Quartal voicings are chords built by stacking perfect 4ᵗʰs instead of 3ʳᵈs. Since the NANDI Method is based on visualizing the fretboard in fourths, quartal voicings are a natural extension of the system.
The wheel below shows simple 4ᵗʰ intervals together with their upper-extension equivalents.
Quartal Chord Types
The examples below show common quartal voicings derived from major, minor, and dominant harmony.
- Maj7(9,13)
- Min7(11)
- Dom7sus4
Harmonizing the Major Scale in Fourths
Every degree of the major scale can be harmonized by stacking fourths.
The resulting chord qualities are:
I → Maj7(11)
ii → Min7(11)
iii → Min7(11)
IV → Maj7♯11
V → Dom7(11)
vi → Min7(11)
vii → Min7(11)
The diagrams below show the C major scale harmonized in quartal voicings using the order of fourths.
