What Chords Are In What Key, And Why?

What chords are in what key, and why? This lesson assumes basic knowledge of the Circle of 5ths.

Part 1: Basic Triads.
Each diatonic scale has 7 different notes, which gives way to 7 possible triads for each key in music. A triad is the 1st, 3rd, and 5th notes of a scale played simultaneously to form a chord.

All chords are formed based on their respective major diatonic scale. A C chord is built on a C major scale, a D chord is built on a D major scale, etc.

There are 7 chords for each key, which correspond to the 7 notes in each key's scale. Some chords can be in more than one key - for example, a D major chord can be in the keys D, A, or G.

I'll use the key of C as an example:

The key of C includes the notes C D E F G A B C.
Each note of the scale corresponds to a scale degree as shown:

..Note: C D E F G A B C
Degree: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 1

You can form 7 basic chords (triads) from the notes in the key of C. Each different note is the root of a different chord.

There are 3 combinations of the 1st, 3rd, and 5th notes that will be covered in this lesson. There are 3 more, but they are not included.

Major triad: 1 3  5
Minor triad: 1 b3 5
Diminished triad: 1 b3 b5

Your first chord will be a C chord, because C is the first scale degree. Now, since this is a C chord, it will be based on the C major diatonic scale. Take scale degrees 1 3 5 as shown below:

..Note: C D E F G A B C
Degree: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 1
........*...*...*

This gives you notes C, E, and G. Since all 3 of those notes are in the key of C, you do not have to modify them to fit, and you have a major triad (1 3 5). So your first chord is C major.

The second chord will be a D chord, because D is the 2nd scale degree. It's based on the D scale, which is D E F# G A B C# D. Now, take 1 3 5 of this scale:

..Note: D E F# G A B C# D
Degree: 1 2 3  4 5 6 7  1
........*...*....*

This gives notes D F# A. This presents a problem - F# is not in the key of C! In order to keep this chord in key, we have to flat the F# (lower it by 1/2 step) down to F natural. This gives D F A, which is scale degrees 1 b3 5 of the D major scale. 1 b3 5 is the formula for a minor triad. Therefore, your second chord is D minor.

The seventh chord will be a B chord, because B is the 7th scale degree. It's based on the B scale, which is B C# D# E F# G# A# B. Now, take 1 3 5 of this scale:

..Note: B C# D# E F# G# A# B
Degree: 1 2  3  4 5  6  7  1
........*....*....*

This gives notes B D# F#. D# (3) and F# (5) are not in the key of C, and must be flatted to D (b3) and F (b5), respectively. This gives us scale degrees 1 b3 b5, which is the formula for a diminished triad.

Based on these examples, you can figure out the rest of the chords. However, they always follow a pattern:

1 - major
2 - minor
3 - minor
4 - major
5 - major
6 - minor
7 - diminished

By applying this pattern, you can quickly figure out that the chords in the key of C are:

Cmaj
Dmin
Emin
Fmaj
Gmaj
Amin
Bdim

All the notes contained in the above chords will be in the key of C.

This pattern works for any of the keys in the Circle of 5ths. It does not, however, cover any scales that are not the major scale (such as the harmonic minor scale, for example. That has its own pattern of chords).

Part 2: Extended chords.
Okay, so you've got the basic triads down? Great! Now on to extended chords. First, you must learn the formulas for the 4 types of 7th chords.

......Major 7th: 1  3 5  7 - Abbreviation: maj7
......Minor 7th: 1 b3 5 b7 - Abbreviation: min7
...Dominant 7th: 1  3 5 b7 - Abbreviation: 7, dom7
Minor/Major 7th: 1 b3 5  7 - Abbreviation: min/maj7

Now, let's return to our first chord. We know it's a major chord from Part 1. We can now figure out what type of 7th chord it is using the same method.

..Note: C D E F G A B C
Degree: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 1
........*...*...*...*

Your notes are C E G B, all in the key of C. No changes are needed to the notes, and so this is a maj7 chord.

Our second chord was a minor chord in Part 1. Let's take it to the next level, a 7th chord.

..Note: D E F# G A B C# D
Degree: 1 2 3  4 5 6 7  1
........*...*....*...*

The notes are D F# A C#. F# (3rd) and C# (7th) are not in the key of C, and must be flatted on down to F natural (b3rd) and C natural (b7th). Therefore, your scale degrees for this chord are 1 b3 5 b7. This gives us a min7 chord.

Our 5th chord is a G chord - let's find the 7th.

..Note: G A B C D E F# G
Degree: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7  1
........*...*...*...*

Our notes are G B D F#. F# (7th) must be flatted to an F natural (b7). Our scale degrees are 1 3 5 b7, which is the formula for a dominant 7th chord. Our 5th chord is G7!

The seventh chord is a Bdim chord as shown in Part 1. Extending this chord, we find that it is a min7(b5) chord.

..Note: B C# D# E F# G# A# B
Degree: 1 2  3  4 5  6  7  1
........*....*....*.....*

This gives notes B D# F# A#. The D#, F#, and A# are all flatted 1/2 step to give degrees 1 b3 b5 b7. This is the formula for a min7(b5) chord, also known as a half diminished chord.

Using the same method you can figure out the other chords. They also follow a pattern. That pattern goes as follows:

1 - maj7
2 - min7
3 - min7
4 - maj7
5 - dom7
6 - min7
7 - min7(b5)

And, as you may have guessed by now, the chords in the key of C are:

Cmaj7
Dmin7
Emin7
Fmaj7
G7 OR Gdom7 (they are the same chord)
Amin7
Bmin7(b5)

That's all for now. Feel free to PM me if you have questions, or visit the Musician Talk forum!

Comments

[ronnie_sjr]

Omg. Great lesson, it's very easy to comprehend and very applicable indeed. Nice job dude! =)

gret article SilentDeftone, its easy to understand and has great info. too bad lessons dont make the front page, im sure many people would like to read this.

[The_Strat_Man]

Great lesson SD, great one.

[sailsingle4u]

very good. seems complicated though. or is it just dumb me. once you know the above, where does that get you; what are you able to do with this knowledge, if i were to remember it, how does it apply .....keep up the good work, great explanations, good teaching....just a dumb learner....thanks....

[Scartissue]

My English is not that bad (i think), but I can't use this because of some words. Is there a possibility to convert this text into a Dutch text? Hope so!

[Spanner]

Qoute from sailsingle4u: once you know this knowledge you can apply it to your own playing, you just know which chords to play to sound more melodic and diatonic

It can help you figure out backing chords, or determine the key of a song based on the backing chords.

I think you can convert it using babelfish.altavista.com perhaps.

[timmEH]

they should put a lessons thing on the front page

[Dardencia]

Yeah I'm lost.

[isaluteu]

it'd be cool if you posted a lesson on effective ways to use out of key chords : )

[Corwinoid]

Dard:

Diatonics can be kind of difficult to understand without actually seeing them written in music, and even then it takes some time to get a good handle on what's going on. The really confusing points are chord 'formulas', how chords are built out of a scale, and a few other points I won't bring up because they weren't in the original topic.

Basically, your major/minor unaltered chords are built by taking every other note of a major scale, starting at any given note. (ie. A-C#-E, for A major, this can be continued until you use all 7 notes in a scale, yielding some variation of a 13th... but that's a little complex).

Understanding the chord formulas is the next step, for instance the 'formula' for a minor chord is 1-b3-5. These are alterations compared to that chord's OWN major scale, often that's not made clear. For instance, the scale A major is A B C# D# E F# G#, if you take the 1st, 3rd and 5th you have A-C#-E, Amaj. Applying the minor formula to that, you would flat the 3rd, changing the C# to a natural C. Giving, A-C-E, Amin. It's pretty easy to see that that fits the Cmaj scale that Def demonstrated with.

Let us know if it was something else that was confusing you.

Overall Silent, great post 5*
-- C

Thanks Corwinoid! I tried to make this as comprehensive as possible. Although perhaps I should have included a Circle of 5ths section, I think that is another lesson in itself.

isaluteu:
it'd be cool if you posted a lesson on effective ways to use out of key chords : )

http://www.ultimate-guitar.com/columns/music_theory/writing_unusual_and_original_chord_progressions.ht
ml

Credit to Raindog for that one

[The_Strat_Man]

5 stars SD.

[isaluteu]

^i read that one a while ago, but it is now deleted. :\

[RelientK0289]

great article, one of the best i've seen in a while

[NeSiAngUrL]

This is a great artical, and i think that it's the best ever...

[NeSiAngUrL]

your site is awesome, because you have all the tabs to ll the songs i wanted....thank you so much...

[zensufi]

I've got a question. It sounds like Dylan, in "Don't Think Twice, It's Alright", uses the following progression for the first half of each verse (a dash indicates an additional measure of the same chord, without a change in phrase):

E B C#m - A E - E B C#m F#7 B

Clearly, he's in the key of E. However, he doesn't use an F#m7, he uses an F#7, and it doesn't sound dissonant. Is this because it resolves to the B?

Thanks

isaluteu:
^i read that one a while ago, but it is now deleted. :\
[POSTED: 04 December 2004 - 17:57]|

No it's not.

E B C#m - A E - E B C#m F#7 B

Clearly, he's in the key of E. However, he doesn't use an F#m7, he uses an F#7, and it doesn't sound dissonant. Is this because it resolves to the B?

Ah, interesting question! That's what's known as a secondary dominant chord.

Secondary Dominants
Basically, the V7 chord leads very strongly to the I chord, because the V7 chord contains the 7th tone of the I chord's major scale. The 3rd in the V7 chord is the same as the 7th in the I chord.
7ths almost ALWAYS resolve up to the root note. This is called tone leading, I believe.

Anyways, on to your question. In the key of Bmaj, the V chord is an F# chord - and since V7 chords resolve well to I chords, your F#7 chord resolves extremely well to B. When writing this chord, you'd write it as V/V instead of II7, because it's the V chord of the V chord.

Also, it works relatively well because the temporary key change is minimal. An F#7 chord is different from an F#m7 chord only in the chord's third. An F#7 has A#, while F#m7 has A natural. Take a look at your key - E. E has 4 sharps: F# C# G# D#. The next key over, B, has 5 sharps: F# C# G# D# A#. Therefore you're only changing one note, it's not a large change at all. Hardly noticeable if you don't analyze the song, eh?

I hope that was clear enough, I assumed you knew some theory!

[slash_620]

great lesson sd.5* no question.

[thagovna10]

nice lesson. beginner player here. helped clear up some things for me. thanks

[alexcjalali]

question:

ok so understand these 2 patterns, so how can i find out whats in key using, alll.. the other scales that arent major scale, ie natural minor, etcetc and all those patterns is there a simple formula or do i just have to memorize every pattern?

Simply use their scale when deriving the chords.

The key of Dm includes the notes D E F G A Bb C D.
Each note of the scale corresponds to a scale degree as shown:
..Note: D E F G A Bb C D
Degree: 1 2 b3 4 5 b6 b7 1

Then just use the same method. You'll find that if you start on say the Aeolian mode your chords will go as follows: m7 m7b5 maj7 m7 m7 maj7 dom7, the exact same order as a major scale except with a different starting chord. Those chords would be shown as i ii° III iv v VI VII, by the way.

[God withus]

great lesson. imformative and easy to understand.

[alexcjalali]

so aelion mode uses the same pattern but 7th chords? not minors and majors? im jsut wondering what the pattern of which chords, like the notes i can derive but how do i know if say the 5 th degree should be a minor? major? 7th? dimished? like i get it, but there has to be more than just 1 option

Ummm, well 7th chords are simply triads with some form of a 7th added, so if you wanted triads for the Aeolian mode then just strip the 7ths, and your pattern would be like so:
i - minor
ii° - diminished
III - major
iv - minor
v - minor
VI - major
VII - major

7th chords are minor or major, by the way.

[jimmyspithead]

i must be dumb i think am but am i the only one who doesnt understand this.....i dont get this stuff as much as i kno i should but i get it a lil bit but not alot....i want to kno how you figured those scales out like how did you get those sharps in the d scale and the b scale and how you figure would chrods are in what key....im lost i need help and lots of it.....email [e-mail]

Ah, you should learn the Circle of 5ths IMO. That's how you figure out what notes are sharped/flatted in each key. Try running a search or google or something, I know I've explained the concept multiple times on UG.

[voodoo_doll85]

that is sooo confusing

[h2o4u2]

Thank you, thank you, thank you.

You're welcome

voodoo_doll85, what are you confused about? Perhaps I can answer some questions via PM or this comments section!

[11yunited]

Good.. but please can I have some diagrams.. for instance showing the scales in tab or something. I'm not so great at learning with words.

^ Solved via PMs. Circle of 5ths will be your friend.

[chilis]

er.....rite, i kinda get that but its really long, got lost, really confusted,
but great lesson at the same time!

[MATTTHEMOP]

the difference in a c major chord and a cmajor 7 chord is that the 3rd fret on the G string is added. the added note should be the 7th note in the c major scale, which is B, so how come the 3rd fret on the g-string is used (it isnt a b, its an A sharp!)?

[MATTTHEMOP]

sorry...i misunderstood there! ignore my last message

^ Yeah, I was going to ask what in the world you were talking about?

[AznRocker16]

Dude you have cleared something up for me tht has been bothering me so much... I use to over think alot when i play and all but now it just comes so easy .. SilentDeftone you are the man!!! I definatily will come to you when i need help with theroy bro.. Thank You for posting this

You're welcome.

[alexcjalali]

sd, this was a FANTASTIC lesson


possibly the most useful i found on the entire site.


not to mention all the free theory information i get outta you in the forums :P

I wrote this in reaction to multiple threads on the subject in the Basics forum. redwing_suck encouraged me to expand it to cover 7ths
I believe it'll be included as a link in the new MT FAQ that Doug has been rumored to be working on

[Guitar ace]

all that i need to say is..... keep posting some more stuff for us!

[Bill Turnip]

Im new to this, and trying to learn music theory in my spare time from this site..all i can say is thank you, this has helped so much! Post more stuff! Something like what scales are in which key and why? Or something on modes that makes sense? Either way, that lesson was excellent

Fixing a mistake in the comments section:

Those chords would be shown as i ii° III iv v VI VII, by the way.

The chords of the Aeolian mode would be notated like this:
i
ii°
bIII
iv
v
bVI
bVII

You must include the flats/sharps just as intervals when referring to chords

[customx42inch]

how do u use sus chords and other stuff like that

For suspended chords just take the 1 2 5 (sus2), 1 4 5 (sus4), or 1 4 5 b7 (7sus4) of the root, allowing for the key's limiations.

[MATTTHEMOP]

can the different chord forms be worked out easily? i mean, i cant be bothered to just learn the chords from some site. i want to know the theory and from that i can figure the chords out myself. wot do u think?

I'm not sure I understand your question. I think it's a good idea to learn the thinking behind chords, that's why this lesson explains WHY.

[fatsmcfatterson]

great lesson man

[Mauser KAR98K]

Nice lesson, Very imformative, but in some way it still doesn't help song write. My problem is what chords can be used in the key of C. For instances I have devolped a chord progression that goes: C F Fmin C. Somtimes i will go to Amin after the Fmin. All chords are played at the root. Tell me why the Fmin sounds good in this. I have tried going from a major chord to a minor chord it other keys but they doind sound good at all excpet C and C min at the barr chord. (radiohead: Creep)

Read this lesson: http://www.ultimate-guitar.com/columns/music_theory/writing_unusual_and_original_chord_progressions.ht
ml

The reason why F - Fm - C works well is that you're using chromatic tone leading.
F - F A C
Fm - F Ab C
C - C E G
Through the chords the A chromatically descends from A to Ab to G. Fm also resolves well because the F resolves a semitone down to E.

I never said that these are the ONLY usable chords, or that these are the only ones that will sound good. If all chord progressions were in key, music would be boring.

-SD

[music_is_good]

I don't know if this wast answered but why is the V chord DOMINANT and not major??

[DimeRanG]

Good job SD

[pepethehepe]

Great Lesson. You explained it clearly. No questions asked. 5*

[anchains14]

why is it called a dominant seventh if there isn't even a seventh played in it? I'm just wondering

music_is_good:
I don't know if this wast answered but why is the V chord DOMINANT and not major??
[POSTED: 08 July 2005 - 19:38]|

It's dominant if you extend it to its 7th form. If you leave it as a triad it's simply major. Remember also that dominant chords ARE major chords.

anchains14:
why is it called a dominant seventh if there isn't even a seventh played in it? I'm just wondering
[POSTED: 23 July 2005 - 157]|

It's not, if there's no 7th in the chord it's not a dominant chord. The 5th degree of the major scale is sometimes called the dominant because it's possible to build a dominant chord off of it.

-SD

[Vegard]

Probably a great lesson.. Just too bad that I (and a lot of other outlanders) don't understand English well enough to understand it

[blue_lines]

this lesson is really great but i still have a question:if you want to play a song in the key of let's say Am, the chords that can be used are the same as the ones you use when you play in the key of c since the two scales have the exact same notes?

[MuseEtcEtc]

I never said that these are the ONLY usable chords, or that these are the only ones that will sound good. If all chord progressions were in key, music would be boring.

I wish I would have finished reaing this thread 3 months ago - do you mean that despite the fact only certain chords will fit into a key - whether they be majors/minors/diminished - you can use different chords that are out of key. I've only been using the chords that are in key to write songs! I wondered when Radiohead's music never seemed to fit a key (see - Exit Music). Does this then also apply to single notes? Are the keys more like guidlines for a song to stick to rather than rules which you have to slavishly follow every note of??

[difitzio]

fantastic lesson keep em coming mate

[defzeppelin]

Man, this was one of the best lessons I've seen in a long time! It was easy to understand, easy to apply, and it cleared up a lot of issues that I'd been wondering about. Keep 'em comin'.

[relientkrutch]

I don't get it..... what exactly are the degree stuff.....

[jake1232123]

i just started guitar and im trying to get it and i read this but its like your speaking another language plz help me [e-mail] i could use beginer help!!

blue_lines:
this lesson is really great but i still have a question:if you want to play a song in the key of let's say Am, the chords that can be used are the same as the ones you use when you play in the key of c since the two scales have the exact same notes?

Yes, the chords are the same, but they play different roles. A minor is the place you'd want to resolve to, not C major. It'll be the same chords?  but sound different!

Does this then also apply to single notes? Are the keys more like guidlines for a song to stick to rather than rules which you have to slavishly follow every note of??

Yeah, pretty much. You can always go out of key with single notes or chords, they are mostly guidelines. If everyone stuck in key all the time, music would be incredibly generic and boring!

-SD

[oxygenjunkie]

Great lesson but why when constucting a chord in the D Major Scale does the notes have to also be in the C major scale?

Erm, if you're in the KEY of C major you'd use notes from C major.

[Oma]

a newbie's just askin here: wat is diatonic? cud u pls give me any application of how to use it.. iv read an article about it and still i dont get it..

[Oma]

and cud u pls exlain 'circle of fifths', wat its all about and how to apply it in music..

i know its out of ur topic but the way u explain things, i think ur the one hu cud help me..

[rhcp_s]

hi

why is knowing this important in songwriting?
thanks

[lpstudio05]

awsome lesson man. really needed the help. keep it up.

[TyphoidSpider]

Well written, very comprehensible (if you know some theory),and helped me a great deal.

[fingersofflame]

very well written, very easy to understand, but at the same time it offers some useful knowledge into what chord goes where...i only wish that you could give examples of what the chords look like...or some page that shows you them...but still, 9 stars from me man!

[toastter]

very good. Although at some points it's hard to understand some of the concepts because you skip over them a bit, it is done very well...thanks

[BassPro182]

hey great lesson that really helped me....now maybe i can keep up in class

[kirbyrocknroll]

Great lesson SD, as usual =]

[Mr. Legato]

Thank you! thank you! thank you! this was a great lesson and i learned alot. definately one of the better lessons on this site. very helpful.

[oily_stage]

cheers, good lesson,
does anyone know any usefull lessons about what notes to play when playing lead over chord progrssion -
ie. do you just play the notes in that are in the key of the song,,,, or can the notes played vary over each chord.

[Madani]

Great lesson its really awesome

[aMadeUpword]

what about sus chords?

[Nuums]

'sus' means Suspend.. You take out a note from a chord. If it is, lets say, Asus8:

Take an A-scale:
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8!
e-----|
B-----|
G-----|
D-----4--6--7--|
A-----4--5--7-----|
E--5--7-----|

A (7th) on the D-string is number '8' because it's the 8th note you play in the scale..

Now take an A(-barré) chord:

e--5--|
B--5--|
G--6--|
D--7--|
A--7--|
E--5--|

And an Asus8 chord:

e--5--|
B--5--|
G--6--|
D--5--|

[Nuums]

..wow.. That ****ed completely up.. sorry :s
hope you understand it though..

[PeterMayhew1992]

much help for a beginner thanx

[Guitar_Soul]

this is way more better than my music instructor..

[Metatron]

Did you forget about augmented triads??

Augmented Triad - 1, 3, #5

[Metatron]

Edit : Btw, I'm still confused about the theory of a suspended chord.

[EBGuitar]

Great Lesson man, I will be coming to you with my questions, this was really cool to have. I am teaching myself and I want to make sure I understand theory, so this is great, it cleared up some of the questions I had.

[utzav]

nice...

[ckyrockes]

dude this is an awesome lession... earlyer this wekk i tred to learn this on a differnt lession... and on this lession i got it rite away!

[Six8Six]

Hey great lesson, i always wondered how people could tell what key a song was in and solo over it straing away =)

[Hero of the day]

Wow...This is SO great, really easy to understand, and what I was looking for! Thanks!!!

[bandgeek10]

Dude, this is like easy stuff, people have been playing songs in cocert/marching band and punk bands, etc, all in an equvilant of this key. EVERYONE KNOWS THIS KEY! Do it in a harder key if you actually want to teach someone this.

[bandgeek10]

I mean, yeah, you did a good job exaplaining, but if you want to teach us something new, do it in harder keys, like minor keys or something..

[dragon1552000]

Hey, nice article. The only correction I would like to make is that you labeled the 4th and 5th scale degrees as "major". They are actually called perfect 4th's and 5th's. I know i'm being technical but my theory teacher would have a hissy fit if I made that mistake haha. So in otherwords it goes:

I - Tonic
ii - Minor, major, Aug. or Dim
iii - Minor, major, Aug. or Dim
IV - Perfect (Or Aug. or Dim.)
V - Perfect (Or Aug. or Dim.)
vi - Minor, major, Aug. or Dim
vii - Minor, major, Aug. or Dim
VII - Ocatave (Tonic)

I know i'm being very technical but I think if the UGer's are to learn something, they mind as well learn it correctly and completely.

Thanks,
Aaron

[the_guy]

this is the greatest lesson in the world. i now understand that you don't just throw random chords together. you are the greatest person who ever lived

[the_guy]

you saved me

[Johnljones7443]

Nuums wrote:

'sus' means Suspend.. You take out a note from a chord. If it is, lets say, Asus8

Lol, Asus8?

Metatron wrote:

Did you forget about augmented triads??

Augmented Triad - 1, 3, #5

No augmented triad occurs within the major scale.

Metatron wrote:

Edit : Btw, I'm still confused about the theory of a suspended chord.

A suspended triad is a triad where the third is replaced with a different tone.

A sus2 chord replaces the third with the second, a sus4 chord replaces the third with a fourth.

Cmaj: C(1) - E(3) - G(5).
Csus2: C(1) - D(2) - G(5).
Csus4: C(1) - F(4)- G(5).

Does that clear it up?

[muzonerd]

vHey, nice article. The only correction I would like to make is that you labeled the 4th and 5th scale degrees as "major". They are actually called perfect 4th's and 5th's. I know i'm being technical but my theory teacher would have a hissy fit if I made that mistake haha. So in otherwords it goes:

I - Tonic
ii - Minor, major, Aug. or Dim
iii - Minor, major, Aug. or Dim
IV - Perfect (Or Aug. or Dim.)
V - Perfect (Or Aug. or Dim.)
vi - Minor, major, Aug. or Dim
vii - Minor, major, Aug. or Dim
VII - Ocatave (Tonic)

I know i'm being very technical but I think if the UGer's are to learn something, they mind as well learn it correctly and completely.

Hey, Aaron i think you've got your scale degrees and modes and tonalities mixed up
If we're going to get technical then naming the degree's would go:
1 = tonic
2 = super tonic
3 = mediant
4 = sub dominant
5 = dominant
6 = submediant
7 = leading note

and then you have tonality
1 = major
2 = minor
3 = minor
4 = major
5 = major
6 = minor
7 = diminished

and then you have the modes
1 = Ionian
2 = Dorian
3 = Phrygian
4 = Lydian
5 = Mixolydian
6 = Aeolian
7 = Locrian

thats used just for describing what you hear. If you were to call something a perfect 5th, that would only be used in representing the interval of 1 to 5. like C to G. just the same as a perfect 4th is the interval of 1 - 4 (in C maj = C to F)
hope that helps

[victoryaloy]

heres a much easier way to figure the chords out,
I got this from Johnljones7443:
C - D - E - F - G - A - B - C - D - E - F
1 3 5
1 3 5
1 3 5
1 3 5
1 3 5
1 3 5
1 3 5

[victoryaloy]

^ wow that didn't work out like i hoped..??.?

oh well!

[Calvinexp]

spectacularly written thanks a lot i learn so much by this lesson. you cleared up so many questions i had. and the lesson was easy to understand thanks again.

[amroze]

Great lesson! There are so many things to learn.. I think is a basic and a must for guitar players!

[FretZippy21]

Thanks Deftone, it helped me in someways, but I was looking for a way to "tell what key I am in" Because I really don't udnerstand, and nobody can explain it, if you can help PM me but it's 2:30 AM here so Im off to bed, I'll love to discuss this with you, if you do PM me. Later.

[GeekInThePink]

EXCELLENT! This lesson really helped me a lot. Great job dude!!

[simonzwaan]

Scartissue wrote:

My English is not that bad (i think), but I can't use this because of some words. Is there a possibility to convert this text into a Dutch text? Hope so!

I could translate it
lol

[simonzwaan]

aMadeUpword wrote:

what about sus chords?

Gsus = Jesus

[meharvan]

best lesson on UG IMO.... This shud be on the home page....

[sharene]

great lesson! I was just wondering can you play a minor scale over a chord progression based on the major scale?

[SpikOteZ]

Thank you very much for posting this lesson! I have found it really useful. Cheers SilentDeftone \m/

[Xtreme57]

I do not understand how to find the chords in the other keys not listed. I'm pretty new a this, and yeah ... don't get it. Please help!

[si!]

this really cleared a lot up for me, thanks a ton.

[sindrel]

Awesome, it's so easy, now i also understand my scales better.

[Saofan12]

best lesson i've seen on explaining chords, easy to understand a big help, thanks a lot dude.

[Punkismygod]

i didn't understand this quite

Punkismygod wrote:

i didn't understand this quite

What don't you get?

[slash&angus]

i Don't understand how do you make your diatonic scale. Don't need just the name of the notes but the places on the fretboard.

[snuggleblade]

the_guy wrote:

this is the greatest lesson in the world. i now understand that you don't just throw random chords together. you are the greatest person who ever lived

This has to be sarcastic. I hope it is because if you are serious I will say this: MUSIC HAS NO RULES. And music theory is simply a reference. I mean one of the best bands ever - The Butthole Surfers - used to tune their guitars by throwing them up in the air and however they landed, that would be their new tuning. So there is your music theory lesson from me.

[snuggleblade]

But great lesson nonetheless.

[crowmagnum]

I'm in mid fifties and just started playing again a few years ago after a 30 year hiatus. Thank you deftone. U have cleared up so much I can't even describe it. This is the stuff I have never found in any method books. I have never seen this info presented so concisely and completely. I know there is alot more to it but man what a GREAT place to start. Anybody on this board who doesn't grasp these concepts should sit down and study them like they have never studied before (well maybe med school or bar exam excepted) If u want to play, this stuff is worth its weight in gold. thanks again.
And if you count on tabs I urge you to learn to read notation. If you r in the least bit serious about music it will set u truely free. (as corny as that sounds)

[Zatchel]

This is pretty much the best lesson in the entire lesson section... throw out everything else because it is crap. The author defined everything that he stated in the title. Thank you.

[akosininio]

Thanks man, the only thing I see missing here is chord progressions maybe? Very helpful nonetheless. Thanks!

[2dor]

great lesson...helps a lot...this things can be applied to seewp arpegios also?...progressions of arpeggios...

[J.H.]

Wow! Great lesson!! that's very helpful. thank you~

[albooga]

Thanks for the lesson

[DEATHbyBLOOD]

i'm grateful for the fact you took yout time to write this lesson, it's one of those things you read and it helps you connect the dots in your head and all of the sudden you have this huge new understanding of the guitar. thanks dude!

[one vision]

Good stuff, I never knew there was a pattern, I always had to wreck my brain trying to figure it out.

[reGacc_0134]

um...im confused...ill work it out eventually, anyway, good lesson and good job working on this

[Beavshak]

great great lesson

[SilentDeftone]

dragon1552000 wrote:

Hey, nice article. The only correction I would like to make is that you labeled the 4th and 5th scale degrees as "major". They are actually called perfect 4th's and 5th's. I know i'm being technical but my theory teacher would have a hissy fit if I made that mistake haha. So in otherwords it goes:

I - Tonic
ii - Minor, major, Aug. or Dim
iii - Minor, major, Aug. or Dim
IV - Perfect (Or Aug. or Dim.)
V - Perfect (Or Aug. or Dim.)
vi - Minor, major, Aug. or Dim
vii - Minor, major, Aug. or Dim
VII - Ocatave (Tonic)

I know i'm being very technical but I think if the UGer's are to learn something, they mind as well learn it correctly and completely.

Thanks,
Aaron

I am correct. The chords are major in tonality. You are referring to intervals - the major scale has perfect 4th and perfect 5th intervals. Not chords. Perhaps you should find a better source to do your "correct learning" from.

-SD

[hersheybar255]

damn sd, this made alot of sense but when u started going all complex in the comments section about people personal questions about theory i got totally friggin lost in everything.. did u graduate from a school of music? if u didnt then i swear ur like a guitar god

[hersheybar255]

btw thanks for the lesson. ive read a couple times before a while ago and couldnt make anything out of it. i got it this time though. itd take me forever though to come up with a bunch of chords from different keys. and i dont know how i would apply them without memorizing them? could i also ask u another question? how come u did the 1 chord, then the second, then jumped to the seventh? i didnt understand that

[SilentDeftone]

The 3rd-6th chords can all be derived in the same way as the first two. The seventh creates a new chord (m7b5).

No, I did not graduate from any music school. Just learned from UG and The Real Book

[selinaguitar]

Thank you SO much SilentDeftone!!! I've struggled with learning music theory on my own and nearly quit guitar because it was giving me such a headache. This thread and the comments cleared up so much of my confusion!!

[XxPunkMafiaxX]

you are officially the most useful music teacher ive had! thanking you greatly il never remember all this, but il keep referring back to it whenever i write a new song hehehe

[Mudhippy2011]

I can't thank you enough man, I learned so much.

[jammy jam jam]

awesome! thanks

[mnic001]

Epic. I have been meaning to Google the phrase "chords in key" for months. This is so clear and simple and wonderful. Thank you.