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6.5.6 Major Second, Minor Second: How Second Progressions Work
Harmonic movements with roots either a second (e.g., C – Dm) or seventh (Dm – C) apart span the same harmonic space, because there's no “up” and “down” in harmonic space, the way there is in melodic space (high pitch vs low pitch).
By convention, they’re both called second progressions. There’s no such thing as a harmonic interval called a seventh (a “seventh progression”).
- A second progression up means counting forward by letter name from the first chord to the next one in the progression. So C – Dm is a second progression up.
- A second progression down means counting backward from the first chord in the progression. So Dm – C is a second progression down.