Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Chords 101
Chords 101
com
FastPianoLessons.com – Chords 101 - Introductory Course ©2008 by FastPianoLessons.com
Chords
101
By Chris Marx
FastPianoLessons.com – Chords 101 - Introductory Course ©2008 by FastPianoLessons.com
C to C#
(White to Black)
B to C
(White to White)
Whole Steps
Whole steps are the second smallest interval on the piano. They can be white or black
notes.
NOTE: A whole step is made up of two half steps back to back. In other words, whole
steps skip one note. See the examples below:
C to D
(White to White)
Eb to F
(White to Black)
C# to D#
(Black to Black)
FastPianoLessons.com – Chords 101 - Introductory Course ©2008 by FastPianoLessons.com
All we did was change one note and the effect was huge! Play both chords again. You’ll
start to realize that you’ll begin to associate imagery with each chord. The major chords
are happier sounding, and the minor chords have a sad sound.
C MAJOR: C MINOR:
“C” or “Cma” or “Cmaj” “Cmin” or “Cmi” or “C-”
FastPianoLessons.com – Chords 101 - Introductory Course ©2008 by FastPianoLessons.com
C major C minor
aka aka
C or Cma C- or Cmi
D D
major minor
E E
major minor
F F
major minor
G G
major minor
A A
major minor
Practice Goals:
• Play all 12 chords in 30 seconds in your RIGHT hand.
• Play all 12 chords in 30 seconds in your LEFT hand.
• Memorize all 12 chords!
FastPianoLessons.com – Chords 101 - Introductory Course ©2008 by FastPianoLessons.com
As you make your fingers play the chords from the pictures above you’ll notice a few
patterns. Patterns are great because they are a shortcut for helping us learn and remember
the music faster.
NOTE: Chords of the same type are all constructed in the same way. The notes of a
major chord are always the same distance apart: 4 & 3. The notes of a minor chord are
always the same distance apart: 3 & 4.
It doesn’t matter if it’s C major or E major or Ab major, the distance will be 4 half steps
& 3 half steps. Minor chords are reversed and the distance is 3 half steps & then 4 half
steps.
We’ll use C major again as an example. Look at the red numbers in the picture below.
They are counting each white AND black note from “C” up to the next chord tone “E”.
From C to E there are 4 half steps. From E to G there are 3 half steps.
C MAJOR:
C to E is 4 half steps
E to G is 3 half steps
C MINOR:
C to Eb is 3 half steps
Eb to G is 4 half steps
PRACTICE IDEA:
• Try counting up 4 & 3 for other major chords. Start with Fmajor and A major.
• Try counting up 3 & 4 for other minor chords. Start with A minor and F minor.
FastPianoLessons.com – Chords 101 - Introductory Course ©2008 by FastPianoLessons.com
Ab Ab
major Minor
B B
major Minor
Bb Bb
major Minor
Db / C# Db / C#
major Minor
Eb / D# Eb / D#
Major Minor
Gb / F# Gb / F#
major Minor
Practice Goals:
• Play all 12 chords in 30 seconds in your RIGHT hand.
• Play all 12 chords in 30 seconds in your LEFT hand.
• Play all 12 major chords in 30 seconds.
• Play all 12 minor chords in 30 seconds.
• Memorize all 12 chords! Just remember 4&3 for major and 3&4 for minors.
FastPianoLessons.com – Chords 101 - Introductory Course ©2008 by FastPianoLessons.com
CHORD TONES
Chord tones are the individual notes that, when played at the same time, create a chord.
In other words, the chord tones are the notes that make up a chord.
NOTE: Each major and minor triad has a root, a third and a fifth. (Minor triads have a
flat third). Remember that for each major or minor triad, the root, third and fifth are the
same distance apart. Remember counting up 4&3 for the major chords and 3&4 for the
minor chords?
C MA J O R
C HORD T O N E S
C is the root
E is the third
G is the fifth
The Root: The root is the foundation of the chord. It is the same as the name of the
chord. For example, the root of the C major chord is the note C.
The Third: The third is the second most important chord tone after the third. The
third helps determine if the chord is major or minor. In the diagram, the third of the chord
is E. If the chord would were C minor, then the third would be Eb. It would be correct to
call it a flat or minor third.
The Fifth: The fifth is the least important note. This is because we could leave it out
and still determine if the chord the root of the chord and if it were major or minor. In the
diagram, G is the fifth of the chord.
Chords & Scales: Each chord tone has a name that refers to its distance away
from the root on its related major scale. For example the third of the C major chord is 3
notes away on the C major scale. The fifth is 5 notes away from the root on the major
scale. And the root is at the beginning of the major scale.
POWER CHORDS!
Power chords take away the middle note from the major and minor triads you just learned
to only two outside notes, the root and the fifth. They are also not muddy on lower ranges
of the keyboard because the notes are spaced out more.
NOTE: Power chords are labeled with a letter and the number 5. If you see the chord
symbol “C5” or “Bb5,” that means to play a power chord.
It has a 5 in the symbol because C and G are a perfect 5th interval apart. If that sounds
confusing, don't worry! All that means is that there are 7 half steps between C and G.
C5
Notice these notes are 7 half
steps apart!
G5
Good to know:
• These chords are used primarily on rock songs and pop songs.
• These are a guitarist’s favorite chord, because they are VERY simple to play on
the guitar.
• Because we have removed the middle note from the chord, power chords can’t be
major or minor. They are ambiguous.
FastPianoLessons.com – Chords 101 - Introductory Course ©2008 by FastPianoLessons.com
After you learn how to play your major and minor triads, the next step will be to practice
finding 7th chords like Cma7, C7 & Cmi7. Having a 7 in the chord symbol only means
that there is a fourth note added to the triad and it is a 7th away from the root.
The three types of 7th chords are major 7th, minor 7th and dominant 7th chords. Minor and
dominant 7ths both have a b7 (flat7). Here is how to find that note:
NOTE: The b7 is always whole step down (left) from the root or first note of the
chord. It is easier to count a whole step to the left to find the 7th rather than ten half steps
to the right. It doesn’t mean you always have to play the root and the 7th next to eachother
in your chords, this is just the easiest way to find the 7th.
After you learn how to play your major and minor triads, the next step will be to practice
finding 7th chords like Cma7, C7 & Cmi7. Having a 7 in the chord symbol only means
that there is a fourth note added to the triad and it is a 7th away from the root.
The three types of 7th chords are major 7th, minor 7th and dominant 7th chords. Major 7th
chords have a major 7th in them. Here is how to find that note:
NOTE: The major 7th note is always half step down (left) from the root or first note
of the chord. It is easier to count a half step left to find the 7th rather than 11 half steps to
the right. It doesn’t mean you always have to play the root and the 7th next to eachother in
your chords, this is just the easiest way to find the 7th.
SHELL VOICINGS
Shell voicings strip down chords with many notes down to only two notes. Usually the
most important notes, the root and/or the 3rd or 7th. Because 2 notes are easier to find than
4, Shell voicings are quick and fast to learn.
Shell voicings are also great because they let you play your chords lower on the keyboard
without the muddiness. Keep in mind, the lower you go, the wider the notes need to be
spread out.
Dominant 7th chords normally have 4 notes. See the first chord example where C7 is
spelled: C E G Bb. To play C7 as a shell voicing, only play the dark red notes C and Bb
in your left hand.
C7
F7
G7
NOTE: The b7 (flat7) note is always whole step down from the root, (the first note of
the chord). Take a look at the last chord shown, G7. The dot on the left is on the root G.
To find the b7 note, go up to the high G (labeled root) and count down 2 half steps. You
should arrive at the second dot on F.
FastPianoLessons.com – Chords 101 - Introductory Course ©2008 by FastPianoLessons.com
BONUS COURSE!
(You’re Welcome!)
READ MUSIC
FASTER
NOTE: Reading music is an essential part of learning to play piano! It does take time,
but the effort you put in pays off. If you can read music, then not only can you learn any
song ever written, but you can communicate with other musicians! Music is a language
and playing it is only one half, reading it is the other half! If you don’t learn to read, you
are limiting the ways I can explain musical concepts to you.
This diagram is the most important if you’re just learning how to read music. Keep it
handy! It shows you how the keys on the piano relate to the music notes on the page.
NOTE: As you go from left to right on the keyboard, the notes on the page slowly
climb higher and higher. Also notice, on the notes on the staff are alternating between a
line and a space each time as they climb higher to each neighbor note. For example,
notice the keys C and D are neighbor keys on the piano. On the page they are written as
two dots, C is on a space and D is on the line that borders that space.
These two squiggly designs are each called clefs. Together they make up the grand
staff, which is common in traditional music but not fake books! It is use mainly for
piano and harp music.
The top clef is the treble clef and the bottom is called the bass clef. The treble clef
handles the high notes, and the bass clef is for writing the low notes. Using both
the treble and bass clef allows the grand staff to cover a wider range of notes.
FastPianoLessons.com – Chords 101 - Introductory Course ©2008 by FastPianoLessons.com
If you use these mnemonic devices or memorization tricks, your reading will become
much quicker. You won’t have to be counting up single lines all the time! This works
great for students of all ages!