Chords

Start

What keys does a piano have?

A piano has white keys and black keys. Each key plays one note.

The white keys are called C, D, E, F, G, A and B. After B, the sequence starts again at C.

How to find C: look for a pair of black keys. The white key just to their left is C.

The black keys

A black key doesn't have a letter of its own. In the exercises you simply count the black keys too.

There's no black key between B and C or between E and F. There, two white keys sit right next to each other.

Names of the black keys (needed from step 2)

You don't need this yet for step 1. A black key takes its name from a white key next to it.

C → C♯ (C sharp)♯ is called a sharp: one key to the right, a half step higher.

D → D♭ (D flat)♭ is called a flat: one key to the left, a half step lower.

So C♯ and D♭ are the same key. Which name you use depends on the chord.

How do you say ♯ and ♭?

Say the letter name followed by sharp or flat: C♯ is "C sharp", B♭ is "B flat".

Chord symbols use the signs too: F♯m is said as "F sharp minor".

What is a chord?

A chord is a group of notes that sound together. Usually three or more.

Listen first:

one note

three notes together

What are chords for?

The melody is the part you sing along to. Chords sound underneath it. They make the music fuller.

MelodyE → G → A → G → F → E → D → C

ChordsC → F → G → C

The melody stays the same. Can you hear the difference?

The root gives the chord its name

You build a chord on one note: the root. The chord is named after that note.

C–E–G is called C

F–A–C is called F

In the exercises the root is already chosen. You find the other two notes.

Counting in half steps

A half step is the smallest step: to the very next key. Sometimes that's a black key, sometimes not (E–F and B–C).

C → C♯ = 1 half step

E → F = also 1 half step

Count every key, white and black. In the exercises you usually count the keys you skip: 4 half steps up means 3 keys in between.

Major and minor

Listen first. Play both chords a few times. What's the difference?

Now look at the keys. Only the middle note is different.

1 · C major
skip 3, then 2

2 · C minor
skip 2, then 3

Major: from the root, skip 3 keys, then 2 more. Minor: 2, then 3 more.

Quick check: which note makes the difference between major and minor?

Why is the middle note called the third?

Count the letter names up from the root: C is 1, D is 2, E is 3. The third one is called the third, the fifth one (G) the fifth.

In major the third is major (3 keys in between). In minor it's minor (2 keys in between). E♭ is still a third, because it's still an E, just lower.

Inversions

You can put the notes of a chord in a different order. If a different chord tone is at the bottom, that's called an inversion.

The bottom note changes. C, E and G stay. So it's still C major.

Quick check: E–G–C has the same notes as C–E–G. What changes?

Why would you play an inversion?

Which inversion it is depends only on the bottom note: C–E–G is root position, E–G–C first inversion, G–C–E second inversion. The order of the notes above doesn't matter.

Pianists use inversions to avoid jumping around: to go from C to F, you can play C–E–G and then C–F–A. Your hand stays almost in the same place.

Sus2 and sus4

In a sus chord the third is replaced by another note. That makes the chord neither major nor minor.

sus2: replace the third with the major second (C–D–G). sus4: replace it with the perfect fourth (C–F–G). The root and fifth stay put.

What happens to the third in a sus chord?

Diminished and augmented

Here the fifth changes. You build a diminished chord from minor and an augmented chord from major.

dim: minor with the fifth a half step lower. aug: major with the fifth a half step higher.

You turn C minor into C diminished. Which note changes?

Seventh chords: 7, maj7 and m7

A seventh chord is a triad with a fourth note added: the seventh. Here you build 7, maj7 and m7 chords.

Cm7 is a minor triad with a minor seventh: .

Quick check: which fourth note belongs in C7?

Why is this called a seventh?

Count the letter names up from C: C, D, E, F, G, A, B. The seventh letter is the seventh. In C7 it's a minor seventh (B♭, 10 half steps above C). In Cmaj7 it's a major seventh (B, 11 half steps).

Sixth chords and (half-)diminished seventh chords

Four new chord types. They build on what you already know: major, minor, sevenths and diminished.

C6major + major sixth

Cm6minor + major sixth

Cm7♭5m7 + lowered fifth · half-diminished

Cdim7dim + diminished seventh

In Cdim7 the seventh is called (B double flat). On the piano it's the same key as A. The name stays a B, because a seventh is seven letter names above the root.

Ninth chords

A ninth is the ninth letter name, counting up from the root. It's the same letter as the second (the 2), an octave higher.

So the foundation stays recognizable: 9 builds on 7, maj9 on maj7 and m9 on m7.

Names and notation

Reading chord symbols

You read a chord symbol from left to right. Tap a part:

Tap a part of the chord symbol.

Try it yourself: Dm7

First tap a part of the symbol, then tap what it means.

Dm7

First tap D, m or 7.

Going deeper

What do chords sound like?

Compare two buttons at a time. Which words describe the difference? There's no right or wrong answer.

Does minor always sound sad?

Not always. Western listeners often link minor with sadness and major with happiness. That link isn't fixed: tempo, how high or low you play, what comes before and after, and the music you're used to all play a part.

Sources for this explanation

Open Music Theory · Triads Open Music Theory · Chord Symbols Open Music Theory · Inversion musictheory.net · Lessons Lahdelma & Eerola · Single-chord perception Systematic review & meta-analysis · Major/minor perception Athanasopoulos et al. · Culture and emotional meaning of harmony

Short session · 5 exercises

Build the chord

The root is already given. Tap the other chord tones.

No notes selected yet

The keyboard adjusts to the chord

Learning goalBuilding major chords

Starting from the root, you find the right chord tones yourself.

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Chord Progressions

From chords to music

Learn to use chord progressions

First you get to grips with scale degrees, progressions and keys. Then you build, transpose and recognize the patterns yourself.

Step 1 of 20

Learning goalUnderstanding scale degrees

You learn that every chord has a number: its place in the scale.

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TermsGlossary

Scale: A row of seven notes from low to high. The C major scale is made up of the white keys from C up to B.
Key: The scale and tonic a piece is built on, such as C major.
Scale degree: The position of a note in the scale: in C major, C is degree 1 and G is degree 5.
Roman numeral: The number of the scale degree: I = 1, II = 2 … VII = 7. Uppercase means major (I, IV, V), lowercase minor (ii, iii, vi), ° diminished (vii°).
Chord progression: The order of the chords in a song, written with scale-degree numbers, such as I – V – vi – IV.
Function: What a chord does in the progression: I often gives rest, IV adds movement and V often creates tension.
Tonic (I): Degree 1 of the key, and the chord built on it. In C major that's C. It often sounds like a point of rest.
Dominant (V): The chord on degree 5. It carries a lot of tension and often moves to I.
Subdominant (IV): The chord on degree 4. In C major that's F. It's often followed by V.
Cadence: The ending of a musical phrase, for example V → I.
Transposing: Playing the same progression in a different key.
Harmony: How notes and chords sound together and follow each other.
Voicing: Which notes of a chord you play where on the piano.
Voice leading: How each note moves to the next chord, ideally in small steps.

Note Reading

The basics

From the staff to the piano key

Sheet music tells you which note to play, how long it lasts and when it sounds. You start by practicing one thing: which piano key matches a note?

This is where the first five notes sit on the staff. Move up one step, from a line to the space above it or the other way round, and you get the next letter.

The same notes on the piano. Each step higher on the staff is one white key further to the right. The dark blue keys are the two landmarks: middle C and G.

Look at the clef first

The large symbol at the left of the staff is called the clef. You start with the treble clef. Later comes the bass clef, where the same position means a different note.

Remember two landmarks

Middle C sits on a short extra line below the staff: a ledger line. On the piano it's the C in the middle. The curl of the treble clef wraps around the second line from the bottom: that's where G is. That's why it's also called the G clef.

Count from the nearest landmark

Line, space, line: each step higher on the staff is one white key to the right, each step lower one to the left. After B, the sequence starts again at C.

Which C?

Each letter appears several times on the piano. The higher a note sits on the staff, the further to the right it is on the piano. In the exercise you always see the part of the piano you need.

Treble clef from bottom to top

LinesE · G · B · D · F

SpacesF · A · C · E

You don't need to know this by heart. Find middle C or the G line, and count from whichever landmark is closest to the note.

What comes later? Sharps and flats, rhythm and real music

You don't need this yet for the first lessons. It will come up along the way.

Sharps, flats and accidentalsA ♯ raises a note by a half step, a ♭ lowers it. A sign directly in front of a note is called an accidental. It lasts until the end of the measure. The sharps or flats right after the clef together form the key signature. They apply to every note with that letter, in every octave, for the whole line.

A note also tells you how long it lastsAfter pitch, you practice whole, half, quarter and eighth notes, rests and counting beats in a 4/4 measure. Then you learn dotted notes and the time signatures 3/4, 2/4 and 6/8: the top number tells you how many beats fit in a measure.

From single notes to real musicLater steps go far above and below the staff, with two or three notes at once, and then on to rhythm, rests and time signatures (3/4, 2/4, 6/8). Finally you start playing: first a measure without time pressure, then to a steady pulse, then short phrases that combine pitch, pattern and rhythm, and finally a snippet from a two-measure, jazz-style melody.

Learning pathFrom one note to playing alongView the lessons

Sources for this learning path

Open Music Theory · Notation of Notes, Clefs, and Ledger Lines Open Music Theory · Half Steps, Whole Steps, and Accidentals Open Music Theory · Notating Rhythm Open Music Theory · Simple Meter and Time Signatures musictheory.net · Lessons MyMusicTheory · Compound Time Signatures (6/8)Wikipedia · Rest (music): the whole rest fills any measure ABRSM · Music Theory qualification specification: time signatures by grade

Short session · 5 reading questions

Treble clef

Which piano key matches this note?

You only see the part of the piano you need for this note. Use ‘middle C’ as your reference point.

Learning goalRecognizing notes around middle C

For each written note, you find the right piano key.

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Free Play beta

Play whatever you like

Play one or more keys. You hear them straight away and see the notes for as long as you play.

Turn your phone sideways for a wide keyboard with an extra octave.

What are you playing?

Press a key to begin.

C3–C5

Low notes appear in the bass clef, higher notes in the treble clef. Press several keys at once for a chord.

Chords

What keys does a piano have?

The black keys

How do you say ♯ and ♭?

What is a chord?

What are chords for?

The root gives the chord its name

Counting in half steps

Major and minor

Inversions

Sus2 and sus4

Diminished and augmented

Seventh chords: 7, maj7 and m7

Sixth chords and (half-)diminished seventh chords

Ninth chords

Reading chord symbols

Try it yourself: Dm7

What do chords sound like?

Build the chord

Good practice

Chord Progressions

Note Reading

From the staff to the piano key

Look at this note

Treble clef

Good practice

Good to know

Playing

Chord names

Sharps and flats

Free Play beta

Play whatever you like

What are you playing?

Sound