Unit 5 · Lesson 6 of 12 — IB MYP: Personal and Cultural Expression · Communication
Primary Chords & Melody
The I, IV, and V chords are especially useful in tonal music, and every melody note can be tested against the chord sounding beneath it.
In this lesson
Learning Targets
Each section below is labeled with the target it teaches. The questions and your Noteflight task practice every target.
Target 1Construct the I, IV, and V triads in a familiar major key
Target 2Identify whether a melody note is a chord tone in the harmony sounding underneath it
IB MYP connection
Command terms: CONSTRUCT · IDENTIFY
ConstructIdentify
Learner Profile · ATL
Knowledgeable · Thinker — Thinking: connect scale and chord knowledge to the melodies and harmonies you build.
Task
Use what you're learning to notice this in the music you already know, and be ready to apply it in your next Noteflight task.
Inquiry: What do the I, IV, and V chords have in common, and what makes each one sound different?
Reflect: What did “Primary Chords & Melody” teach you about your own composing choices?
Key words
Words you will use today
Roman numeral
Names a triad by the scale degree of its root: I is built on degree 1, IV on degree 4, V on degree 5.
Chord tone / non-chord tone
A melody note that belongs to the chord sounding underneath it, in any octave, is a chord tone. A melody note that does not belong is a non-chord tone.
The three primary chords
Target 1
I, IV, and V in C, G, and F major
A Roman numeral names a triad by the scale degree of its root, using the 1–3–5 method from Building Triads. The three most useful triads in a major key are I, IV, and V, built on degrees 1, 4, and 5. Together they contain every note of the scale, so any melody note in the key belongs to at least one of them. They are all major triads (Building chords shows how to measure that), which is why they are written as capital numerals.
01
C major
I = C–E–G, IV = F–A–C, V = G–B–D. Between them: C D E F G A B, the whole C major scale.
C major: I–IV–V–I, each triad with its root on the bottom.02
G major
I = G–B–D, IV = C–E–G, V = D–F♯–A. The F♯ from the key signature appears in V.
G major: I–IV–V–I. The F in V sounds as F♯.03
F major
I = F–A–C, IV = B♭–D–F, V = C–E–G. The B♭ from the key signature appears in IV.
F major: I–IV–V–I. The B in IV sounds as B♭.
Melody meets harmony
Target 2
Is the melody note in the chord?
When a chord sounds underneath a melody, check each melody note against it. A note that belongs to the chord, in any octave, is a chord tone: over I in C major, every C, E, and G is a chord tone. A note that does not belong is a non-chord tone. Non-chord tones are normal in real melodies; what matters here is being able to tell which is which. In the examples below, the chords are in the bass clef.
01
Checking one note at a time
The C triad is held underneath. The melody’s E and G are in the triad, so they are chord tones (✓). The D is not in C–E–G, so it is a non-chord tone (✗). Listen for how the D rubs slightly against the chord.
Course example, C major. ✓ = chord tone of I; ✗ (orange) = non-chord tone.02
In real music
In this simple accompaniment to “Amazing Grace,” almost every melody note is a chord tone of the chord beneath it. The one exception is the D (orange) over I in m. 2, which connects E to C. Over IV in m. 3, both C and A belong to F–A–C.
“Amazing Grace” (NEW BRITAIN), in C, with a simple I–IV accompaniment (course arrangement). Orange = the only non-chord tone.
Worked analysis
Target 1Target 2
Chord tones in “Ode to Joy”
Here is the first phrase of “Ode to Joy” in G major over a simple accompaniment using only I (G–B–D) and V (D–F♯–A). Orange marks every non-chord tone. Compare each melody note with the chord directly beneath it.
Beethoven, “Ode to Joy,” phrase 1, in G major, with a simple I–V accompaniment (course arrangement, not Beethoven’s orchestration). Orange = non-chord tones.
Measure
Chord
Chord tones
Non-chord tones
m. 1
I (G–B–D)
B, B, D
C (beat 3), between B and D
m. 2
V (D–F♯–A)
D, A
C and B (beats 2–3), between D and A
m. 3
I (G–B–D)
G, G, B
A (beat 3), between G and B
m. 4
I, then V
B over I; the final A over V
The short A that arrives just before V
Model description: Every downbeat in the phrase is a chord tone: B over I, D over V, G over I, and B over I. The non-chord tones never appear on beat 1, and each one is reached by step from a chord tone, so the melody stays smooth while the chords underneath stay clear. The phrase stops on A, a chord tone of V, which is part of why it sounds open.
Notice the method: name the chord and its three notes first, then test every melody note against those three letters. The description then looks for a pattern: where the chord tones fall and how the non-chord tones move.
Check your understanding
Try it before you compose
Pick an answer for each question. You will see right away whether you are correct and why.
0 of 4 correct
1In G major, which notes make the V triad?
Target 1
2Listen, then choose which excerpt you heard.
Target 1
A
B
3In m. 3 of “Amazing Grace,” the chord is IV (F–A–C). Is the orange note a chord tone?
Target 2
4In m. 2 of the “Ode to Joy” analysis, the melody is D–C–B–A over V (D–F♯–A). Which statement is accurate?
Target 2Target 1
Take it to Noteflight
Build I, IV, and V, then test a melody note
Build the three primary triads in a key you can read, then hear the difference between a chord tone and a non-chord tone on top of them. In hymns and many piano pieces, the top note of each chord is the melody.
Your Noteflight task
In C, G, or F major (with the key signature), write I, IV, V, and I as whole-note triads on the treble staff, each with its root on the bottom, and label each with its Roman numeral. Play them. Then copy the four measures and add one more note above each triad as a melody note: use a chord tone for three of the chords and a non-chord tone for one. Play both versions and compare.
Before writing each triad, name its three letters using the 1–3–5 method. Check every sharp or flat against the key signature: in G major, V contains F♯; in F major, IV contains B♭.
▶
Target 2
Play the two versions. Which chord sounds rougher? Write one sentence naming the non-chord tone you used and the chord it sits over.
✓ / ✗
Target 2
For the melody note you added above each triad, name the chord tones first, then check whether your note is one of them.
3Check your own work
0 of 5 checked
Finish the Noteflight work above, then mark this lesson done when you finish.