Chord Tones and Non-chord Tones

Chord tones are notes of a specific
chord. For example, the notes of a C-Major chord are C, E, and G. The
following example shows a section of music using only chord tones.




Chord tones


Any notes in a section of music that do
not fit into the chord tones of the prevailing harmony are non-chord
tones. The following example shows a melody over a chord progression
with the non-chord tones