Home/Melody & Chords/Melody Over Chords
Lesson 1 of 2

Melody Over Chords

A melody note can relate to a chord in three ways:

Chord Tone

Root, 3rd, 5th, or 7th of the chord. Always safe.

Available Tension

Adds color (9, 11, 13). Works on specific chord types.

Avoid Note

Clashes with a chord tone. Use only as passing tone.

Key:

Scale notes in C Major

Tap a scale note to set it as the melody note

Showing scale notes (green = selected melody note)

Diatonic chords in C Major