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diatonic

Belonging to the key: built only from the scale's own notes.

Belonging to the key: built only from the scale's own seven notes, with nothing borrowed. The diatonic chords are the seven a key hands you for free. Its opposite is chromatic, which reaches for notes from outside.

Learn it: Roman numerals

The one-sentence definition at the top is the same one the Theory Aide extension shows as a tooltip inside Ableton Live. Hover any dotted term for its own.