Introducing Chords - Triads

Chord

A selection of notes built up by playing every other note of a scale together. After building up the chord this way, notes can then be played at different octaves, or omitted, to produce different 'voicings'.

D major scale
A three note chord built from D major
Voicing

A particular selection of notes of a chord, played in a particular order.

A different voicing of the D major chord. The F# is moved up one octave.
Triad

A chord made up of three notes.

D major triad
Minor Third

A distance of a tone and a half

Minor third from F# to A
Major Third

A distance of two tones

Major third from D to F#
Major triad

A chord made up of a major third with a minor third on top.

D major triad
Minor triad

A chord made up of a minor third with a major third on top.

D minor triad
Diminished triad

A chord made up of two stacked minor thirds.

D diminished triad
Augmented triad

A chord made up of two stacked major thirds.

D augmented triad
Inversions

A triad as described above is in 'root position'. If you take the note off the bottom and raise it up an octave so it is now on the top of the chord, the chord is considered to be the same chord in a different 'inversion'. This is first inversion. Repeat the process to get second inversion.

D major triad root position
D major triad first inversion
D major triad second inversion
Triads Exercise 1

Work out a triad. Play it in root position.

Now play the first inversion, then the second. Then play root position again, but one octave higher.

Keep going all the way up the piano, then come back down the way you came.

Try it with major, minor, diminished and augmented triads. Listen to the difference in sound between them.

Triads Exercise 2

Choose a note to be your root. Play an augmented triad with this note as the root.

Now change it into a major triad with the same root.

Now change it into a minor triad with the same root.

Now change it into a diminished triad with the same root.

Repeat the exercise with other notes as the root.

Next - Harmony 1 Back - Scales 1