Annotation Reference

Quickstart

This section gives a brief overview of the DCML harmony annotation standard and how to get started. Each feature links to the detailed reference below and to the relevant tutorial pages.

Tooling setup

1. Install MuseScore 3.6.2 (not MuseScore 4 — see the note below).

2. Open a score (uncompressed .mscx format) and click on the note where you want to place the first label.

3. Go to Add -> Text -> Roman Numeral Analysis (or assign a shortcut such as Ctrl+R). See the tutorial for cursor navigation ([SPACE], [TAB], Ctrl+3/4/...).

4. Set up Git for version control of your annotation files. Follow the score edition guidelines for score preparation.

Feature overview

Global and local key — The first label always starts with the global key (e.g. Ab.I, f#.i). Subsequent modulations are indicated as Roman numerals relative to the global key, followed by a dot (e.g. V.I). See Indication of key and Changing the local key.

Roman numerals — Upper case = major triad, lower case = minor triad. Altered roots are prefixed with b or # (e.g. bVI, #iv). Inversions and chord types are appended (e.g. V65, viio7, III+6). See Roman numerals and The first label.

Applied chords and relative keys — A slash indicates that a chord relates to a key other than the current local key, e.g. V65/IV. Extended slash notation can mark fleeting tonicizations over several chords (e.g. iio65/vi V7/vi i/vi). See Relative key and Changing the local key.

Suspensions, retardations, and chord-tone changes — Annotated as Arabic digits in parentheses after the Roman numeral: V(4) for a 4–3 suspension, V(64) for the cadential six-four. Digits refer to intervals above the root, not figured bass. See Suspensions and retardations and Level of detail.

Added and missing notes — Added notes use + (e.g. ii6(+4) for a pedal tone), missing notes use - (e.g. I(-3) for an empty fifth). See Added and missing notes.

Phrase annotations and cadence labels — Phrases are delimited with { and }, cadences are marked on the ultima with a pipe and label: i|PAC}. See Phrase annotations and cadence labels and The first phrase.

Pedal points — Bracketed passages over a sustained bass note: I[I IV64 V7 I]. See Pedal points (Organ points) and Some more features.

Augmented sixth chords — Special symbols It6, Ger6, Fr6 for the three standard forms. See Augmented sixth chords.

Ambiguity and unisono — Two interpretations are separated by a dash (viio6-V43). Unaccompanied passages use @none when no harmony can be inferred. See Ambiguity.

Introduction

Thank you for your interest in the DCML harmony annotation standard. Harmonic analysis is a notoriously complex task, as of now very difficult to teach to a computer. Therefore, we need to rely on hand-annotated data when analyzing the development of tonal harmony over the last five centuries with quantitative methods. With this goal in mind, we have devised an annotation standard for encoding harmonic analyses in a machine-readable format. This document serves as a reference for looking up aspects of its syntax together with some examples. If you want to learn how DCML annotators use MuseScore to enter harmonic analysis directly into digital scores, please refer to our annotation tutorial.

What is it?

In its essence, the standard consists of two things: A set of rules for constructing chord labels in a standardized way and this reference on how to apply these labels to music and how to interpret those that you encounter. In this context, we use the words ‘symbols’, ‘chord symbols’, ‘labels’, ‘expressions’, and ‘annotations’ interchangeably. Generally you encounter them in two different contexts: Either when you open a digital score in the XML format of the open-source notation software MuseScore 3.6.2, or in the form of an annotation table, that is a table in which each row represents a label and each column one of its properties such as position in the score, the key it occurs in, the chord tones it represents, and its different features. This reference is mainly concerned with explaining what these different properties are.

Why not MuseScore 4?

The DCML standard relies on MuseScore 3.6.2, not MuseScore 4. The MuseScore 4 rewrite has dropped several features indispensable for power users — possibly motivated by commercial interests that do not serve the open-source community. The single most critical issue for us is the elimination of the ability to store MuseScore files as individual .mscx files (rather than an entire uncompressed folder). This breaks our Git-based version-control workflow and the tooling built on top of it. As long as this remains unresolved, we cannot adopt MuseScore 4. The issue is tracked at musescore/MuseScore#15995.

About this reference

Everyone is free to use the proposed standard for encoding harmonic analyses in ways, contexts, and environments of their free choice. The goal of this reference is not to tell anyone how they should analyse harmony. Instead, its purpose is to clarify what the different parts of the syntax are supposed to express in order to allow analysts to communicate their musical interpretations in a precise and consistent manner. The examples and recommendations are supposed to be guidelines that have as a goal to make annotations from different users comparable and interoperable.

General principles

The following principles are essential for producing correct annotations:

• Consistency is the annotation standard’s highest maxim: While different annotators would interpret the same music differently, it is important that the same annotator interprets the same music identically.

• Major keys are indicated by uppercase, minor keys by lowercase letters.

• The information about a harmony is expressed in a fixed order (syntax) and orthographical errors can be automatically detected.

• Chord symbols (i.e. Roman numerals) are attached to the moment in the score where the respective harmony begins. They are valid until the next symbol; identical symbols are never repeated consecutively (see Immediate repetition of identical labels for exceptions).

• Symbols are typically attached to the lower system of the score, even if it contains only rests, at the precise position where the harmony occurs.

• Arabic numbers indicating inversions or chord tone changes always appear in descending order (e.g. 65 or 9#74).

• We annotate non-chord tones such as suspensions, retardations, and additions, but not ornaments (neighbour notes, passing notes, embellishments). See Level of detail in the tutorial for guidance.

• Before annotating, decide on the harmonic pace for the piece and maintain it consistently.

• The annotations always need to represent a consistent reading, also in the case of repetitions, first and second endings, dal segnos, etc.

• DCML labels are entered in MuseScore 3’s Roman Numeral Analysis layer (Add -> Text -> Roman Numeral Analysis), not in the Harmony layer, StaffText/SystemText, or Lyrics. See the tutorial for instructions on placing and navigating the annotation cursor.

Display of parentheses

MuseScore’s Roman Numeral Analysis layer does not render our parenthesis notation correctly — for example, V(9#74) may display in an unexpected way. This is purely cosmetic and inconsequential for encoding: the underlying data is stored exactly as you type it, which is all that matters for our purposes.

Note

Depending on the source of the notation file you receive for annotation, it may be advisable to have a scan of the Urtext open for tacit correction of the score. At least the bar numbers must be 100% correct. Make sure that upbeat measures are counted by MuseScore as measure 0. For detailed guidance on score preparation and formatting, see our score edition guidelines.

The syntax

Every chord symbol must have at least one compulsory Roman numeral and may start with an indication of key, followed by a separating dot. Such an indication sets the context for the attached Roman numeral and for all subsequent symbols up to the next indication of key. Phrase annotations represent a separate standard. Therefore they can stand alone, without a chord label, or at the very end of one.

Indication of key

• The first symbol written in a score always starts with the absolute indication of the entire piece’s tonality.

• Simply type the tonic’s note name {A/a,B/b,C/c,D/d,E/e,F/f,G/g(#/b)} followed by a dot. Examples: f#.i for the first harmony of a piece in F sharp minor; Ab.I for the first harmony of a piece in A flat major; both pieces beginning with the tonic harmony.

• All other indications of key (i.e. ‘local keys’) are entered as Roman numerals relative to that.

• Example 1: As soon as a piece in C major modulates to G major, you can indicate the new key by typing V.I over the harmony of G major. All subsequent Roman numerals up to the next indication of key relate to the new key of G major.

• There is a way of annotating secondary dominants (see Relative key); however, if you find a V/vi chord and the music then stays in the key of vi for a longer time (cf. next paragraph), you can write vi.V right away. Every following i symbol designates the new tonic.

• To highlight a brief, non-substantial modulation (a fleeting tonicization), we prefer continuing with the slash notation over several chords rather than changing the local key. For example, iio65/vi V7/vi i/vi keeps the passage visually grouped as a fleeting modulation context, and the cadential movement reads as V7 - i (the final i/vi is equivalent to vi but better conveys the tonicization). Use a change of local key (vi.) only when the music genuinely stays in the new key.

• You can also modulate to a relative key such as vi/III: In a global minor context, this would correspond to the global tonic, but expressed as the minor relative vi of the global-relative III. Such relative-key modulations normally occur adjacent to (before or after) a modulation to the local key to which they are relative.

Example

I6 ii65/V V7/V V and I6 V.ii65 V7 I (from the Schumann example below), in general, express the same chords but a preference has to be given either to the first version - i.e., with applied chords - or to the second - i.e., with change of local key. In principle, it is an objective of your analyses to include a bigger picture of a piece’s tonality through exactly this kind of choices. This means that upon making such a choice, you need to include the broader context:

• If the example passage is a mere tonicization of V followed by a return to the original tonic, that is a case for the version with applied chords because the local key stays the same. This is the case in the given example. (NB I/V has exactly the same meaning as V and, at the end of an authentic cadence should should be the preferred solution.)

• If, on the other hand, the music continues in the key of V, the second option should be chosen. The general rule is that, in such a modulation, the change of local key should be annotated

  • at the latest when a chord cannot be interpreted in the old, but in the new key (i.e., where the A# occurs);

  • as early as consistently possible; so, depending on the context you could even write V.IV6 ii65 V7 I.

Note

Note that the key indications of applied chords always relate to the local key (see the following section). So, if the Schumann example below was not in E major but in A major instead, the same harmonic progression would be standing in the key of V: V.I6 ii65/V V7/V I(4)/V with the applied notation remaining unchanged (/V) because it is relative to the local key; whereas the change of local key would indicate the absolute key instead: V.I6 II.ii65 V7 I(4)

Warning

Whenever the local key is not the global tonic (I or i), the key indicated by the slash notation (/) will differ from the key indicated by a modulation dot (.). Slash notation is relative to the local key, whereas the modulation key is relative to the global key. For example, in a passage where the local key is V, writing V7/IV refers to the dominant seventh of the fourth degree of the local key — which is the global tonic — while a modulation I.V7 would refer to something entirely different. Always keep this distinction in mind.

Approriate annotation	Unappropriate annotation
mm. 4-5 from Schumann’s “Wehmut”, Liederkreis op. 39/9

The rationale behind this logic can be seen in these automated key analyses of two different annotations of the same piece:

With too many changes of local key	After correction to relative keys
Gantt chart showing the local keys in the first movement of Mozart’s K. 533

Relative key

If a symbol relates to a different key than the one you are in, you can indicate the relative key using a slash /. Most prominently this is the case for secondary dominants such as V65/IV. The relative key is indicated as relative to the local key and does not change the local key.

Example: iv.i #viio6 i6 V65/iv iv viio7/V V7 i designates a cadence in the key of iv (here: G minor) because of the initial indication of key. Note that

• the relative keys iv (C minor) and V (D major) relate to the local key iv and not to the global (tonic) key (here: D minor);

• viio7/V is not spelled #viio7/V although the bass is altered. The reason is that it is the natural 7th scale degree in the key of V (D major). B flat, of course, is not natural in D major but is clearly annotated through the choice of viio7 rather than vii%7;

• combining relative key with a modulation can be counterintuitive because relative keys relate to the local key, whereas key indications used for modulation always relate to the global key. To avoid confusion, don’t use relative key annotation if a modulation to that same relative key follows.

Relative keys of relative keys can be annotated, for example the dominant-seventh harmony of the dominant key of the key of scale degree v: viio/V/v.

Common mistake

Since the root of viio/V has an accidental, novice annotators are often tempted to write #viio/V. This is incorrect because the leading tone is scale degree 7 (not #7) in major. These are all correct: I.viio/V, i.viio/V, I.#viio/v, i.#viio/v.

Roman numerals

The smallest possible symbols consist of a single Roman numeral. They stand for a major (I, II, III, IV, V, VI, VII) or minor (i, ii, iii, iv, v, vi, vii) triad in root position. All other chords — those which are not a major or minor root-position triad on one of the key’s natural degrees — need additional symbols. For altered scale degrees, prefix the numeral with b or #, e.g. bVI for an Ab major chord in the context of C major, or #vi for an A minor chord in the context of C minor.

Note

Dorian and phrygian modes are annotated as minor keys; lydian and mixolydian as major. The root distances of iii III vi VI vii VII from the tonic are major intervals in major keys and minor intervals in minor keys. See The first label in the tutorial for details on modes.

Note

You always indicate the chord type before the inversion.

Triads

Triads. <NA> = empty; RN = uppercase numeral; rn = lowercase numeral

Root	Type	Inversions	Chord type	Examples
RN	<NA>	<NA>, 6, 64	Major triad	I, V6, IV64
rn	<NA>	<NA>, 6, 64	Minor triad	vi, ii6, iv64
rn	o	<NA>, 6, 64	Diminished triad	viio, iio6, #ivo64
RN	+	<NA>, 6, 64	Augmented triad	III+, III+6, III+64

Tetrads

Every seventh chord is distinguished by its type and one of the inversions 7 (root position), 65, 43, or 2.

Mnemonic Hook

Arabic numbers always occur in descending order.

Seventh chords. <NA> = empty; RN = uppercase numeral; rn = lowercase numeral

Root	Type	Inversions	Chord type	Examples
RN	<NA>	7, 65, 43, 2	Dominant seventh	V7, IV65
rn	<NA>	7, 65, 43, 2	Minor seventh	vi7, ii43
rn	o	7, 65, 43, 2	Diminished seventh	vio7, #viio2
RN	+	7, 65, 43, 2	Augmented minor seventh	V+7
rn	%	7, 65, 43, 2	Half-diminished seventh	vii%7, #vi%43
RN	M	7, 65, 43, 2	Major seventh	IVM7, IIIM65
rn	M	7, 65, 43, 2	Minor major seventh	iiiM7
RN	+M	7, 65, 43, 2	Augmented major seventh	I+M7

Note

The inversion 42 is accepted as equivalent to 2 but 2 is the canonical form and should be preferred.

Note

While a dominant seventh chord theoretically can appear on degrees other than V (e.g. VII7 in a falling fifths progression), when the respective tonic follows, it should be annotated as a secondary dominant instead (e.g. V7/III). However, there are cases where the same sonority occurs as IV7 or IV65 in a minor key, which is not notated as a dominant.

Augmented sixth chords

The standard provides special symbols for the three augmented sixth chords:

Augmented sixth chords

Symbol	Name	Root	Equivalent
It6	Italian sixth	vii/V	viio6(b3)/V
Ger6	German sixth	vii/V	viio65(b3)/V
Fr6	French sixth	V/V	V43(b5)/V

The forms with their standard figured bass (It6, Ger6/Ger65, Fr6/Fr43) all express the chord in its standard position (with scale degree b6 in the bass) and are therefore equivalent. Other figured-bass values indicate inversions: e.g. Ger7 has #4 in the bass, and Fr7 has scale degree 2 in the bass. Since It6 is a triad, It (without figured bass) translates to its root position viio(b3)/V.

Note

In older versions of the standard, annotations were entered in MuseScore’s Harmony layer rather than the Roman numeral layer. In that context, a leading dot was required to prevent MuseScore from interpreting note names as chord symbols (e.g. .Ger instead of Ger6). This leading dot is deprecated and should no longer be used.

Suspensions and retardations

Suspensions, retardations, and other chord tone changes are annotated as Arabic numbers within round parentheses () following the Roman numeral, form, and inversion. The numbers designate the note’s interval to the root. This is independent of the chord’s inversion: the suspension (4) means the same thing in V(4), V6(4), V65(4), V43(4), and V2(4) (in two of them, the suspension is in the bass).

To indicate the resolution, write the sounding chord without the change, e.g. V(4) V7 or V65(4) V65.

Note

The intervals designated by the Arabic numbers in parentheses are diatonic and depend on the chord’s position in the scale and the scale itself. For example, iv(4) translates to F B C in a C major context but to F Bb C in a C minor context. Use b or # to alter: iv(b4) in C major yields F Bb C.

Replacement from above (suspensions)

The digits 2, 4, 6 designate the upper neighbours of chord tones 1 (root), 3 (third), 5 (fifth) respectively. The replaced chord tone is not present:

• (2): replaces the root

• (4): replaces the third

• (6): replaces the fifth

Cadential six-four

The cadential six-four chord is written as V(64) to distinguish it from a passing I64.

Replacement from below (retardations)

A retardation resolves upward. The digit 7 designates replacement of the root from below:

• (7): retardation of the root (resolution goes upwards)

• (#2): retardation of the third from below

• (#4): retardation of the fifth from below

• (#6): retardation of the seventh from below

Direction markers

When a digit has an accidental, the direction of replacement is inferred by default:

• b before a digit implies suspension (replacement from above)

• # before a digit implies retardation (replacement from below)

Two explicit direction markers can override these defaults:

• v (from above): forces the digit to replace the chord tone below it. Needed for raised suspensions, e.g. v#2 = sharped upper neighbour replacing the root.

• ^ (from below): forces the digit to replace the chord tone above it. Needed for unraised retardations, e.g. ^2 = diatonic 2 replacing the third.

The complete set of replacement combinations:

• From above (replacing 1, 3, 5): 2, b2, v#2, 4, b4, v#4, 6, b6, v#6

• From below (replacing 3, 5, 7): ^2, ^b2, #2, ^4, ^b4, #4, ^6, ^b6, #6

Note

Remember that the accidentals b and # depend on the local major or (natural) minor scale.

Replacement of octave doublings

The digits 9, 11, 13 are used when the chord tone is present but replaced in one of the upper octaves:

• (9): replaces an octave doubling of the root (root present); contrast with (2) where the root is not present

• (11): replaces an octave doubling of the third (third present, often in a lower voice or in the bass)

• (13): replaces an octave doubling of the fifth (fifth present)

For example, the “Chopin chord” (dominant seventh add 13) is expressed as V7(13) to clarify that the fifth is present and the added note is (at least) a ninth apart. The distinction matters for added notes too: V7(+6) (dissonance is a second) vs. V7(+13) (dissonance is a ninth).

Ninth chords

Dominant ninth chords illustrate the interplay of these conventions:

• V7(9), V7(b9), V7(v#9): ninth replaces an octave doubling of the root

• V7(^9), V7(^b9), V7(#9): ninth replaces an octave doubling of the third

• V7(+9), V7(+b9), V7(+#9): ninth is an added note

Replacement of the root by its lower neighbour

Following the above logic, replacement of the lowest root (1) in the chord should be expressed through 0 or #0 (leading tone in a minor scale). However, for convenience, 7 or #7 are commonly used instead (which logically express replacement of an octave doubling of the root). Therefore 0 and 7 are equivalent in nearly all cases. The exception is root-position chords, where the root is in the bass: Here, 0 is required to differentiate from replacement of an octave doubling (7).

Multiple simultaneous changes

If several changes are sounding at the same time, annotate all of them within the same parenthesis, always in descending order, e.g. V(64), V(42). A cadenza doppia could look like V7 V(64) V(4) V followed by I or i.

Attention

Designating suspensions or retardations as intervals above the root will be counterintuitive if you are used to thinking in figured bass. For example, a falling fauxbourdon ii6 I6 viio6 with 7-6 suspensions has to be written as ii6(2) ii6 I6(2) I6 viio6(2) viio6. Note that you use (2) and not (9) because the root is not present. A Classical ending with retardation looks like i(9#74) i, and not i(#742) i or i(24#7) i.

Added and missing notes

Note

We don’t annotate neighbour notes, passing notes, or embellishments.

A typical additional note is a pedal note appearing in a voice other than the bass. Added notes are annotated like chord tone changes but preceded by +: the digit indicates the interval from the root.

Example: Imagine a C major context and a pedal on G in a middle voice. The other voices do the progression I viio6 I6 ii6 I64 IV6 Ger6 V. Some harmonies already contain the G (I, I6, I64, V), one harmony supports an added G (viio6 with G is V43), and the rest neither support G nor can it be interpreted as a suspension. Correct annotation: I V43 I6 ii6(+4) I64 IV6(+2) Ger6(+7) V.

In analogy, - indicates that a given chord tone is missing and not implied by the music. This symbol is used rarely because in most cases the missing note (the fifth in particular) is considered as implied. Examples: pronounced empty fifths I(-3), unclear third quality I(-3)-i(-3), or missing root in two-voice counterpoint IV(-1).

Monteverdi, Lamento della ninfa: Distinguishing added notes from embellishments and suspensions (mm. 40–44).

Phrase annotations and cadence labels

Phrase annotations

The DCML standard includes a non-hierarchical phrase annotation using curly brackets {}. They may stand alone or be the last character of a chord label. Phrase annotations are always the label’s last part.

• {: beginning of a phrase

• }: structural phrase ending (typically the cadence’s ultima)

• }{: phrase interlocking

The closing bracket marks the structural ending; everything between } and the next { is still part of the same phrase (annexe, codetta, transition). Full phrase lengths are therefore calculated from { to {.

Note

The backslash \\ is kept for backward compatibility with older versions of the standard where it designated a phrase ending. It has been superseded by the curly-bracket syntax.

Corelli: Sonata da chiesa op. 1/7, I, mm. 1–4

Cadence labels

Cadences are marked on the ultima with one of the following labels, separated from the chord label by a pipe |:

Cadence labels

Label	Cadence type	Usage
PAC	Perfect authentic cadence	Bass and upper voice closing on ^1
IAC	Imperfect authentic cadence	Bass or upper voice not closing on ^1
HC	Half cadence	Closing on V
DC	Deceptive cadence	Ultima not a tonic chord
EC	Evaded cadence	Cadential goal is cut off from the previous progression and groups forward
PC	Plagal cadence	Cadential ending with ^4–^1 in the bass

Note

The PC label is accepted but should be used with caution. It remains debated for which repertoires plagal cadences constitute an appropriate analytical category. When in doubt, consult your reviewer.

If the ultima is suspended, the cadence label marks the moment of its completion, whereas the structural phrase ending } marks its structural position. When cadence label and phrase ending co-occur, } goes last: e.g. i|PAC}. A cadence label can occur without a harmony label (e.g. |EC) but this is rare.

Cadence frequency

The DCML guidelines require writing more cadence labels than most theorists naturally would. Following a schema-theoretic approach, if a cadential schema is repeated in the same or a similar way, the cadence label needs to be repeated as well, even if from a formal perspective only one instance would be considered the “real” cadence.

Pedal points (Organ points)

If several harmonies appear over the same bass note, the start of the pedal point is marked by [ and the end by ]. In front of the opening [ stands the Roman numeral corresponding to the bass note’s scale degree, immediately followed (within the same expression) by the first harmony above the pedal note. Thus, the most common pedal points start with I[I, i[V7/iv, or V[V. The pedal point ends at the end of the terminal symbol’s duration, i.e. it ends with the next symbol after I] or V7].

Two criteria must both apply for using the pedal-point annotation:

• It involves three or more distinct harmonic events sharing the same bass note.

• At least one harmony appears of which the pedal note is not a component.

Therefore, a 5/3-6/4-5/3 contrapuntal movement (often on scale degree 1) is generally annotated as a simple neighboring motion: I I(64) I (the pedal-point character is implied in this expression).

Example	Explanation
(KV 333, II, 19)	No pedal point because the bass is a constituent of every harmony.
(KV 333, III, 65-8)	This is considered a mere i i(64) i prolongation (only two distinct events).

A rule of thumb for the harmonies above the pedal note: If the bass note is a part of the harmony, write the inversion corresponding to the bass note; otherwise, the inversion of the chord above. A more important rule can override this: The harmonic progression above the organ point should be meaningful in itself. For example, in a fauxbourdon you might highlight the sixth chords: I[IV6 iii6 ii6 I6 viio6 I] rather than I[IV64 iii6 ii6 I viio6 I].

Note

If you change the local key, you need to end the pedal point with the previous label and start a new one.

Ambiguity

If two interpretations are possible and you are unable to make a decision, you can give both interpretations by separating them with a dash -, e.g. viio6-V43. Use this means as a last resort only and make sure that both interpretations are valid readings within their context, i.e. each interpretation should be valid in line with the prior and the following symbol. This implies that no modulation can occur within an ambiguous expression (such as viio7/V-v.#viio7) because only one of the readings can be correct in context with the following expression. It is possible to give a relative key (e.g. I6-V6/IV) because both options create correct readings.

Unisono

Single-voice passages generally imply harmonies which you are asked to infer. If the information of the melody line is too sparse to be sure whether it is implying viio6 or V43, for example, you will most likely opt for an ambiguous annotation (see Ambiguity). You are also free to choose one interpretation because it is more stereotypical or because it alludes to another passage of the same piece. If no harmony can be inferred — in particular where a composer deliberately withdraws tonal footing — use the symbol @none.

Immediate repetition of identical labels

There are only rare cases where identical labels should be repeated:

• If one label marks the beginning or ending of an organ point.

• If a repetition is needed to allow for a consistent reading with repetitions, first and second endings, dal segnos, etc. Example: | V |: V I :| instead of | V |: I :|

Summary of the full syntax

One of the longest possible expressions would be bvii.V[#viio65(+b84)/#vi. This is purely theoretical and simply a demonstration of order and meaning of the different syntactic components. With concrete examples given in relation to C major:

• bvii. in the context of a major key (C major) means that all following symbols relate to the minor key on the lowered 7th scale degree (Bb minor).

• V[ designates the beginning of an organ point on the 5th scale degree (F).

• #viio65 stands for the first inversion of a diminished seventh chord on the raised 7th scale degree.

• (+b84) designates an added diminished octave (added notes usually occur because of pedal tones that are not in the bass) and a (not added but) suspended fourth, withholding the third.

• /#vi means that this chord (the #viio65) relates to the raised 6th scale degree. Which, in Bb minor, would be G. Therefore, the root of #viio65/#vi would be F#.

Here, you can see an imaginary context, in C major, where this example could theoretically occur: