Chords
Db Augmented
Db · F · A
The augmented triad — two stacked major thirds, splitting the octave into three equal parts.
Also written Db+ · Db+5 · Db^#5
Db Augmented
Db · F · A
Voicings on the piano
| Voicing | Notes | Play it on your instrument |
|---|---|---|
| Closed, root position | Db3 · F3 · A3 |
Tap a key or a fret to hear it.
Anatomy
Db Augmented (Dbaug) contains the notes Db · F · A, each with a role measured as an interval from the root.
Read on: how triads are built
Inversions
An inversion of Db Augmented puts a chord tone other than Db in the bass; the name after the slash is that bass note.
Where it lives
The keys and the scales Db Augmented belongs to.
In which keys
Db Augmented is diatonic to 3 keys; the numeral is its degree and the label its harmonic function.
Scales that contain it
Db Augmented fits inside these scales, each built on Db.
- Db Whole ToneDb · Eb · F · G · A · B
- Db AugmentedDb · E · F · Ab · A · C
- Db Lydian AugmentedDb · Eb · F · G · A · Bb · C
- Db Augmented HeptatonicDb · E · F · Gb · Ab · A · C
- Db Leading Whole ToneDb · Eb · F · G · A · Cb · C
- Db Major AugmentedDb · Eb · F · Gb · A · Bb · C
- Db Bebop MajorDb · Eb · F · Gb · Ab · A · Bb · C
- Db Messiaen's Mode #6Db · Eb · F · Gb · G · A · B · C
Understanding the Db Augmented chord
Names and symbols
Dbaug is the chord symbol for Db Augmented; it is also written Db+, Db+5, Db^#5.
How it is built
On Db it is Db · F · A: 1P · 3M · 5A. The fifth is raised a semitone, which makes both thirds major and the whole chord symmetrical.
How it is used
Like the diminished seventh its symmetry means it belongs to no key, so it functions as a pivot or as a moment of suspension. As an altered dominant (the ♯5) it sharpens the pull toward resolution.
In a rising inner-voice cliché — I, I+, I6, I7 — it is the second chord, where one voice climbs chromatically while everything else stays put.
Learn this properly
Chapter 10: Chords: Triads and SeventhsCommon questions
- What notes are in Dbaug?
- Dbaug contains Db · F · A. Name any set of notes with the chord identifier.
- How do you build an augmented chord?
- Stack two major thirds: root, major third, augmented fifth.
- How many different augmented triads are there?
- Four. The chord splits the octave into three equal parts, so the twelve roots produce only four distinct note sets.
- What notes are in the Db Augmented chord?
- The Db Augmented chord contains the notes Db · F · A: the root Db with the intervals 1P, 3M, 5A stacked above it. Play them together for the chord or one after another for an arpeggio. The lowest note is normally Db, but any chord tone can take the bass in an inversion.
- What intervals make up the Db Augmented chord?
- Measured from Db, the Db Augmented chord stacks the intervals 1P, 3M, 5A. The quality of the third and of the seventh, if there is one, is what gives the chord its character; the rest of the notes colour it. Every interval in the formula links to its own page, with its sound.