In short, major 2nd chords are major triads with the major 2nd added, so a C2, for example, should be thought of as C E G + D. There are 4 inversions of this chord, namely:

• C D E G
• D E G C
• D G C D
• G C D E

Some of these voicings may sound cluttered due the 3 adjacent notes, C, D and E, and that's why we often drop one of the notes to create a cleaner result. Now we obviously can't drop the D because that's our major 2nd, so we drop either the root, C, or the 3rd, E.

By dropping the 3rd, we end up with the 3 inversions:

• C D G
• D G C
• G C D

This has a 'hollow' sound and in fact, loses it's happy major feel because the major 3rd (the note that makes the chord major) is gone. If we drop the root from our RH voicing, we get:

• D E G
• E G D
• G D E

Some people hesitate at this point as they believe we've broken some golden rule about dropping the root from the RH chord. But don't fear, your LH is playing the C so both hands considered, the chord is still a C2. This rootless RH version of C2 sounds brighter because the major 3rd is present.

The point is, when you think of C2, don't just restrict your playing to C D G, try D E G and it's inversions, and you've now doubled your options. When playing an entire bar of C2, use both types to create variation in the bar.

If you've got the Quaverbox Manual you'll find a whole chapter on this topic with more examples of common voicings. Don't forget to watch the video on major 2nd chords too.

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jayagopi jagadeesan
Posts: 1

a correction for your major 2nd article
Reply #1 on : Sun February 14, 2010, 22:19:47

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Hi,

A small mistake in your major 2dn article. The first 4 inversions should read as follows :
• C D E G
• D E G C
• E G C D
• G C D E

Nice article though. Short and well explained.
cheers,
jay