Borrowed Chords

Borrowed Chords: Enhance Your Harmonic Vocabulary

Expanding Your Chordal Palette

In the realm of music, chords serve as building blocks, providing harmonic structure and depth to melodies. While each key has its own set of chords, the technique of "borrowing" chords from other keys opens up a world of expressive possibilities.

Introducing Borrowed Chords

Borrowed chords are chords that do not naturally occur within a given key but are temporarily introduced from a parallel key. This allows composers to add color, tension, and surprise to their musical arrangements.

Borrowing chords involves a temporary change in the implied scale, as the borrowed chord belongs to a different harmonic context. However, the introduction of this "foreign" element can create a compelling sense of harmonic dissonance and resolution.

Common Borrowed Chords

The following borrowed chords are frequently employed in various musical styles:

• Minor iv chord: Borrowed from the parallel minor key and used to create a sense of anticipation or sadness.
• Major II chord: Borrowed from the parallel major key and used to add brightness or stability.
• VI^add9 chord: Borrowed from the parallel minor key and used to create a sense of spaciousness and depth.
• bVII⁷ chord: Borrowed from the parallel minor key and used to add tension and a sense of resolution.

By incorporating borrowed chords into their compositions, musicians can expand their harmonic horizons and create music that is both expressive and captivating.