Harmonised scale
The set of chords built by stacking thirds on each degree of a scale, which together form the harmony available in that key.
Stacking a third and a fifth on each degree of a major scale produces seven triads, of which three are major, three are minor and one is diminished, and that set is what a chord progression draws from. Extending the stack to four notes turns them into seventh chords, which is the harmonised scale of jazz. Learning them as shapes on the fretboard links the scale a player already knows to the chords being played underneath it, which is the practical value of the exercise.
Example: The chords built on each note of C major, from C major through to B diminished, are the harmonised scale of that key.
See also
Related
- PageDiatonic
- PageChord progression
- PageTriad
- PageAugmented chord
- PageBlue note
- PageBlues scale
- PageAaron Dessner
- PageAce Frehley