Monday, February 23, 2015

Intervals II: Quality

The quality of the interval refers to it's sound based on the precise intervallic distance.

When identifying interval quality we use the terms: Perfect, Major, minor, diminished and augmented. These labels are shortened to: Perfect (P), Major (M), minor (m), diminished (d), and Augmented (A)

If we refer back to our C Major scale we see this interval distance pattern:
The "U" refers to an interval of a unison (the distance from one note to the note of the same name)
The "8ve" refers to the interval of an octave.

If we go one step further, here is the pattern of interval quality within a major scale:
From this example we can see that the intervals contained within a Major scale are comprised solely of Perfect and Major intervals.

From this example we can start to build a means for calculating interval quality:
1. Starting with the lower note of the interval as one,
count up to the upper note be sure to count all the lines and spaces in between.
2. Put that number underneath the interval.
3. Next determine if the upper note is in the key of the lower note.
4. If it is and the number is 2,3,6,7 than the interval is Major (M).
5. If it is and the number is 1,4,5,8 than the interval is perfect (P).

The information for those first 5 steps is built into the pattern of the Major scale.

The remaining steps will help you identify the interval quality of intervals that don't fit the above patterns.

6. If the upper note is not in the key because it has been raised with either
a sharp # or a natural sign and the number is 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8
then the interval is Augmented (A).
7. If it has been lowered with a flat b or a natural sign and the number is 1,4,5,8
then the interval is diminished (d).
8. If the number is 2,3,6,7 the interval first becomes
minor(m) and if it is lowered again it is
diminished.

At this point you should be able to work through the Fun with Intervals sheet and complete the qualities of those intervals.

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