Chords

Two paths to chordal patterns: the chord() function with chord-symbol literals (Am7, Cmaj7), and inline chord brackets in pat() strings ([c4 e4 g4]). For voi…

Two paths to chordal patterns: the chord() function with chord-symbol literals (Am7, Cmaj7), and inline chord brackets in pat() strings ([c4 e4 g4]). For voice leading, the anchor, mode, voicing, and addVoicings transforms reshape chord events into musical voicings.

chord

Chord pattern - Parse a string of chord symbols into a polyphonic event stream.

Param	Type	Default	Description
str	string	-	Chord symbols separated by spaces

// Major chord
chord("C")      // C major triad

// Minor seventh
chord("Am7")    // A minor seventh

// Chord progression
chord("Am C Dm G")  // One chord per beat

triad

A triad is a 3-note chord: root, third, fifth. Bare letter names (C, Am, F) parse as triads. Quality suffixes:

Suffix	Meaning
(none)	Major triad
`m`	Minor triad
`dim`	Diminished
`aug`	Augmented
`sus2`	Suspended 2
`sus4`	Suspended 4

seventh

A seventh chord adds a 7th degree. Quality suffixes:

Suffix	Meaning
`7`	Dominant 7
`maj7`	Major 7
`m7`	Minor 7

// Jazz progression
chord("Cmaj7 Am7 Dm7 G7") |> mtof(%) |> osc("saw", %) |> out(%, %)

inline

Inline chords in pattern strings use square brackets: every note plays simultaneously rather than in sequence.

// C major as inline chord
pat("[c4 e4 g4]")

// Mixed sequence and chord
pat("c4 [c4 e4 g4] e4 g4")

anchor

anchor(pattern, "c4") sets the MIDI anchor note for chord voicing. Note names accept letter + optional accidental (# / b) + octave (c4, F#3, Bb-1).

// Voice the chords around c4
chord("Am C G F").anchor("c4")

mode

mode(pattern, "below") sets the chord voicing mode:

below: all chord notes ≤ anchor
above: all chord notes ≥ anchor
duck: closest to anchor, avoiding the anchor itself
root: root in bass octave near anchor, rest stacked near anchor

// Voice-led progression, top note ≤ c4
chord("Am C G F").anchor("c4").mode("below")
  |> mtof(%)
  |> osc("saw", %)
  |> out(%, %)

voicing

voicing(pattern, "drop2") applies a named voicing dictionary. Built-in dictionaries:

close: all notes within an octave
open: wide spacing, root on bottom
drop2: second-from-top dropped one octave
drop3: third-from-top dropped one octave

// Drop-2 voicing on a jazz progression
chord("Cmaj7 Am7 Dm7 G7").voicing("drop2")

drop2

drop2: the second-highest note dropped down an octave. Classic guitar/piano jazz voicing.

drop3

drop3: the third-highest note dropped down an octave. Wider spread than drop2.

close

close: all notes packed within an octave. Tight, pad-like voicing.

open

open: root in bass, upper notes stacked widely. Broad, brassy voicing.

addVoicings

addVoicings("name", {quality: [intervals], ...}) registers a custom voicing dictionary by chord-quality name.

// Custom piano-jazz voicing
addVoicings("piano-jazz", {M: [0, 4, 7, 11, 14], m: [0, 3, 7, 10, 14]})
chord("CM Am Dm G").voicing("piano-jazz")