submediant

submediant in American English (sʌbˈmidiənt) noun. Music. the sixth tone of a diatonic scale, being midway between the subdominant and the upper tonic. Also called: superdominant.

SUBMEDIANT is the term we use to refer to the sixth scale degree and its accompanying chord (6 - 1 - 3). If the mediant is three above tonic, then the SUBmediant is three below tonic.

The sixth scale degree is called the submediant. The term submediant shares the same source as the subdominant. The sixth scale degree is a third (mediant) below the tonic, hence the name submediant, or lower mediant.

The submediant is the sixth note of the scale. The term submediant (below - median, middle) indicates the note midway between the tonic and subdominant.

Each note of a major scale is also named with scale-degree names : tonic, supertonic, mediant, subdominant, dominant, submediant, leading tone, and then tonic again. Example 4 shows how these names align with the scale-degree number and solfège systems described above.

The submediant chord can also be considered a weak predominant chord, which means that even though it does replace the tonic in some cases, it also pulls away from the tonic. The submediant flows well into the supertonic: a common chord progression in a tonic-predominant-dominant-tonic phrase might be I-vi-ii6-V7-I.

The next chord is the iv chord, or subdominant. It's a minor chord, and has Bb – Db – F. The V chord, or dominant, can be either a major chord or a minor chord.

The tonic mediant uses the opposite motion as the submediant substitution. Thus, it lies a third above instead of below, and is commonly approached through a lead of a third in the bass and scalewise motion in the soprano.

In music, the subtonic is the degree of a musical scale which is a whole step below the tonic note. In a major key, it is a lowered, or flattened, seventh scale degree (♭ ). It appears as the seventh scale degree in the natural minor and descending melodic minor scales but not in the major scale.

The submediant chord functions as a weak pre-dominant. Its most typical role is leading from the tonic to a strong pre-dominant (such as IV or ii). The common tones between the submediant and all of these chords allow for smooth and easy voice-leading.

The submediant triad in A minor contains the notes F, A and C. The submediant triad in a minor key is a major triad, because the interval between the lowest note and the middle note is a major third. Chord VI is a secondary chord. Chord VI can be followed by most chords, but does not normally move straight to chord I.

The prefix sub is Latin for “under” or “beneath”. The third note is called the mediant since it is in the middle of the tonic and dominant. Likewise, the sixth note is called the submediant since it is in the middle of the upper tonic and subdominant.