Keys Lock - Chord Extensions - does not handle altered chords

I am not 100% sure this is a bug, but it is not behaving like I would expect.

Repro steps:

  1. Set Keys Lock to Chord Extensions
  2. Select C major scale
  3. Add B9(b5)#9 to pattern 1
  4. Click on B9(b5)#9
  5. Inspect keyboard at the top (where the chord extensions are shown with the green lines at the bottom of the keys)

Expected results

  • The Keys Lock notes contain F, A, and D

Actual results

  • The Keys Lock notes contain F#, A#, and D#

It seems like Keys Lock Chord Extensions is ignoring the altered chord tones.

1 Like

Paging @Ed1 and @davide

Any thoughts guys?

Many thanks as always.

Hey @jbone1313

I haven’t had time to check the code yet but I flagged this internally. We will have a look and get back to you.

Hey @jbone1313

we did some investigation and we were missing some logic to handle matching for altered chords. It is actually a pretty specific issue and we are still looking at the implications of a change in this part of the code for other types of chords.

We’re making good progress, and this should be fully patched in the next update.

Cheers,
Ed

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@ed1 @davide
Thanks for working hard to get this release out. Unfortunately, this bug is still a bug. :frowning:

Hey @jbone1313

it is definitely a specific issue and we cannot patch the current feature to do what you expect.

What you would like to see on the keyboard are the altered degree of your chord. The feature at the moment only maps to chord extensions which are by definition not altered and based on the triad over which your chord is built. The source chord in this case is already extended.

We have improved the feature in the 2.3 patch in order to give better results for diminished and augmented chords but it still won’t give you what you expect here.

We are thinking about a new matching mode with more configuration to solve this issue but that could not be done in time for 2.3.

Thanks for your support, we will try to get this sorted soon.
Ed

@Ed1
Thanks for the consideration.

I understand what you are saying; not a bug per se. I think it is something to consider down the road.

I think the way it works now could create some weird results.

Imagine your chord is a b5#9 like my example. If you have another Scaler instance for other instruments to, say, solo over the b5#9 chord generated by the original Scaler instance, then you might have some weird dissonance. The soloer would be playing the natural notes; the chorder would be playing the altered notes.

Maybe that is not a “problem?” (Subjectively, of course.) Perhaps we are bumping into my limits of how harmonic scenarios like this are done in practice.

My original delight at the Scale Lock Chord Extensions feature was that I could have other Scaler instances follow the vertical scale of the current chord driven by the main Scaler instance.

I think the limitation here is what most users will expect when they turn this feature ON. What we can do automatically and what part remains in your control, what is yours to fix or change.

We got this, and we have a few ideas on how to improve this specifically.

1 Like