List of chord progressions
The following is a list of commonly used chord progressions in music.
| Code | |
|---|---|
| Major | Major |
| Minor | Minor |
| Atonal | Atonal |
| Bitonal | Bitonal |
| Ind. | Indeterminate |
| PD | Phrygian dominant |
| Mix. | Mixolydian |
| Name | Image | Sound | # of chords | Quality |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 50s progression | 4 | Major | ||
| IV-V-I-vi | 4 | Major | ||
| I–V–vi–IV | 4 | Major | ||
| I–IV–♭VII–IV | 3 | Mix. | ||
| ii–V–I progression | 3 | Major | ||
| ii–V–I with tritone substitution (♭II7 instead of V7) |
3 | Major | ||
| ii-V-I with ♭III+ as dominant substitute |
3 | Mix. | ||
| viio7/V–V–I
(common in ragtime) |
3 | Major | ||
| Andalusian cadence | 4 | PD | ||
| Backdoor progression (front door is V7) |
3 | Major | ||
| Bird changes | 20 | Major | ||
| Chromatic descending 5–6 sequence |
4 | Mix. | ||
| Circle progression | 4 | Major | ||
| Coltrane changes | 6 | Major | ||
| Eight-bar blues | 3 | Major | ||
| Folia | 4 | Minor | ||
| Irregular resolution
(Type I: Two common tones, two note moves by half step motion) |
2 | Major | ||
| Montgomery–Ward bridge |
4 | Major | ||
| Omnibus progression | ? | Major | ||
| Pachelbel's Canon | 5 | Major | ||
| Passamezzo antico | 4 | Minor | ||
| Passamezzo moderno | 3 | Major | ||
| I–V–vi–IV progression | 4 | Major | ||
| Ragtime progression | 5 | Major | ||
| Rhythm changes | 15 | Major | ||
| Romanesca | 3 | Major | ||
| Sixteen-bar blues | 3 | Major | ||
| Stomp progression | 6 | Major | ||
| Twelve-bar blues | 3 | Major | ||
| I−vi−ii−V | 4 | Major | ||
| ♭VII–V7 cadence | 2–3 | Mix. | ||
| V–IV–I turnaround | 3 | Major | ||
| I–♭VII–♭VI–♭VII | 3 | Minor | ||
| IV△7–V7–iii7–vi | 4 | Major | ||
| ♭VI-♭VII-I | 3 | Major |
Further reading
- R., Ken (2012). DOG EAR Tritone Substitution for Jazz Guitar, Amazon Digital Services, Inc., ASIN: B008FRWNIW.