Dadd11(xx0032)
C-----(x32010)
D-----(xx0232)

Rick

I was going to call it Mark in honor of a great musician, Mark Knopfler, I mean, Kaufman.

Rick

Maybe call it "Dsus4 add10". It's still a sus4 even without the "A". The 4th and 11th are the same tone (only an octave apart).

John

I vote that the G is playing the role of the 4th here and not the 11th. However, since it has the 3rd, I guess you can't call it a sus chord. It's a D add4 (no 5) chord (ha, ha).

Of course since you have the G and the F#, we could lean towards a Gmaj7 inversion with no 3rd -- but you are probably playing in D, so a D add 4 no 5 it is!

Kevin

Thanks guys. What I was trying to do was enter it into BiaB to get the bass line. Since BiaB doesn't allow add chords I'll try it with sus4.

Works for me.

Rick

I'm with Kevin, I'd call it Dadd4(no5.)

As some of the other folks have mentioned, it's not a sus because you're not suspending the third (it's present.) It's not an 11 because, to me, 11 is a tension indicating the presence of a 7th.

It still sounds like a suspension chord to my ears Nate. With the 3rd actually being a 10th (add 10) it gives it more of a clashing dissonant sound. I hear it resolving to the actual 3rd.

Here's a keyboard playing first Rick's chord (stacked as he mentioned) - then how I hear it resolving to the 3rd.

http://schicksville.com/Music/Suspension.mp3

I know; who cares.

John

To me, it depends on the context. In the Tracy Chapman example above, it's definitely dominant sounding. Play a G in the bass and it sounds tonic (like a Major 7.)

In your example, I hear the leading tone (F#) resolving up a half-step ("ti-do.")

Can I envoke a John Schick motto ?

"Stop analyzing; just compose the damn thing!" LOL

Heck, if it fits, it fits. BIAB may come up with some interesting variants.

cheers, niteshift

Yeah Nite! Thanks for reminding me. That's what it's all about. Interesting how differently we perceive clusters of tones though.

Due to limitations in BiaB I ended up using D/G for the backing and played my chord on the guitar. It seemed to work OK. I see quite a few songs using this chord as a Dadd11.

Thanks everyone for the theory lessons.

Rick

Based on the four strings the original poster mentioned, I'd have to go with the GM7/D. If you went ahead and put the A string under that, I'd lean toward a D chord of some flavor, as Mike Dunbar suggested.

It is common for guitar voicings to leave out a note or two, such as the missing 7th (and 9th), which would be expected in a D11/A. Who would expect them? Keyboard players, of course, they have ten keys at a time to work with, if they want. Horn, winds, and string section arrangers are likewise spoiled for choice.

When you've only got six strings, you have to prioritize.

Just be glad you aren't playing a ukulele!

There is only one way to name that chord, I'd have to hear what comes before, and after it, because when you have a chord like that, "context" defines it. Without context, you have an 11th chord, with third and 11th inverted. It's not a very practical chord, unless is makes sense in a particular context, such as a moving voice that gives the chord more meaning. 11th chords with the major third are actually rare because of the dissonance of the two notes, and often the dominant seven or nine sus 4 is used. But it could be the upper structure of another chord, so what is the context?

See, here's where piano knowledge helps. Guitarists are often at a disadvantage because the guitar , on complex chords, doesn't give you the nuance you might need in order to "articulate" that precise sound you are looking for.