Chords In-Depth Part 1

[T-Block]

For this new topic, I’m gonna be giving yall some different ways to look at chords.  In part 1, I’m going to explain how you can tell what quality (major, minor, aug., dim.) a chord is just by looking at it.  To make things easier, I’m gonna use white-note chords.  Also, I’m only going to deal with 3-note chords here because this is the foundation for all the other chords.

On a side note, my theory teacher taught me using this method, and it really opened up my understanding of chords.  Hopefully, it will do the same for some of you out there.

Before I begin, let me review how to form a chord.  The easiest way to explain this is to first pick a note, then hit every other note after it.  So, if C were your first note, it would look like this:

C   D   E   F   G   A   B   C   D   E   F   G   A   B

You see the big red notes?  That’s how chords are formed.  I also need to review accidentals.  These are your sharps, flats, and naturals:

Natural - this is basically a white note; any note name that is by itself is a natural note

C = C natural      E = E natural

Flat (b) - this means to lower a natural note 1/2 step

Cb / C flat = C lowered 1/2 step      Eb / E flat = E lowered 1/2 step

Sharp (#) - this means to raise a natural note 1/2 step

C# / C sharp = C raised 1/2 step      E# / E sharp = E raised 1/2 step

Now that I’ve reviewed all that, one more thing is I'm going to be using a term called root notes.  This is just another way of saying natural notes, notes with no sharps or flats beside them.  O.K., let's get this thing started now:


3-note chords built off C


C-E-G

This is the first 3-note chord built off C.  This chord is called C major.  Now, let’s take a closer look at this chord, specifically the individual notes.  Notice that not only are all those notes white notes, each note also “looks” the same as each other.  What I mean by that is each of those notes are natural notes.  C natural + E natural + G natural gives us a C major chord.  Now, let’s see what happens when I change something:

C#-E#-G#

Now, can u tell just by looking what quality chord this is?  If u can, that’s great.  If not, let’s take a closer look at it.  Now, when I look at this chord, the 1st thing I see is they all have sharps by them.  Since they all have sharps by them, that means they all look the same.  Hmmm, doesn’t this sound a little familiar?

Remember how in the C major chord all the notes looked the same.  What quality chord was that?  You guessed it, MAJOR.  Guess what, using the same principle as we did with C-E-G we can also say that this chord, C#-E#-G# is indeed a major chord.  Isn’t that neat?  The name of this chord is C# major.  Let’s do one more to drive the point home:

Cb-Eb-Gb

I’m sure by now most of you have caught on to the pattern.  Just in case u haven’t, let’s take a closer look at this chord.  Once again, I see that all the notes look the same.  This time, they all have flats beside them.  Gee, I wonder what quality chord this is?  That’s right it is also a major chord.  This chord is called Cb major.

The whole point of this is no matter how many sharps or flats are present, as long as the root notes are C-E-G and there are the same number of sharps or flats beside each of them, it is a major chord.

_______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______


C-Eb-G

This is the second 3-note chord built off C.  This chord is called C minor.  Now, let’s take a closer look at the notes of this chord.  Notice that not all those notes are white notes.  We now have a black note present, which means that this time each note does note look the same as each other.  The E note has been lowered by a 1/2 step.  So, now the two outer notes look the same, but the middle note is a 1/2 step lower than the others.  Now, we have C natural + E flat + G natural gives us a C minor chord.  Now, let’s see what happens when I change something:

C#-E-G#

Now, can u tell just by looking what quality chord this is?  If u can, that’s great.  If not, let’s take a closer look at it.  Now, when I look at this chord, the 1st thing I see is they don‘t all look the same.  So, we can immediately say this isn’t a major chord.  The next thing I see is the middle note doesn’t have a sharp beside it, it has a natural.  That means that it is a 1/2 step lower than all the other notes.  Hmmm, doesn’t this sound a little familiar?

Remember how in the C minor chord the two outer notes looked the same, while the middle note was a 1/2 step lower than the others.  What quality chord was that?  You guessed it, MINOR.  Guess what, using the same principle as we did with C-Eb-G we can also say that this chord, C#-E-G# is indeed a minor chord.  Isn’t that neat?  The name of this chord is C# minor.  Let’s do one more to drive the point home:

Cb-Ebb-Gb

I’m sure by now most of you have caught on to the pattern.  Just in case u haven’t, let’s take a closer look at this chord.  Once again, I see that all the notes don’t look the same.  It is very evident here because one of the notes has two flats beside it.  Don’t be alarmed, the name for notes like this double-flat (lowered two 1/2 steps)  I also see that the two outer notes look the same, while the middle note is a 1/2 step lower.  Gee, I wonder what quality chord this is?  That’s right it is also a minor chord.  This chord is called Cb minor.

The whole point of this is no matter how many sharps or flats are present, as long as the root notes are C-E-G and the two outer notes look the same while the middle note is a 1/2 step lower, it is a minor chord.

_______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______


C-Eb-Gb

This is the third 3-note chord built off C.  This chord is called C diminished.  Now, let’s take a closer look at the notes of this chord.  Notice that not all those notes are white notes.  Now, we now have 2 black notes present, which means that this time each note does note look the same as each other.  The E note has been lowered a 1/2 step and the G note has been lowered by a 1/2 step.  So, now the last two notes look the same, but the first note is a 1/2 step higher than the others.  Now, we have C natural + E flat + G flat gives us a C diminished chord.  Now, let’s see what happens when I change something:

C#-E-G

Now, can u tell just by looking what quality chord this is?  If u can, that’s great.  If not, let’s take a closer look at it.  Now, when I look at this chord, the 1st thing I see is they don‘t all look the same.  So, we can immediately say this isn’t a major chord.  The next thing I see is the middle note doesn’t have a sharp beside it, it has a natural.  Also, the last note doesn’t have a sharp beside it, it also has a natural.  So, we can immediately say this isn’t a minor chord either.  Here the first note is a 1/2 step higher than the others.  Hmmm, doesn’t this sound a little familiar?

Remember how in the C diminished chord the last two notes looked the same, while the first note was a 1/2 step higerer than the others.  What quality chord was that?  You guessed it, DIMINISHED.  Guess what, using the same principle as we did with C-Eb-Gb we can also say that this chord, C#-E-G is indeed a diminished chord.  Isn’t that neat?  The name of this chord is C# diminished.  Let’s do one more to drive the point home:

Cb-Ebb-Gbb

I’m sure by now most of you have caught on to the pattern.  Just in case u haven’t, let’s take a closer look at this chord.  Once again, I see that all the notes don’t look the same.  It is very evident here because now two of the notes have two flats beside it.  I also see that the last two notes look the same, while the first note is a 1/2 step higher.  Gee, I wonder what quality chord this is?  That’s right it is also a diminished chord.  This chord is called Cb diminished.

The whole point of this is no matter how many sharps or flats are present, as long as the root notes are C-E-G and the last two outer notes look the same while the first note is a 1/2 step higher, it is a diminished chord.

_______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______


C-E-G#

This is the fourth 3-note chord built off C.  This chord is called C augmented.  Now, let’s take a closer look at the notes of this chord.  Notice that not all those notes are white notes.  We also have a black note present, just like with the C minor chord.  This time the G note has been raised by a 1/2 step.  So, now the first two notes look the same, but the last note is a 1/2 step higher than the others.  Now, we have C natural + E natural + G sharp gives us a C augmented chord.  Now, let’s see what happens when I change something:

C#-E#-G##

Now, can u tell just by looking what quality chord this is?  If u can, that’s great.  If not, let’s take a closer look at it.  Now, when I look at this chord, the first thing I see is they don‘t all look the same.  So, we can immediately say this isn’t a major chord.  It is very evident here because I see that one note has 2 sharps beside it.  Don’t be alarmed, the name for notes like this is double-sharp (raised two 1/2 steps).  The next thing I see is the first 2 notes look the same, while the last note seems to be a 1/2 step higher than the others.   Hmmm, doesn’t this sound a little familiar?

Remember how in the C augmented chord the first two notes looked the same, while the last note was a 1/2 step higher than the others.  What quality chord was that?  You guessed it, AUGMENTED.  Guess what, using the same principle as we did with C-E-G# we can also say that this chord, C#-E#-G## is indeed an augmented chord.  Isn’t that neat?  The name of this chord is C# augmented.  Let’s do one more to drive the point home:

Cb-Eb-G

I’m sure by now most of you have caught on to the pattern.  Just in case u haven’t, let’s take a closer look at this chord.  Once again, I see that all the notes don’t look the same.  I also see that the first 2 notes look the same, while the last note is a 1/2 step higher.  Gee, I wonder what quality chord this is?  That’s right it is also an augmented chord.  This chord is called Cb augmented.

The whole point of this is no matter how many sharps or flats are present, as long as the root notes are C-E-G and the first 2 notes look the same while the last note is a 1/2 step higher, it is an augmented chord.

_______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______


Wow,  I bet some of you all out there never thought about chords in this way.  I can admit when I was first taught this technique of looking at chords, I was in awe.  Next comes the chords built off D.

NOTE:  There is a fifth 3-note chord built on C, but in order to understand it you have to look at the major scale.  I’m not using the major scale here, just notes.

[4hisglory]

Nice....

[T-Block]

3-note chords built off D


D-F-A

This is the first 3-note chord built off D.  This chord is called D minor.  Now, let’s take a closer look at the notes of this chord.  Notice that not only are all those notes white notes, each note also looks the same as each other.  That's right, each of those notes are natural notes.  D natural + F natural + A natural gives us a D minor chord.  Now, let’s see what happens when I change something:

D#-F#-A#

Now, can u tell just by looking what quality chord this is?  If u can, that’s great.  If not, let’s take a closer look at it.  Now, when I look at this chord, the 1st thing I see is they all have sharps by them.  Since they all have sharps by them, that means they all look the same.  Hmmm, doesn’t this sound a little familiar?

Remember how in the D minor chord all the notes looked the same.  What quality chord was that?  You guessed it, MINOR.  Guess what, using the same principle as we did with D-F-A we can also say that this chord, D#-F#-A# is indeed a minor chord.  Isn’t that neat?  The name of this chord is D# minor.  Let’s do one more to drive the point home:

Db-Fb-Ab

I’m sure by now most of you have caught on to the pattern.  Just in case u haven’t, let’s take a closer look at this chord.  Once again, I see that all the notes look the same.  This time, they all have flats beside them.  Gee, I wonder what quality chord this is?  That’s right it is also a minor chord.  This chord is called Db minor.

The whole point of this is no matter how many sharps or flats are present, as long as the root notes are D-F-A and there are the same number of sharps or flats beside each of them, it is a minor chord.

_______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______


D-F#-A

This is the second 3-note chord built off D.  This chord is called D major.  Now, let’s take a closer look at the notes of this chord.  Notice that not all those notes are white notes.  We now have a black note present, which means that this time each note does note look the same as each other.  The F note has been raised by 1/2 step.  So, now the two outer notes look the same, but the middle note is 1/2 step higher than the others.  Now, we have D natural + F sharp + A natural gives us a D major chord.  Now, let’s see what happens when I change something:

D#-F##-A#

Now, can u tell just by looking what quality chord this is?  If u can, that’s great.  If not, let’s take a closer look at it.  Now, when I look at this chord, the first thing I see is they don‘t all look the same.  So, we can immediately say this isn’t a minor chord.  The next thing I see is the middle note has 2 sharps beside it.  That means that it is higher than all the other notes.  So, the outer 2 notes are the same, while the middle note is 1/2 higher.  Hmmm, doesn’t this sound a little familiar?

Remember how in the D major chord the two outer notes looked the same, while the middle note was 1/2 step higher than the others.  What quality chord was that?  You guessed it, MAJOR.  Guess what, using the same principle as we did with D-F#-A we can also say that this chord, D#-F##-A# is indeed a major chord.  Isn’t that neat?  The name of this chord is D# major.  Let’s do one more to drive the point home:

Db-F-Ab

I’m sure by now most of you have caught on to the pattern.  Just in case u haven’t, let’s take a closer look at this chord.  Once again, I see that all the notes don’t look the same.  I also see that the two outer notes look the same, while the middle note is 1/2 step higher.  Gee, I wonder what quality chord this is?  That’s right it is also a major chord.  This chord is called Db major.

The whole point of this is no matter how many sharps or flats are present, as long as the root notes are D-F-A and the two outer notes look the same while the middle note is 1/2 step higher, it is a major chord.

_______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______


D-F-Ab

This is the third 3-note chord built off D.  This chord is called D diminished.  Now, let’s take a closer look at the notes of this chord.  Notice that not all those notes are white notes.  Here, we have one black note present, which means that this time each note does note look the same as each other.  The A note has been lowered by 1/2 step.  So, now the first two notes look the same, but the last note is 1/2 step lower than the others.  Now, we have D natural + F natural + A flat gives us a D diminished chord.  Now, let’s see what happens when I change something:

D#-F#-A

Now, can u tell just by looking what quality chord this is?  If u can, that’s great.  If not, let’s take a closer look at it.  Now, when I look at this chord, the first thing I see is they don‘t all look the same.  So, we can immediately say this isn’t a minor chord.  The next thing I see is the 2 outer notes don't look the same.  So, we can immediately say this isn’t a major chord either.  Here, the first 2 notes are the same, while the last note is 1/2 step lower.  Hmmm, doesn’t this sound a little familiar?

Remember how in the D diminished chord the first 2 notes looked the same, while the last note was 1/2 step lower than the others.  What quality chord was that?  You guessed it, DIMINISHED.  Guess what, using the same principle as we did with D-F-Ab we can also say that this chord, D#-F#-A is indeed a diminished chord.  Isn’t that neat?  The name of this chord is D# diminished.  Let’s do one more to drive the point home:

Db-Fb-Abb

I’m sure by now most of you have caught on to the pattern.  Just in case u haven’t, let’s take a closer look at this chord.  Once again, I see that all the notes don’t look the same.  It is very evident here because now one of the notes has two flats beside it.  I also see that the first 2 notes look the same, while the last note is 1/2 step lower.  Gee, I wonder what quality chord this is?  That’s right it is also a diminished chord.  This chord is called Db diminished.

The whole point of this is no matter how many sharps or flats are present, as long as the root notes are D-F-A and the first 2 notes look the same while the last note is a half-step lower, it is a diminished chord.

_______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______


D-F#-A#

This is the fourth 3-note chord built off D.  This chord is called D augmented.  Now, let’s take a closer look at the notes of this chord.  Notice that not all those notes are white notes.  We now have 2 black notes present.  This time the F note has been raised by 1/2 step and the A note has been raised by 1/2 step.  So, now the last 2 notes look the same, but the 1st note is a 1/2 step lower than the others.  Now, we have D natural + F sharp + A sharp gives us a D augmented chord.  Now, let’s see what happens when I change something:

D#-F##-A##

Now, can u tell just by looking what quality chord this is?  If u can, that’s great.  If not, let’s take a closer look at it.  Now, when I look at this chord, the first thing I see is they don‘t all look the same.  So, we can immediately say this isn’t a minor chord.  It is very evident here because I see that 2 notes have 2 sharps beside it.  The next thing I see is the last 2 notes look the same, while the lst note is 1/2 step lower than the others.   Hmmm, doesn’t this sound a little familiar?

Remember how in the D augmented chord the last 2 notes looked the same, while the first note was 1/2 step lower than the others.  What quality chord was that?  You guessed it, AUGMENTED.  Guess what, using the same principle as we did with D-F#-A# we can also say that this chord, D#-F##-A## is indeed an augmented chord.  Isn’t that neat?  The name of this chord is D# augmented.  Let’s do one more to drive the point home:

Db-F-A

I’m sure by now most of you have caught on to the pattern.  Just in case u haven’t, let’s take a closer look at this chord.  Once again, I see that all the notes don’t look the same.  I also see that the last 2 notes look the same, while the 1st note is 1/2 step lower.  Gee, I wonder what quality chord this is?  That’s right it is also an augmented chord.  This chord is called Db augmented.

The whole point of this is no matter how many sharps or flats are present, as long as the root notes are D-F-A and the last 2 notes look the same while the first note is 1/2 step lower, it is an augmented chord.

_______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______


This is a little different than the C chords ain't it?  It seems like it's backwards here cuz the D chords start with a minor chord and not a major chord.  For those of you who assumed it would be like the C, looks like u were sadly mistaken.  Read carefully and pay close attention.  Next comes the chords built off E.

[T-Block]

Nice....

UUNNGGHH, u weren't supposed to comment yet, LOL.  I'll let u slide since u da boss though.      

[T-Block]

3-note chords built off E


E-G-B

This is the first 3-note chord built off E.  This chord is called E minor.  Now, let'ss take a closer look at the notes of this chord.  Notice that not only are all those notes white notes, each note also looks the same as each other.  That's right, each of those notes are natural notes.  E natural + G natural + B natural gives us an E minor chord.  Now, let's see what happens when I change something:

E#-G#-B#

Now, can u tell just by looking what quality chord this is?  If u can, that's great.  If not, let's take a closer look at it.  Now, when I look at this chord, the 1st thing I see is they all have sharps by them.  Since they all have sharps by them, that means they all look the same.  Hmmm, doesn't this sound a little familiar?

Remember how in the E minor chord all the notes looked the same.  What quality chord was that?  You guessed it, MINOR.  Guess what, using the same principle as we did with E-G-B we can also say that this chord, E#-G#-B# is indeed a minor chord.  Isn't that neat?  The name of this chord is E# minor.  Let's do one more to drive the point home:

Eb-Gb-Bb

I'm sure by now most of you have caught on to the pattern.  Just in case u haven't, let's take a closer look at this chord.  Once again, I see that all the notes look the same.  This time, they all have flats beside them.  Gee, I wonder what quality chord this is?  That's right, it is also a minor chord.  This chord is called Eb minor.

The whole point of this is no matter how many sharps or flats are present, as long as the root notes are E-G-B and there are the same number of sharps or flats beside each of them, it is a minor chord.

_______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______


E-G#-B

This is the second 3-note chord built off E.  This chord is called E major.  Now, let's take a closer look at the notes of this chord.  Notice that not all those notes are white notes.  We now have a black note present, which means that this time each note does note look the same as each other.  The G note has been raised by 1/2 step.  So, now the two outer notes look the same, but the middle note is 1/2 step higher than the others.  Now, we have E natural + G sharp + B natural gives us an E major chord.  Now, let's see what happens when I change something:

E#-G##-B#

Now, can u tell just by looking what quality chord this is?  If u can, that's great.  If not, let's take a closer look at it.  Now, when I look at this chord, the first thing I see is they don't all look the same.  So, we can immediately say this isn't a minor chord.  The next thing I see is the middle note has 2 sharps beside it.  That means that it is higher than all the other notes.  So, the outer 2 notes are the same, while the middle note is 1/2 higher.  Hmmm, doesn't this sound a little familiar?

Remember how in the E major chord the two outer notes looked the same, while the middle note was 1/2 step higher than the others.  What quality chord was that?  You guessed it, MAJOR.  Guess what, using the same principle as we did with E-G#-B we can also say that this chord, E#-G##-B# is indeed a major chord.  Isn't that neat?  The name of this chord is E# major.  Let's do one more to drive the point home:

Eb-G-Bb

I'm sure by now most of you have caught on to the pattern.  Just in case u haven't, let's take a closer look at this chord.  Once again, I see that all the notes don't look the same.  I also see that the two outer notes look the same, while the middle note is 1/2 step higher.  Gee, I wonder what quality chord this is?  That's right, it is also a major chord.  This chord is called Eb major.

The whole point of this is no matter how many sharps or flats are present, as long as the root notes are E-G-B and the two outer notes look the same while the middle note is 1/2 step higher, it is a major chord.

_______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______


E-G-Bb

This is the third 3-note chord built off E.  This chord is called E diminished.  Now, let's take a closer look at the notes of this chord.  Notice that not all those notes are white notes.  Here, we have one black note present, which means that this time each note does note look the same as each other.  The B note has been lowered by 1/2 step.  So, now the first two notes look the same, but the last note is 1/2 step lower than the others.  Now, we have E natural + G natural + B flat gives us an E diminished chord.  Now, let's see what happens when I change something:

E#-G#-B

Now, can u tell just by looking what quality chord this is?  If u can, that's great.  If not, let's take a closer look at it.  Now, when I look at this chord, the first thing I see is they don't all look the same.  So, we can immediately say this isn't a minor chord.  The next thing I see is the 2 outer notes don't look the same.  So, we can immediately say this isn't a major chord either.  Here, the first 2 notes are the same, while the last note is 1/2 step lower.  Hmmm, doesn't this sound a little familiar?

Remember how in the E diminished chord the first 2 notes looked the same, while the last note was 1/2 step lower than the others.  What quality chord was that?  You guessed it, DIMINISHED.  Guess what, using the same principle as we did with E-G-Bb we can also say that this chord, E#-G#-B is indeed a diminished chord.  Isn't that neat?  The name of this chord is E# diminished.  Let's do one more to drive the point home:

Eb-Gb-Bbb

I'm sure by now most of you have caught on to the pattern.  Just in case u haven't, let's take a closer look at this chord.  Once again, I see that all the notes don't look the same.  It is very evident here because now one of the notes has two flats beside it.  I also see that the first 2 notes look the same, while the last note is 1/2 step lower.  Gee, I wonder what quality chord this is?  That's right, it is also a diminished chord.  This chord is called Eb diminished.

The whole point of this is no matter how many sharps or flats are present, as long as the root notes are E-G-B and the first 2 notes look the same while the last note is a half-step lower, it is a diminished chord.

_______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______


E-G#-B#

This is the fourth 3-note chord built off E.  This chord is called E augmented.  Now, let's take a closer look at the notes of this chord.  Notice that not all those notes are white notes.  We now have 2 black notes present.  This time the G note has been raised by 1/2 step and the B note has been raised by 1/2 step.  So, now the last 2 notes look the same, but the 1st note is a 1/2 step lower than the others.  Now, we have E natural + G sharp + B sharp gives us an E augmented chord.  Now, let's see what happens when I change something:

E#-G##-B##

Now, can u tell just by looking what quality chord this is?  If u can, that's great.  If not, let's take a closer look at it.  Now, when I look at this chord, the first thing I see is they don't all look the same.  So, we can immediately say this isn't a minor chord.  It is very evident here because I see that 2 notes have 2 sharps beside it.  The next thing I see is the last 2 notes look the same, while the lst note is 1/2 step lower than the others.   Hmmm, doesn't this sound a little familiar?

Remember how in the E augmented chord the last 2 notes looked the same, while the first note was 1/2 step lower than the others.  What quality chord was that?  You guessed it, AUGMENTED.  Guess what, using the same principle as we did with E-G#-B# we can also say that this chord, E#-G##-B## is indeed an augmented chord.  Isn't that neat?  The name of this chord is E# augmented.  Let's do one more to drive the point home:

Eb-G-B

I'm sure by now most of you have caught on to the pattern.  Just in case u haven't, let's take a closer look at this chord.  Once again, I see that all the notes don't look the same.  I also see that the last 2 notes look the same, while the 1st note is 1/2 step lower.  Gee, I wonder what quality chord this is?  That's right, it is also an augmented chord.  This chord is called Eb augmented.

The whole point of this is no matter how many sharps or flats are present, as long as the root notes are E-G-B and the last 2 notes look the same while the first note is 1/2 step lower, it is an augmented chord.

_______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______


Wow, this worked out just like the D chords, didn't it?  So, now we can make the "assumption" that any other minor chords built using all white notes will follow this pattern, right?  We shall see, next comes the chords built off F.

[T-Block]

3-note chords built off F


F-A-C

This is the first 3-note chord built off F.  This chord is called F major.  Now, let’s take a closer look at the notes of this chord.  Notice that not only are all those notes white notes, each note also looks the same as each other.  That's right, each of those notes are natural notes.  F natural + A natural + C natural gives us an F major chord.  Now, let’s see what happens when I change something:

F#-A#-C#

Now, can u tell just by looking what quality chord this is?  If u can, that’s great.  If not, let’s take a closer look at it.  Now, when I look at this chord, the 1st thing I see is they all have sharps by them.  Since they all have sharps by them, that means they all look the same.  Hmmm, doesn’t this sound a little familiar?

Remember how in the C major chord all the notes looked the same.  What quality chord was that?  You guessed it, MAJOR.  Guess what, using the same principle as we did with F-A-C we can also say that this chord, F#-A#-C# is indeed a major chord.  Isn’t that neat?  The name of this chord is F# major.  Let’s do one more to drive the point home:

Fb-Ab-Cb

I’m sure by now most of you have caught on to the pattern.  Just in case u haven’t, let’s take a closer look at this chord.  Once again, I see that all the notes look the same.  This time, they all have flats beside them.  Gee, I wonder what quality chord this is?  That’s right it is also a major chord.  This chord is called Fb major.

The whole point of this is no matter how many sharps or flats are present, as long as the root notes are F-A-C and there are the same number of sharps or flats beside each of them, it is a major chord.

_______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______


F-Ab-C

This is the second 3-note chord built off F.  This chord is called F minor.  Now, let’s take a closer look at the notes of this chord.  Notice that not all those notes are white notes.  We now have a black note present, which means that this time each note does note look the same as each other.  The A note has been lowered by a 1/2 step.  So, now the two outer notes look the same, but the middle note is a 1/2 step lower than the others.  Now, we have F natural + A flat + C natural gives us an F minor chord.  Now, let’s see what happens when I change something:

F#-A-C#

Now, can u tell just by looking what quality chord this is?  If u can, that’s great.  If not, let’s take a closer look at it.  Now, when I look at this chord, the 1st thing I see is they don‘t all look the same.  So, we can immediately say this isn’t a major chord.  The next thing I see is the middle note doesn’t have a sharp beside it, it has a natural.  That means that it is a 1/2 step lower than all the other notes.  Hmmm, doesn’t this sound a little familiar?

Remember how in the C minor chord the two outer notes looked the same, while the middle note was a 1/2 step lower than the others.  What quality chord was that?  You guessed it, MINOR.  Guess what, using the same principle as we did with F-Ab-C we can also say that this chord, F#-A-C# is indeed a minor chord.  Isn’t that neat?  The name of this chord is F# minor.  Let’s do one more to drive the point home:

Fb-Abb-Cb

I’m sure by now most of you have caught on to the pattern.  Just in case u haven’t, let’s take a closer look at this chord.  Once again, I see that all the notes don’t look the same.  It is very evident here because one of the notes has two flats beside it.  I also see that the two outer notes look the same, while the middle note is a 1/2 step lower.  Gee, I wonder what quality chord this is?  That’s right it is also a minor chord.  This chord is called Fb minor.

The whole point of this is no matter how many sharps or flats are present, as long as the root notes are F-A-C and the two outer notes look the same while the middle note is 1/2 step lower, it is a minor chord.

_______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______


F-Ab-Cb

This is the third 3-note chord built off F.  This chord is called F diminished.  Now, let’s take a closer look at the notes of this chord.  Notice that not all those notes are white notes.  Now, we now have 2 black notes present, which means that this time each note does note look the same as each other.  The A note has been lowered by a 1/2 step and the C note has been lowered by a 1/2 step.  So, now the last two notes look the same, but the first note is a 1/2 step higher than the others.  Now, we have F natural + A flat + C flat gives us an F diminished chord.  Now, let’s see what happens when I change something:

F#-A-C

Now, can u tell just by looking what quality chord this is?  If u can, that’s great.  If not, let’s take a closer look at it.  Now, when I look at this chord, the 1st thing I see is they don‘t all look the same.  So, we can immediately say this isn’t a major chord.  The next thing I see is the middle note doesn’t have a sharp beside it, it has a natural.  Also, the last note doesn’t have a sharp beside it, it also has a natural.  So, we can immediately say this isn’t a minor chord either.  Here the first note is a 1/2 step higher than the others.  Hmmm, doesn’t this sound a little familiar?

Remember how in the C diminished chord the last two notes looked the same, while the first note was a 1/2 step higerer than the others.  What quality chord was that?  You guessed it, DIMINISHED.  Guess what, using the same principle as we did with F-Ab-Cb we can also say that this chord, F#-A-C is indeed a diminished chord.  Isn’t that neat?  The name of this chord is F# diminished.  Let’s do one more to drive the point home:

Fb-Abb-Cbb

I’m sure by now most of you have caught on to the pattern.  Just in case u haven’t, let’s take a closer look at this chord.  Once again, I see that all the notes don’t look the same.  It is very evident here because now two of the notes have two flats beside it.  I also see that the last two notes look the same, while the first note is a 1/2 step higher.  Gee, I wonder what quality chord this is?  That’s right it is also a diminished chord.  This chord is called Fb diminished.

The whole point of this is no matter how many sharps or flats are present, as long as the root notes are F-A-C and the last two outer notes look the same while the first note is a 1/2 step higher, it is a diminished chord.

_______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______


F-A-C#

This is the fourth 3-note chord built off F.  This chord is called F augmented.  Now, let’s take a closer look at the notes of this chord.  Notice that not all those notes are white notes.  We also have a black note present, just like with the C minor chord.  This time the C note has been raised by a 1/2 step.  So, now the first two notes look the same, but the last note is a 1/2 step higher than the others.  Now, we have F natural + A natural + C sharp gives us an F minor chord.  Now, let’s see what happens when I change something:

F#-A#-C##

Now, can u tell just by looking what quality chord this is?  If u can, that’s great.  If not, let’s take a closer look at it.  Now, when I look at this chord, the first thing I see is they don‘t all look the same.  So, we can immediately say this isn’t a major chord.  It is very evident here because I see that one note has 2 sharps beside it.  The next thing I see is the first 2 notes look the same, while the last note seems to be a 1/2 step higher than the others.   Hmmm, doesn’t this sound a little familiar?

Remember how in the F augmented chord the first two notes looked the same, while the last note was a 1/2 step higher than the others.  What quality chord was that?  You guessed it, AUGMENTED.  Guess what, using the same principle as we did with F-A-C# we can also say that this chord, F#-A#-C## is indeed an augmented chord.  Isn’t that neat?  The name of this chord is F# augmented.  Let’s do one more to drive the point home:

Fb-Ab-C

I’m sure by now most of you have caught on to the pattern.  Just in case u haven’t, let’s take a closer look at this chord.  Once again, I see that all the notes don’t look the same.  I also see that the first 2 notes look the same, while the last note is a 1/2 step higher.  Gee, I wonder what quality chord this is?  That’s right it is also an augmented chord.  This chord is called Fb augmented.

The whole point of this is no matter how many sharps or flats are present, as long as the root notes are F-A-C and the first 2 notes look the same while the last note is a 1/2 step higher, it is an augmented chord.

_______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______


Wow, this worked out just like the c chords, didn't it?  So, now we can make the "assumption" that any other major chords built using all white notes will follow this pattern, right?  We shall see, next comes the chords built off G.

[T-Block]

3-note chords built off G


G-B-D

This is the first 3-note chord built off F.  This chord is called F major.  Now, let’s take a closer look at the notes of this chord.  Notice that not only are all those notes white notes, each note also looks the same as each other.  That's right, each of those notes are natural notes. G natural + B natural + D natural gives us a G major chord.  Now, let’s see what happens when I change something:

G#-B#-D#

Now, can u tell just by looking what quality chord this is?  If u can, that’s great.  If not, let’s take a closer look at it.  Now, when I look at this chord, the 1st thing I see is they all have sharps by them.  Since they all have sharps by them, that means they all look the same.  Hmmm, doesn’t this sound a little familiar?

Remember how in the G major chord all the notes looked the same.  What quality chord was that?  You guessed it, MAJOR.  Guess what, using the same principle as we did with G-B-D we can also say that this chord, G#-B#-D# is indeed a major chord.  Isn’t that neat?  The name of this chord is G# major.  Let’s do one more to drive the point home:

Gb-Bb-Db

I’m sure by now most of you have caught on to the pattern.  Just in case u haven’t, let’s take a closer look at this chord.  Once again, I see that all the notes look the same.  This time, they all have flats beside them.  Gee, I wonder what quality chord this is?  That’s right it is also a major chord.  This chord is called Gb major.

The whole point of this is no matter how many sharps or flats are present, as long as the root notes are G-B-D and there are the same number of sharps or flats beside each of them, it is a major chord.

_______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______


G-Bb-D

This is the second 3-note chord built off G.  This chord is called G minor.  Now, let’s take a closer look at the notes of this chord.  Notice that not all those notes are white notes.  We now have a black note present, which means that this time each note does note look the same as each other.  The B note has been lowered by a 1/2 step.  So, now the two outer notes look the same, but the middle note is a 1/2 step lower than the others.  Now, we have G natural + B flat + D natural gives us a G minor chord.  Now, let’s see what happens when I change something:

G#-B-D#

Now, can u tell just by looking what quality chord this is?  If u can, that’s great.  If not, let’s take a closer look at it.  Now, when I look at this chord, the 1st thing I see is they don‘t all look the same.  So, we can immediately say this isn’t a major chord.  The next thing I see is the middle note doesn’t have a sharp beside it, it has a natural.  That means that it is a 1/2 step lower than all the other notes.  Hmmm, doesn’t this sound a little familiar?

Remember how in the G minor chord the two outer notes looked the same, while the middle note was a 1/2 step lower than the others.  What quality chord was that?  You guessed it, MINOR.  Guess what, using the same principle as we did with G-Bb-D we can also say that this chord, G#-B-D# is indeed a minor chord.  Isn’t that neat?  The name of this chord is G# minor.  Let’s do one more to drive the point home:

Gb-Bbb-Db

I’m sure by now most of you have caught on to the pattern.  Just in case u haven’t, let’s take a closer look at this chord.  Once again, I see that all the notes don’t look the same.  It is very evident here because one of the notes has two flats beside it.  I also see that the two outer notes look the same, while the middle note is a 1/2 step lower.  Gee, I wonder what quality chord this is?  That’s right it is also a minor chord.  This chord is called Gb minor.

The whole point of this is no matter how many sharps or flats are present, as long as the root notes are G-B-D and the two outer notes look the same while the middle note is 1/2 step lower, it is a minor chord.

_______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______


G-Bb-Db

This is the third 3-note chord built off G.  This chord is called G diminished.  Now, let’s take a closer look at the notes of this chord.  Notice that not all those notes are white notes.  Now, we now have 2 black notes present, which means that this time each note does note look the same as each other.  The B note has been lowered by a 1/2 step and the D note has been lowered by a 1/2 step.  So, now the last two notes look the same, but the first note is a 1/2 step higher than the others.  Now, we have G natural + B flat + D flat gives us an F diminished chord.  Now, let’s see what happens when I change something:

G#-B-D

Now, can u tell just by looking what quality chord this is?  If u can, that’s great.  If not, let’s take a closer look at it.  Now, when I look at this chord, the 1st thing I see is they don‘t all look the same.  So, we can immediately say this isn’t a major chord.  The next thing I see is the middle note doesn’t have a sharp beside it, it has a natural.  Also, the last note doesn’t have a sharp beside it, it also has a natural.  So, we can immediately say this isn’t a minor chord either.  Here the first note is a 1/2 step higher than the others.  Hmmm, doesn’t this sound a little familiar?

Remember how in the G diminished chord the last two notes looked the same, while the first note was a 1/2 step higerer than the others.  What quality chord was that?  You guessed it, DIMINISHED.  Guess what, using the same principle as we did with G-Bb-Db we can also say that this chord, G#-B-D is indeed a diminished chord.  Isn’t that neat?  The name of this chord is G# diminished.  Let’s do one more to drive the point home:

Gb-Bbb-Dbb

I’m sure by now most of you have caught on to the pattern.  Just in case u haven’t, let’s take a closer look at this chord.  Once again, I see that all the notes don’t look the same.  It is very evident here because now two of the notes have two flats beside it.  I also see that the last two notes look the same, while the first note is a 1/2 step higher.  Gee, I wonder what quality chord this is?  That’s right it is also a diminished chord.  This chord is called Gb diminished.

The whole point of this is no matter how many sharps or flats are present, as long as the root notes are G-B-D and the last two outer notes look the same while the first note is a 1/2 step higher, it is a diminished chord.

_______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______


G-B-D#

This is the fourth 3-note chord built off G.  This chord is called G augmented.  Now, let’s take a closer look at the notes of this chord.  Notice that not all those notes are white notes.  We also have a black note present, just like with the C minor chord.  This time the D note has been raised by a 1/2 step.  So, now the first two notes look the same, but the last note is a 1/2 step higher than the others.  Now, we have G natural + B natural + D sharp gives us a G augmented chord.  Now, let’s see what happens when I change something:

G#-B#-D##

Now, can u tell just by looking what quality chord this is?  If u can, that’s great.  If not, let’s take a closer look at it.  Now, when I look at this chord, the first thing I see is they don‘t all look the same.  So, we can immediately say this isn’t a major chord.  It is very evident here because I see that one note has 2 sharps beside it.  The next thing I see is the first 2 notes look the same, while the last note seems to be a 1/2 step higher than the others.   Hmmm, doesn’t this sound a little familiar?

Remember how in the G augmented chord the first two notes looked the same, while the last note was a 1/2 step higher than the others.  What quality chord was that?  You guessed it, AUGMENTED.  Guess what, using the same principle as we did with G-B-D# we can also say that this chord, G#-B#-D## is indeed an augmented chord.  Isn’t that neat?  The name of this chord is G# augmented.  Let’s do one more to drive the point home:

Gb-Bb-D

I’m sure by now most of you have caught on to the pattern.  Just in case u haven’t, let’s take a closer look at this chord.  Once again, I see that all the notes don’t look the same.  I also see that the first 2 notes look the same, while the last note is a 1/2 step higher.  Gee, I wonder what quality chord this is?  That’s right it is also an augmented chord.  This chord is called Gb augmented.

The whole point of this is no matter how many sharps or flats are present, as long as the root notes are G-B-D and the first 2 notes look the same while the last note is a 1/2 step higher, it is an augmented chord.

_______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______


Wow, this worked out just like the C and F chords, didn't it?  So, now we truly can make the "assumption" that any other major chords built using all white notes will follow this pattern, LOL.  Next comes the chords built off A.

[T-Block]

3-note chords built off A


A-C-E

This is the first 3-note chord built off A.  This chord is called A minor.  Now, let'ss take a closer look at the notes of this chord.  Notice that not only are all those notes white notes, each note also looks the same as each other.  That's right, each of those notes are natural notes.  A natural + C natural + E natural gives us an A minor chord.  Now, let's see what happens when I change something:

A#-C#-E#

Now, can u tell just by looking what quality chord this is?  If u can, that's great.  If not, let's take a closer look at it.  Now, when I look at this chord, the 1st thing I see is they all have sharps by them.  Since they all have sharps by them, that means they all look the same.  Hmmm, doesn't this sound a little familiar?

Remember how in the A minor chord all the notes looked the same.  What quality chord was that?  You guessed it, MINOR.  Guess what, using the same principle as we did with A-C-E we can also say that this chord, A#-C#-E# is indeed a minor chord.  Isn't that neat?  The name of this chord is A# minor.  Let's do one more to drive the point home:

Ab-Cb-Eb

I'm sure by now most of you have caught on to the pattern.  Just in case u haven't, let's take a closer look at this chord.  Once again, I see that all the notes look the same.  This time, they all have flats beside them.  Gee, I wonder what quality chord this is?  That's right, it is also a minor chord.  This chord is called Ab minor.

The whole point of this is no matter how many sharps or flats are present, as long as the root notes are A-C-E and there are the same number of sharps or flats beside each of them, it is a minor chord.

_______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______


A-C#-E

This is the second 3-note chord built off A.  This chord is called A major.  Now, let's take a closer look at the notes of this chord.  Notice that not all those notes are white notes.  We now have a black note present, which means that this time each note does note look the same as each other.  The C note has been raised by 1/2 step.  So, now the two outer notes look the same, but the middle note is 1/2 step higher than the others.  Now, we have A natural + C sharp + E natural gives us an A major chord.  Now, let's see what happens when I change something:

A#-C##-E#

Now, can u tell just by looking what quality chord this is?  If u can, that's great.  If not, let's take a closer look at it.  Now, when I look at this chord, the first thing I see is they don't all look the same.  So, we can immediately say this isn't a minor chord.  The next thing I see is the middle note has 2 sharps beside it.  That means that it is higher than all the other notes.  So, the outer 2 notes are the same, while the middle note is 1/2 higher.  Hmmm, doesn't this sound a little familiar?

Remember how in the A major chord the two outer notes looked the same, while the middle note was 1/2 step higher than the others.  What quality chord was that?  You guessed it, MAJOR.  Guess what, using the same principle as we did with A-C#-E we can also say that this chord, A#-C##-E# is indeed a major chord.  Isn't that neat?  The name of this chord is A# major.  Let's do one more to drive the point home:

Ab-C-Eb

I'm sure by now most of you have caught on to the pattern.  Just in case u haven't, let's take a closer look at this chord.  Once again, I see that all the notes don't look the same.  I also see that the two outer notes look the same, while the middle note is 1/2 step higher.  Gee, I wonder what quality chord this is?  That's right, it is also a major chord.  This chord is called Eb major.

The whole point of this is no matter how many sharps or flats are present, as long as the root notes are A-C-E and the two outer notes look the same while the middle note is 1/2 step higher, it is a major chord.

_______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______


A-C-Eb

This is the third 3-note chord built off A.  This chord is called A diminished.  Now, let's take a closer look at the notes of this chord.  Notice that not all those notes are white notes.  Here, we have one black note present, which means that this time each note does note look the same as each other.  The E note has been lowered by 1/2 step.  So, now the first two notes look the same, but the last note is 1/2 step lower than the others.  Now, we have A natural + C natural + E flat gives us an A diminished chord.  Now, let's see what happens when I change something:

A#-C#-E

Now, can u tell just by looking what quality chord this is?  If u can, that's great.  If not, let's take a closer look at it.  Now, when I look at this chord, the first thing I see is they don't all look the same.  So, we can immediately say this isn't a minor chord.  The next thing I see is the 2 outer notes don't look the same.  So, we can immediately say this isn't a major chord either.  Here, the first 2 notes are the same, while the last note is 1/2 step lower.  Hmmm, doesn't this sound a little familiar?

Remember how in the A diminished chord the first 2 notes looked the same, while the last note was 1/2 step lower than the others.  What quality chord was that?  You guessed it, DIMINISHED.  Guess what, using the same principle as we did with A-C-Eb we can also say that this chord, A#-C#-E is indeed a diminished chord.  Isn't that neat?  The name of this chord is A# diminished.  Let's do one more to drive the point home:

Ab-Cb-Ebb

I'm sure by now most of you have caught on to the pattern.  Just in case u haven't, let's take a closer look at this chord.  Once again, I see that all the notes don't look the same.  It is very evident here because now one of the notes has two flats beside it.  I also see that the first 2 notes look the same, while the last note is 1/2 step lower.  Gee, I wonder what quality chord this is?  That's right, it is also a diminished chord.  This chord is called Ab diminished.

The whole point of this is no matter how many sharps or flats are present, as long as the root notes are A-C-E and the first 2 notes look the same while the last note is a half-step lower, it is a diminished chord.

_______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______


A-C#-E#

This is the fourth 3-note chord built off E.  This chord is called E augmented.  Now, let's take a closer look at the notes of this chord.  Notice that not all those notes are white notes.  We now have 2 black notes present.  This time the C note has been raised by 1/2 step and the E note has been raised by 1/2 step.  So, now the last 2 notes look the same, but the 1st note is a 1/2 step lower than the others.  Now, we have A natural + C sharp + E sharp gives us an A augmented chord.  Now, let's see what happens when I change something:

A#-C##-E##

Now, can u tell just by looking what quality chord this is?  If u can, that's great.  If not, let's take a closer look at it.  Now, when I look at this chord, the first thing I see is they don't all look the same.  So, we can immediately say this isn't a minor chord.  It is very evident here because I see that 2 notes have 2 sharps beside it.  The next thing I see is the last 2 notes look the same, while the lst note is 1/2 step lower than the others.   Hmmm, doesn't this sound a little familiar?

Remember how in the A augmented chord the last 2 notes looked the same, while the first note was 1/2 step lower than the others.  What quality chord was that?  You guessed it, AUGMENTED.  Guess what, using the same principle as we did with A-C#-E# we can also say that this chord, A#-C##-E## is indeed an augmented chord.  Isn't that neat?  The name of this chord is A# augmented.  Let's do one more to drive the point home:

Ab-C-E

I'm sure by now most of you have caught on to the pattern.  Just in case u haven't, let's take a closer look at this chord.  Once again, I see that all the notes don't look the same.  I also see that the last 2 notes look the same, while the 1st note is 1/2 step lower.  Gee, I wonder what quality chord this is?  That's right, it is also an augmented chord.  This chord is called Ab augmented.

The whole point of this is no matter how many sharps or flats are present, as long as the root notes are A-C-E and the last 2 notes look the same while the first note is 1/2 step lower, it is an augmented chord.

_______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______


Wow, this worked out just like the D and E chords, didn't it?  So, now we can make the "assumption" that any other minor chords built using all white notes will follow this pattern, LOL.  Next comes the chords built off B.

[T-Block]

3-note chords built off B


B-D-F

This is the first 3-note chord built off A.  This chord is called B diminished.  Now, let'ss take a closer look at the notes of this chord.  Notice that not only are all those notes white notes, each note also looks the same as each other.  That's right, each of those notes are natural notes.  B natural + D natural + F natural gives us a B diminished chord.  Now, let's see what happens when I change something:

B#-D#-F#

Now, can u tell just by looking what quality chord this is?  If u can, that's great.  If not, let's take a closer look at it.  Now, when I look at this chord, the 1st thing I see is they all have sharps by them.  Since they all have sharps by them, that means they all look the same.  Hmmm, doesn't this sound a little familiar?

Remember how in the B diminished chord all the notes looked the same.  What quality chord was that?  You guessed it, DIMINISHED.  Guess what, using the same principle as we did with B-D-F we can also say that this chord, B#-D#-F# is indeed a diminished chord.  Isn't that neat?  The name of this chord is B# diminished.  Let's do one more to drive the point home:

Bb-Db-Fb

I'm sure by now most of you have caught on to the pattern.  Just in case u haven't, let's take a closer look at this chord.  Once again, I see that all the notes look the same.  This time, they all have flats beside them.  Gee, I wonder what quality chord this is?  That's right, it is also a diminished chord.  This chord is called Bb diminished.

The whole point of this is no matter how many sharps or flats are present, as long as the root notes are B-D-F and there are the same number of sharps or flats beside each of them, it is a diminished chord.

_______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______


B-D#-F#

This is the third 3-note chord built off B.  This chord is called B major.  Now, let's take a closer look at the notes of this chord.  Notice that not all those notes are white notes.  We now have 2 black notes present, which means that this time each note does note look the same as each other.  The D note has been raised by a 1/2 step and the F note has been raised by a 1/2 step.  So, now the last 2 notes look the same, but the first note is a 1/2 step lower than the others.  Now, we have B natural + D sharp + F sharp gives us a B major chord.  Now, let's see what happens when I change something:

B#-D##-F##

Now, can u tell just by looking what quality chord this is?  If u can, that's great.  If not, let's take a closer look at it.  Now, when I look at this chord, the first thing I see is they don't all look the same.  So, we can immediately say this isn't a diminishedchord.  The next thing I see is the last 2 notes have 2 sharps beside it.  So, the last 2 notes look the same, while the first note is a 1/2 step lower.  Hmmm, doesn't this sound a little familiar?

Remember how in the B major chord the last 2 notes looked the same, while the 1st note was a 1/2 step higher than the others.  What quality chord was that?  You guessed it, MAJOR.  Guess what, using the same principle as we did with B-D#-F# we can also say that this chord, B#-D##-F## is indeed a major chord.  Isn't that neat?  The name of this chord is B# major.  Let's do one more to drive the point home:

Bb-D-F

I'm sure by now most of you have caught on to the pattern.  Just in case u haven't, let's take a closer look at this chord.  Once again, I see that all the notes don't look the same.  I also see that the last 2 outer notes look the same, while the first note is 1/2 step lower.  Gee, I wonder what quality chord this is?  That's right, it is also a major chord.  This chord is called Bb major.

The whole point of this is no matter how many sharps or flats are present, as long as the root notes are B-D-F and the last 2 notes look the same while the middle note is 1/2 step lower, it is a major chord.

_______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______


B-D-F#

This is the second 3-note chord built off B.  This chord is called B minor.  Now, let's take a closer look at the notes of this chord.  Notice that not all those notes are white notes.  Here, we have one black note present, which means that this time each note does note look the same as each other.  The F note has been raised by a 1/2 step.  So, now the first two notes look the same, but the last note is 1/2 step higher than the others.  Now, we have B natural + D natural + F sharp gives us an B minor chord.  Now, let's see what happens when I change something:

B#-D#-F##

Now, can u tell just by looking what quality chord this is?  If u can, that's great.  If not, let's take a closer look at it.  Now, when I look at this chord, the first thing I see is they don't all look the same.  So, we can immediately say this isn't a diminished chord.  The next thing I see is the last 2 notes don't look the same.  So, we can immediately say this isn't a major chord either.  Here, the first 2 notes are the same, while the last note is a 1/2 step higher.  Hmmm, doesn't this sound a little familiar?

Remember how in the B minor chord the first 2 notes looked the same, while the last note was 1/2 step higher than the others.  What quality chord was that?  You guessed it, MINOR.  Guess what, using the same principle as we did with B-D-F# we can also say that this chord, B#-D#-F## is indeed a minor chord.  Isn't that neat?  The name of this chord is B# minor.  Let's do one more to drive the point home:

Bb-Db-F

I'm sure by now most of you have caught on to the pattern.  Just in case u haven't, let's take a closer look at this chord.  Once again, I see that all the notes don't look the same.  I also see that the first 2 notes look the same, while the last note is 1/2 step higher.  Gee, I wonder what quality chord this is?  That's right, it is also a minor chord.  This chord is called Bb minor.

The whole point of this is no matter how many sharps or flats are present, as long as the root notes are B-D-F and the first 2 notes look the same while the last note is a 1/2 step higher, it is a minor chord.

_______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______


B-D#-F##

This is the fourth 3-note chord built off B.  This chord is called B augmented.  Now, let's take a closer look at the notes of this chord.  Notice that not all those notes are white notes.  We have 1 black note present.  There is also a note with a 2 sharps beside it.  This time the D note has been raised by 1/2 step and the F note has been raised by two 1/2 steps. 

For this chord, none of the notes look the same.  OH MY, we haven't run into this problem before.  The last note is 1/2 step higher than the middle note, which is 1/2 step higher than the 1st note.  Now, we have B natural + D sharp + F double sharp gives us a B augmented chord.  Now, let's see what happens when I change something:

B#-D##-F###

Now, can u tell just by looking what quality chord this is?  If u can, that's great.  If not, let's take a closer look at it.  Now, when I look at this chord, the first thing I see is they don't all look the same.  So, we can immediately say this isn't a diminished chord.  The next thing I see is one of the notes has 3 sharps beside it.  3 sharps, OH MY GOSH, what is that?  Don't be alarmed, the name for that is triple sharp (a note raised three 1/2 steps).  So, looking at the notes the last note is 1/2 step higher than the middle note, which is 1/2 step higher than the 1st note.  Hmmm, doesn't this sound a little familiar?

Remember how in the B augmented chord the last note was 1/2 step higher than the middle note, which was 1/2 step higher than the 1st note.  What quality chord was that?  You guessed it, AUGMENTED.  Guess what, using the same principle as we did with B-D#-F## we can also say that this chord, B#-D##-F### is indeed an augmented chord.  Isn't that neat?  The name of this chord is B# augmented.  Let's do one more to drive the point home:

Bb-D-F#

I'm sure by now most of you have caught on to the pattern.  Just in case u haven't, let's take a closer look at this chord.  Once again, I see that all the notes don't look the same.  Also, there is one of each kind of accidental present.  OH MY, a natural, a sharp, and a flat all in the same chord.  Don't be alarmed, let's keep looking at this chord.  I see that the last note is 1/2 step higher than the middle note, which is 1/2 step higher than the 1st note.  Gee, I wonder what quality chord this is?  That's right, it is also an augmented chord.  This chord is called Bb augmented.

The whole point of this is no matter how many sharps or flats are present, as long as the root notes are B-D-F and the last note is 1/2 step higher than the middle note, which is 1/2 step higher than the 1st note, it is an augmented chord.

_______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______


Wow, this one was unlike any of the other ones we did.  Why?  Because it started off with a diminished chord and not a major or minor chord.

Study each of these carefully and if you have any questions u can either pm me or ask in the thread.  It is now unlocked.  Enjoy everyone!!!

[musallio]

Oh T!!!!!!

I feel so bad now!!

I now understand why you were so upset when SoundofJoy said a particular progression was in the key of E but did not notate it correctly!!!

I thought I had a fair understanding of chords, but I have 2nd thoughts.

I'm sure many people read the 1st 5 lines & thot, aagghh, elementary stuff!
I'm glad I read on..
I'll have to print this out & study it carefully in my spare time..But what I've discovered from C & D, it's revolutionary!!

[AOHMusician]

Since I am fairly new to keyboard/organ I know I may be asking some very elementary questions, however, my questions are:

1. How is it that the following chords are minors and not majors- D-F-A, E-G-B, and A-C-E?
2. How do you play a note that is a double flat or double sharp?
3. Why is B-D-F chord diminished?

Thanx for your expertise and genius..............

[T-Block]

Since I am fairly new to keyboard/organ I know I may be asking some very elementary questions, however, my questions are:

1. How is it that the following chords are minors and not majors- D-F-A, E-G-B, and A-C-E?
2. How do you play a note that is a double flat or double sharp?
3. Why is B-D-F chord diminished?

Thanx for your expertise and genius..............

Answer to question #1:  Those chords are minors because the middle note, which is the 3rd, is flatted.

Answer to question #2:  To flat something means to lower 1/2 step.  To sharp something means to raise 1/2 step.  So, if there is a double flat or sharp, then u just lower or raise the note two 1/2 steps.  For example, if u have to play a Bbb, what u do is find the note B, then lower it two half-steps.  The note u would play is A.  Sometimes the formula for chords calls for u to play a double flat or double sharp.

Answer to question #3:  That chord is diminished because the middle (3rd) and last (5th) note are both flatted.

Hopefully, I have answered ur questions good.  If not, please let me know so I can break it down further for you.   

[musallio]

Since I am fairly new to keyboard/organ I know I may be asking some very elementary questions, however, my questions are:

1. How is it that the following chords are minors and not majors- D-F-A, E-G-B, and A-C-E?
2. How do you play a note that is a double flat or double sharp?
3. Why is B-D-F chord diminished?

Thanx for your expertise and genius..............

Answer to question #1:  Those chords are minors because the middle note, which is the 3rd, is flatted.

Answer to question #2:  To flat something means to lower 1/2 step.  To sharp something means to raise 1/2 step.  So, if there is a double flat or sharp, then u just lower or raise the note two 1/2 steps.  For example, if u have to play a Bbb, what u do is find the note B, then lower it two half-steps.  The note u would play is A.  Sometimes the formula for chords calls for u to play a double flat or double sharp.

Answer to question #3:  That chord is diminished because the middle (3rd) and last (5th) note are both flatted.

Hopefully, I have answered ur questions good.  If not, please let me know so I can break it down further for you.   

Good stuff guys

I will add these 3 questions as exam questions for my students at the "end of the syllabus"
So again, thanks for the Q & the simple memo

[AOHMusician]

The questions was answered it was just that I always thought that if the chord was comprised of all naturals then it was a major chord (i.e.- c major)...........

[T-Block]

The questions was answered it was just that I always thought that if the chord was comprised of all naturals then it was a major chord (i.e.- c major)...........

I gotcha man.  There are ONLY 3 chords that are major with all naturals:  C major (C-E-G),  F major (F-A-C),  G major (G-B-D)

Every other chord has at least 1 sharp or flat in them to be major.

[musallio]

I gotcha man.  There are ONLY 3 chords that are major with all naturals:  C major (C-E-G),  F major (F-A-C),  G major (G-B-D)

Every other chord has at least 1 sharp or flat in them to be major.

Just to supplement this great stuff:

Taking C as the 1, the rest of the other chords can be viewed in relation to C to supplement or reinforce this knowledge..

[AOHMusician]

Cool chart.......major thanx