Major chords typically consist of a root note accompanied by three additional notes stacked atop it, known as an interval, which determines what kind of chord it is.
Intervals can be measured in half steps, which corresponds to the distance between adjacent white and black keys.
Triads
Most chords start out as triads, composed of three (tri) notes combined into one chord. A triad consists of a root note, the third note (known as the middle tone) and its complement “top note,” known as fifth tone.
Triads can be combined in different ways to form various chords. For instance, major chords may use different intervals between root, third, and fifth notes of their major scale to produce minor, diminished, or augmented triads.
Major and minor triads form the backbone of classical and popular music alike. You can learn to play them using any 88-key keyboard or piano.
Triads require knowing the distances between their roots, third and fifth chords to find out their intervals. To do this, look at a scale and count how many piano keys there are between each pair of notes – for instance if playing C chord on piano it has one half step distance from right white key and two black keys directly above and one half step from its right white key on top of C key respectively.
Inversions
Inversions are an excellent way to create natural-sounding chord progressions by changing the order of notes in a chord. Inverts work by shifting lower notes towards the top and adding bass notes as necessary – for instance if you have a root position C major chord (C, E and A), for instance you could add bass notes by playing low G’s on your left hand, creating what is known as Cmaj/2nd inversion.
Alternately, you can play the same chord in first inversion by taking its third from below and placing it atop to create Cmaj/1st inversion. Utilizing inversions can reduce finger movement on the keyboard for faster playing! Inverting also offers you an effective way to alter its tone or alter its sound and change its feel!
Scales
Major scale chords are easy to create and play. All it takes is three notes–root note, major third and perfect fifth from any given scale–stacked together; their spacing always stays the same regardless of where on the keyboard they begin being formed; for instance a C major triad always contains C, E and G regardless of where you start on piano keyboard.
Major chords tend to produce a bright and optimistic sound; however, they can also add tension or melancholy. For instance, The Beatles’ Let It Be begins with a C major chord before moving on to an A minor chord for more depth in its storyline. Most songs employ multiple chord progressions throughout a song’s development; rarely will all or only major or only minor chords be used simultaneously.
Exercises
Beginners often start off their musical education learning major chords. These lively melodies create a positive and upbeat tone and are commonly found throughout music. Their three note triad is also the cornerstone of all other types of chords such as minor, augmented and diminished chords.
An arpeggiated chord consists of three notes, including its root, major third and perfect fifth (1 – 3 – 5). The chord’s quality (major or minor) is determined by which note lies a major or minor third from its root; for instance in C major this would be E as the root note with G as major third and D as perfect fifth.
Practice playing four major triads consecutively until you can do so without stopping, then experiment by switching up their order for an exciting sound. Or try replacing the fifth note with a flat to create a half-diminished seventh chord (Bm7)!