A chord is usually defined as two or more notes played at the same time, but generally we refer to chords in their basic fundamental form as containing three notes, or ‘Triads’.

The chords are formed  by stacking up alternate notes in the scale, starting on the first degree of the scale, then the third, followed by the fifth note of the scale.

An example would be the A minor chord, which contains the notes, A- C- E, the first,third and fifth notes of A minor scale, where we can easily see how it matches the alphabet.

There are two types of Chords/Triads, a major chord and a minor chord, but both however still are formed by using the rule of first , third and fifth degrees of their scale, the only difference being that the major and minor scale have a different third note from each other.

So, for every musical letter of which there are 7 natural notes, A-B-C-D-E-F-G, { the white keys on a Piano} and 5 sharps/flats { the black keys on a piano}, in total 12 individual notes, each one having both a major and a minor scale,24 scales in total and therefore also having its own triad,we have 24 triads, 12 major and 12 minor.

 

There are other variations on these chords, namely, extended chords, diminished, augmented and suspended, which i will write about on another occasion, but it is the basic Triads that are the foundation and essential chords that underpin all music.

Contact me for more information and i will be happy to help you understand music theory and teach you how to play the piano or compose your own music.