This page was reformatted on 12/11/06
This page was reformatted on 12/11/06
Beethoven uses an augmented 6th chord (A German 6th - see below) during the first movement of his Septet in bar 7 and bar 181.
The augmented 6th chord is built of either the flattened supertonic or the flattened submediant (this is more common). As the name suggests, the interval of an augmented 6th, from the root of the chord, occurs within the chord.
To explain the augmented 6th I shall use the key of C major not the home key, E flat, of the Septet.
There are 3 sorts of augmented 6th chord. I remember them like this.
The basic, or Initial chord is the Italian 6th (note the 'I' at the start of both words) is just a three note chord, root, 3rd and augmented 6th, as follows; it can resolve as shown.
Hear it [Click]
The next kind is the French 6th which has the same notes as the Italian 6th PLUS a fourth (actually an augmented 4th) but remember the 'F' for Fourth and French.
Hear it [Click]
Now, you will need to be tolerant here. The 3rd kind is the German 6th. If the notes are 'spelt' in a different way that is A flat, C, E flat and G flat we would have a DOMINANT 7th (of D flat major as it happens). Now, imagine your are a rubbish ventriloquist and you are trying to say "Dominant 7th". As with "Bottle of Beer", which come out "Gottle of Gear", what you say actually sounds like "Gominant seventh". Remember the 'G' for 'Gominant' and for 'German' - there you have it; that's how you remember. I know it is a bit far fetched (soft and hard 'G') but run with it! Here it is, resolving onto Ic for a change, but you could follow this with V7 and I to make a cadence.
Hear it [Click]
You should be able to spot a Dominant 7th TYPE chord, but the context will tell you it is an Augmented 6th chord; it is quite a fruity thing in a way and highly Romantic. See how Tchaikovsky uses it HERE. Or try some Midi file here -
LINKS
http://www.tonalityguide.com/xxaug6.php
http://tonalsoft.com/enc/augmented-6th.htm (Cor blimey!)
http://www.utexas.edu/courses/mus612b/fmain/fdocs/notes/augsixth.html