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In a traditional musical key, a chord progression is a series of chords played in a specific order.

Each chord in a chord progression has it's own unique sound and function.

The order in which they are played is related to their Scale Degree, and is intended to create a sense of harmonic movement and resolution.

Here are some considerations for building chord progressions when writing songs or crafting a piece of music :

SCALE DEGREE # 1 - TONIC :

Tonic (I) is home base, where the music feels most stable and will typically define the key of the song. This is also known as the tonal center.

A piece of music will often begin and end with the tonic, ultimately resolving the tension that builds as it moves through other chords in the key.

SCALE DEGREE # 2 -SUPERTONIC :

Supertonic (ii): The supertonic creates tension that wants to resolve to the tonic or mediant. It's often used as a passing chord or to add color to the progression.

SCALE DEGREE # 3 - MEDIANT :

Mediant (iii): The mediant adds color and interest to the progression, often used as a passing chord or to create tension that resolves to the subdominant or dominant.

SCALE DEGREE # 4 -SUBDOMINANT :

Subdominant (IV): The subdominant creates tension that wants to resolve back to the tonic, adding variety and interest to the progression.

SCALE DEGREE # 5 - DOMINANT :

Dominant (V): The dominant creates strong tension that wants to resolve back to the tonic, often used as a setup for the final resolution.

SCALE DEGREE # 6 - SUBMEDIANT :

Submediant (vi): The submediant can add a touch of sadness or introspection, often used in minor keys or to create contrast in major keys.

SCALE DEGREE # 7 - LEADING TONE :

Leading Tone (vii°): The leading tone creates strong tension that resolves up to the tonic, often used as a dramatic flourish before resolving.

A typical chord progression might move from I to IV to V, back to I.

This is a popular progression that uses tonic-subdominant-dominant functions, creating a sense of tension and resolution.

ii-V-I is a progression that uses supertonic-dominant-tonic functions.

vi-IV-I-V is a variation of I-IV-V with an added twist from the submediant.

These are just a few examples, but there are many other ways to build a chord progression within a key

( and wouldn't you know it, we've provided a few of these and more to get you started ~

Grab your Circle Of Fifths Music Theory Songwriting Tool & Chord Wheel by tooz & t ! )

Scale degrees are the numbered positions of each note and chord within a musical scale.

In a diatonic scale, there are seven scale degrees, numbered 1 through 7, corresponding to the seven natural tones in the scale.

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