Major and minor chords refer to how many semitone steps exist between their root note and third note; similarly, this concept also applies to scales.
Just by shifting one interval can completely transform a chord’s sound; major chords produce energetic sounds while minor chords have more of a melancholic feel.
Major Chords
No matter their musical background, most would agree that major chords sound brighter and happier than minor ones – no wonder why songwriters favor major chords when crafting melodies!
Musically speaking, the difference between major and minor chords boils down to one thing: the third. A major chord comprises three notes from its respective scale — first, third and fifth — while in contrast a minor chord has three flattened notes within its scale that form its name whereas all major chords comprise of first, flattened thirds (lowered third) and fifths of that scale as opposed to just three notes that form its name (called an inversion of its scale name).
Tertian chords, formed of consecutive (or “stacked”) thirds, form the basis of most Western musical chord progressions. A C major chord, for instance, contains notes C – E – G and is often notated as either CM or CC as it contains both major and minor thirds; that is to say four and three half steps respectively.
Minor Chords
Minor chords in music have the ability to elicit powerful feelings such as sorrow and melancholy, while simultaneously creating tension and suspense – making them popular choices in genres like blues and jazz.
To construct a minor chord, start with its root note and lower its third note by one fret – this process is known as “flattening the third.” It gives minor chords their characteristic darker sound compared to major ones.
Add a perfect fifth to create a minor triad, then a seventh note for a Cm7 minor seventh chord–perfect for creating tension and adding some major 7 flavor into your chord progressions!
Roman numeral analysis may seem complex at first glance, but with time it will become much simpler as you become acquainted with its scale relationships and associations between notes. Most musicians use this universal language to notate different types of chords used within songs using Roman numeral analysis.
Augmented Chords
Augmented chords feature an unexpected dissonant sound and are rarely found in popular music. They use a major third and an augmented fifth raised four full steps above its root pitch – quite an impressive leap!
Since augmented chords don’t lie within either the minor or major scales, they are frequently employed as passing chords between more stable sounds – like starting off the Foo Fighters song ‘Generator’ with an augmented chord for instance!
Minor major seventh chords may be familiar to you; often referred to as ‘leading chords’ and used in songs like Battle Hymn of the Republic, their anticipatory sound creates tension and drama in any composition.
Diminished Chords
Diminished chords often receive criticism for being dissonant and difficult to resolve, leading to them being left out of chord progressions as a result. Yet diminished chords can still be used effectively as leads away from key’s tonic chord or as tension-building instruments within progressions.
These triads use the same intervals as major and minor chords, but with a flat fifth added in. This gives them an unsettling sound that creates drama and tension in your music.
George Harrison’s iconic song My Sweet Lord serves as an excellent example. The song oscillates between an E major (the tonic) and F minor chords with F diminished chord acting as an intermediary half step chord between them; creating an intensely dramatic sense of tension before finally returning back to its tonic chord at the end.
Majors and minors in music serve to differentiate chords. By producing distinct sounds that elicit emotional responses and give shape to lyrics, majors and minors serve to distinguish these chords.
One of the easiest ways to differentiate major and minor chords is through listening. A triad that contains C, E and G is considered major.
1. C Major
C major chords all share an identical major scale and to play them, you should use your index finger for notes on the first fret and middle finger for those on second. To do this, start at first fret using index finger for notes at first fret then slowly move your middle finger from there on down until playing all 12 chords of C major is complete.
Major-sounding scales and chords contain major thirds; minor-sounding ones contain minor thirds that have been flattened (lowered) by one note – which accounts for their differences in sound.
2. E Major
Every major tonality has an associated minor chord to complement it; for example, A’s relative minor is C major.
A major and minor triad are distinguished by the third. By flatting (or lowering) it, creating a minor interval and giving the triad its minor character.
This song’s maj7 chord balances out its emotions by uniting the darkness of minor 3 with the brightness of major 9. This combination adds even greater emotional impact and intensity.
3. G Major
G Major chord is the go-to chord when trying to convey an optimistic or upbeat mood, while G minor is used when creating songs with melancholic undertones.
Looking at the Circle of Fifths, G Major can be seen to be one sharp away from its relative minor key E Minor – meaning its notes are almost identical but with an altered third (F#dim7b5).
4. A Major
Major chords often evoke feelings of joy while minor ones bring about feelings of melancholy in our ears, due to a combination of factors including acoustic, psychological and cultural associations. But that doesn’t have to mean major and minor are necessarily opposites –
Note that every minor tonality has a relative major 3 semitones above it, such as C, so a minor 6 chord would be notated as Cm6 or even as Cm9.
As noted previously, any given major chord can be voiced differently and still qualify as a major chord as long as it contains three notes – root, major third, and perfect fifth –
5. B Major
People often assume that major chords represent sunshine while minor ones indicate sadness; but just looking at a piano will show you otherwise! Many major chords don’t sound uplifting or cheerful while there are numerous sad songs with minor keys.
What sets major and minor scales, triads and seventh chords apart is one key note – the third. This note can either be major or minor depending on whether it has a flattened (or “flatted”) third.
6. D Major
When discussing chords as minor or major, this usually refers to which note in the scale it contains. For instance, D, F#, A is considered a major chord since it includes all four degrees – tonic, supertonic, mediant and subdominant – within it.
A major key contains three Major chords and one diminished chord called viio; this latter chord uses the seventh scale degree (or tonic) as its root note.
7. F Major
F major is the opposite of A minor, making its relationship easily visible by looking at the keyboard; F is located directly under three black keys while A is two white notes up from F.
Music composed in this major tonality often incorporates one flat key signature – Bb. Its relative minor is D minor and there are seven major scale diatonic chords used to produce harmonic sound for its music.
8. G Minor
G Minor chords can convey meanness, disquiet, anger and other strong, powerful emotions with ease. They’re frequently employed in EDM, Drum n Bass and Hip-Hop to evoke feelings of menace and tension.
G Minor chords differ from Major in that they combine both Major and minor intervals; this is due to its Third being flattened or “lowered,” creating the minor sound.
9. A Minor
Normal practice dictates that minor tonality has its relative major note three semitones above; for instance, A minor has C as its relative major note.
To determine whether a chord is major or minor, simply play it and count how many semitones it ascends from its root. That’s it! It’s that difference of a third which makes major-sounding scales and chords lighter while minor ones create darker and sadder tones.
No matter the genre of song, every tune flows between major and minor chords naturally. Understanding their distinction will give you greater insight into music’s emotion as well as improve your guitar-playing experience.
One way of telling major and minor chords apart is to look at their bottom thirds – if one of the thirds has been flattened (lowered), then that chord would be considered minor chord.
Major Triads
Every musician who has ever played music will encounter chords at some point or another, whether consciously or unknowingly. Chords form the cornerstones of harmony and can be found virtually everywhere music can be found.
Major triads are the simplest form of chord, consisting of the root, major third and perfect fifth notes from a major scale. Their quality depends on which intervals comprise them.
When triad intervals are stacked in their most compact form (thirds), individual notes can be identified solely by letter identification – regardless of whether they have been doubled up or distributed across all lines or spaces on a fretboard (see Example 12). Doubling and spacing do not alter chord identification thanks to the principle of octave equivalence.
The difference between C major and C minor chords lies solely in their thirds; specifically, that third of a major scale (C-E-G) being one step higher than its minor scale counterpart (C-E-G). Therefore, in effect a C major chord has a major 3rd while in comparison a C minor chord features a minor 3rd.
Minor Triads
To form a minor chord, simply lower the middle note by half a step – for instance, C-Eb-G becomes an E-minor chord when this step is applied. A slash followed by the letter name indicates which member belongs in the bass: Em for Eminor chord.
Chord names don’t originate from scales; rather, they reflect the intervals (pairs of notes) the chord is composed from. Major and minor distinctions are evident in terms of the size of their third intervals (major has a perfect fifth while minor features a diminished fifth).
Now that you understand what makes a major or minor chord, let’s cover some examples to understand the technicalities. Here we will focus on root position triads and first inversion triads as well as shapes found when playing various styles of music – Rocksmith+ offers many songs featuring these types of chords so that you can learn and perfect them quickly!
Major Scales
As musicians form chords by skipping notes, they end up with different amounts of half steps between every pair of notes, which ultimately determines whether the chord is major or minor. For example, C major has three semitones between its first two notes and two between its upper two notes, making this chord major.
This difference explains why chords based on a major scale tend to sound bright and optimistic, whereas those created using minor scale sound more melancholic. Additionally, musicians use sharps and flats to alter individual notes’ pitches, changing major chords into minor ones or producing diminished or augmented versions.
Starting on the first note of a major key and counting back three half steps will bring you to its relative minor, which contains its tonic triad. This process is known as key signature identification – each major key has a relative minor composed of similar notes which form its tonic triad triad.
Minor Scales
If you’re familiar with the major scale, it should be obvious why chords composed on minor scales sound different – they contain a minor third instead of a major one. But it might be less apparent that this also holds true for scales.
“Major” and “minor” don’t come from scale’s key signature, they come from intervals formed from which chords are built. Minor 7 chords often display major ninth intervals which contrast beautifully with their dark minor 3 component, giving this chord its unique “noir” sound.
As you practice minor scales, pay particular attention to both major and flat thirds within each pattern. When practicing, switch back and forth between major and minor fingerings for every scale played; this will help ensure that you keep hearing each scale and chord as you transition between them.