Simply put, chords are built by skipping every other note in a major scale.
Here is a triad ( 3 note chord).
The notes in a chord are most often associated with their scale degree. This 1st degree is also called the Root. It gives the chord its letter name. In the C Major chord below :
- C is the 1st or root of the chord.
- E is the 3rd.
- G is the 5th.
These note can be voiced (arranged) in any order or distance. They don’t have to be close to each other.
This is still a C Major chord:
Any of the notes in a chord may be doubled. The root and the 5th of the chord are the most commonly doubled notes.
* Though there are 5 notes here, technically only 3 are different the C , E and G. The rest are doubles ( 2 G’s and 2 C’s). This is still a C Major triad.
The Root note does not have to be the lowest note in the chord. When this happens to a chord voicing we refer to it as a chord inversion.
* This is still a C major triad but is written as C/G to show that it is an inversion and that G should be the lowest note in the chord.
Next Lesson: Building the 7 Triads in a Major Scale
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