Help with chord name

ubulele said:

Er, yes, but Dbaddb9/F is a bit overkill. First, on uke, you can ignore that "/F" bit because the inversion is unlikely to be relevant here, and F is already a component of Dbaddb9, not a note added to it that would affect the chord quality. Second, it's more likely to be C#addb9 than Dbadd9: chances are, you're playing in a sharp key, and C# is the second sharp added to a scale, whereas you need to be in a key with four flats before you encounter a Db as a scale component (i.e. common chord base). This may, of course, be a chord built on a passing chromatic root, but I'd bet against it.

b9 is a bit unusual outside of a 7b9 chord or really jazzy chord. Rather, semitone clashes like this are more indicative of M7 chords or of the 3rd and 4th (=11th) being played together in an 11th chord. My ear hears this as a a probable rootless Bb11 (3rd, 5th, 7th, 11th); cf. 645x (a dim triad implying Bb7, 3545) and Bb7sus4 (3546). Of course, we'd really need more musical context, like key, surrounding chords and title of the piece, to be sure what this chord really is; the same chord shape and set of pitches can often be interpreted in several ways.

Many chord tools have an appalling inability to recognize (much less suggest) rootless versions of chords, despite that, in extended uke chords, the root is the most commonly omitted component. Don't rely on what such tools tell you. For instance, the most common 9th chord shapes omit the root (take the most common 7th shapes and shift the root up two frets), yet many tools are unable to identify them simply because they only test the given notes as possible roots. Grrrr!

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spookelele said:

Just out of curiosity... why does the name matter?

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ubulele said:

You're probably right: photoshooter and I assumed this was too obvious, so we analyzed it as 7546 instead of 6475. It depends on the intended fret order. Yes, if it's the usual 4th to 1st order (6457), it's just an A major chord, using the movable shape corresponding to the alternative first position F chord (2013). For many, the easiest way to analyze chords with all strings stopped is first to slide the shape down to first position and figure out what that chord would be, then step them back up, just changing the root name as they go.

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philrab66 said:

but what would I mentally name it as.

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spookelele said:

I should have phrased it "We don't often use the root to anchor the chord".
What you're saying is if you think in inversions, then you can still use the root, which is true.
But I also think.. one's musicianship to be able to apply music theory in inversions on the fly has to be above average.
Not all of us can do it like you.

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philrab66 said:

Hi all
Have come across this chord in a song would like to put a name to it.
7
5
4
6
Thanks Phil.

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ubulele said:

You're probably right: photoshooter and I assumed this was too obvious, so we analyzed it as 7546 instead of 6475.

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Recstar24 said:

It looks and sounds like an A major chord to me, using the same shape as an F major chord.

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Bill1 said:

The way to get through the technical terminology is to learn the names of the notes on the strings first. Then learn some common scales like C, G, D, A major scales, learn to play them so you can hear each note and find them on your fretboard. Then read about a thing called diatonic chord sequence and how the chords in the sequence are constructed, by looking at the notes in the chords. Learn to arpeggiate these chords so you can hear the notes and how they sound together. There you have about 4 months work and not a tune in sight. Once you can hear and find the notes in the simpler chords, you will be ready to move on to the more complex chords. Also if you base your learning on the diatonic sequence, instead of just learning all the chords in categories like Major Minor etc, you will be able to relate the chords back to a scale and eventually maybe the melody notes. And once you can relate the chords back to a scale with your ears and on the fretboard and in notation (three ways) you can start to build your own chords around a melody.
Ubulele did not wake up one day and suddenly have all of his wonderful knowledge he is passing on, i suspect he has been learning it for years.
A good way to get started is to break away from using fret numbers and start using notes instead, not just in a visual sense, but also in an aural sense.

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