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Chord Changing: Examples of Chord Progressions
Since root movement by itself has no meaning in harmony, movement “up” or “down” from one chord to another chord amounts to exactly the same thing, with respect to root movement.
Recall the discussion of complementary intervals from Chapter 4. Any two intervals that add up to an octave are called complementary intervals. In harmony, complementary harmonic intervals have the same names, as you’ll see in a minute.
For example, changing chords from G – C spans the same harmonic distance as the harmonic interval (chord change) C – G. That’s pretty obvious: when you play the chords C – G – C – G – C – G, you’re just playing the same two chords alternately.
This is different from melody, because in melody, unlike in harmony, the octave matters. In melody, the interval C – G is a perfect fifth (with C as the lower pitch), but the interval G – C is a perfect fourth (with G as the lower pitch). So you hear two different melodic intervals:
C – GG – C
or the ascending melodic sequence:
C – G – C
where the second C is an octave above the first C. Two distinct melodic intervals, three distinct pitches.