Lesson 43 of 72 · Three notes together: C, F and G major
A chord is three or more notes played together. The most important one of all is called the major triad… and you already have its notes under your fingers.
Put your right hand in C position, thumb on middle C: that’s the C major pentascale, C D E F G. Keep only notes 1, 3 and 5: C, E, G, with fingers 1, 3 and 5. That’s the C major chord: every other white key.
C – E – G, fingers 1-3-5: the C major chord.
Did you know?: When you play a low C, the string also vibrates, very faintly, on higher notes: the overtones (or harmonics). The first ones are C, G, C, E, G… The C major chord is hidden inside a single note!
Place your three fingers on their keys, then press them down in one motion. With a mouse, click the keys one after the other.
Right hand in C position: the chord blocked, then broken (C – E – G – E). Keep all three fingers resting on their keys, even when they’re not playing.
Slide the same hand shape over to F: F – A – C. Then to G: G – B – D. These are notes 1, 3 and 5 of the F and G pentascales: the F major and G major chords. Always every other white key, always fingers 1-3-5 (and 5-3-1 in the left hand).
In a chord symbol, the letter names the root, and a letter on its own means major: C means C major, F means F major, G means G major. Pop, rock and jazz musicians read these symbols all the time.
C, F and G major: three lines, three spaces, three lines.
Why this way: Just as with interval reading (Faber, Frances Clark), you recognize a chord by its shape: on the staff, it looks like a snowman, three lines or three spaces stacked up. A shape can be read at a glance, much faster than three notes worked out one by one.
The symbols first (any octave, any order), then chords written on the staff, to play exactly where they are.
The same chords in the left hand, pinky on the root. Your arm moves the hand as a block: the shape doesn’t change.
C – F – G – C: your right hand travels with the same shape. The computer plays the bass. One whole note per chord, then two half notes per chord.
← Lesson 42: Major and minor pentascales Lesson 44: The minor chord →