Easy Piano Lessons

Before we talk about the difference between major and minor chords it’s important to have a talk over what a chord is.

It is a combination of three voices that creates a certain musical impression. In this article we’re going to talk about the difference between major and minor chords, theoretically speaking, and about the sound they create.

Major and Minor Chords

In order to define a major chords we have to be familiar with the name of two intervals. If a chord is a combination of three voices an interval is basically the distance between two voices.

If the distance between the lowest note of the interval and the upper note is of 2 tones – you’re playing a major third.

If the distance between the lowest note of the interval and the upper note is of 1 1/2 tone – you’re playing a minor third.

We’re going to use both these intervals to create the major and minor chords.

Chords can be played in various positions but we’re going to play major and minor chords the root position in this piano lesson. What do I mean by that? Well, The letter that states the chord name should be the lowest voice in the chord.

If we play a C major chord for example, we already know C would be the first out of three voices in the chord.

What would be the next two? That’s quite easy. You should follow the following formulas.

Major Chord = Major 3rd + Minor 3rd

Minor Chord = Minor 3rd + Major 3rd

So here’s something interesting; It’s the first interval of the chord that defines the character of the chord. If a chord starts with a major third it will always be some kind of a major chord (Even if it has 4 voices or more).

Same goes for the minor chord.

So if we take C as the root note and would like to create a C major chord we would get: C-E-G.The distance between C and E is of 2 tones and then 1 1/2 between E-G.

C minor would be C-Eb-G. We switched the order of the intervals simply by lowering the middle note in half a tone. Now we’ve got 1 1/2 tones between C and Eb and 2 tones between Eb and G.

You can find a free piano chord chart of all major chords in here. There’s a free minor piano chord chart in here as well.

And the sound? Well, the major chords are often interpreted as happy or optimistic chords while their melancholic brothers come in the form of a minor triad. It is not written in stone but when understanding that a major chord derives from a major scale (which is often used in bright and joyful pieces) helps to realize the difference between these two chords.

Wonder how they derive from these scale? Well, A C major scale is built out of the following note: C-D-E-F-G-A-B-C. If you start building the first chord degree from C major in thirds you play the C note, skip the D to E, then skip the F note to G. Altogether you get the C-E-G.

Do the same with C minor which has these note: C-D-Eb-F-G-Ab-Bb-C and you’ll get the notes C-Eb-G.Play both this scales to review their character and you’ll understand how the chord is connected to its scale.

So to conclude, both the major and minor chords share the same intervals only the major chord starts with a major third while the minor chord starts with a minor third. The major chord in considered to be more optimistic than the minor chord which is often interpreted as the melancholic one.

www.piano-play-it.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Dudu_Yzhaki
http://EzineArticles.com/?Piano-Chords—Major-Vs-Minor-Chords&id=5012981

The piano teaching “establishment” has been around for hundreds of years, and although there are new technology and teaching methods, the basic approach hasn’t changed all that much. Why?

Maybe they think it’s somehow required that you go through years of lessons, exercises, scales, blah, blah, blah before you should be allowed to sound good on the piano.

If all you want to do is make songs sound REALLY GOOD on the piano, with professional chords and smooth chord progressions, why in the world should you have to wait years, if you could learn to do it in a week or two.

“Professional Piano Chords For Everyday Pianists” is a digital e-book. You’ll instantly download it as an easy-to-use PDF file.

Here are just a few of the things you’ll learn in “Professional Piano Chords For Everyday Pianists”:

The absolute fastest way to learn any new chord, so you can play it the instant you see the chord symbol.

The single 3-chord progression found in 70-90% of all popular music that just might change the way you listen to and play music on the piano forever.

The very special chord that can open the doors to a whole new world of piano playing (it did for me) – and exactly how and when to use it.

Exactly where to play chords on the keyboard so they sound the best – not too muddy, and not too thin, but just right.

A VERY simple method for adding bass notes to your beautiful new chords – it may look overly simple, but it can make your playing sound like a true professional in no time.

How to play a chord progression so that it sounds good – it’s called voice leading, and it is one of the secrets to professional-sounding piano that very few people learn how to do properly – except for you!

Clear, Simple Chord Charts Show You Exactly
How To Play Like The Pros – OBVIOUSLY, These Are The Beginning Chords Just To Show You How I Illustrate Chords In The Book – We’ll Move WELL Beyond These Basic Chords

Why is it important to know about dominant seventh chords? The Dominant 7 Chord is an extremely important chord because it defines “key”. Before we explore the function of this chord, let us see how it is constructed.

Construction

The notes, by number, in a dominant 7 chord are: 1 3 5 b7. If we plug in notes from the C Major scale, we get C E G Bb. Using the same formula, the D7 chord would contain the notes D F# A C.

Of course, if you are to be able to use this formula to construct dominant seventh chords in all 12 keys, you must be thoroughly familiar with key signatures. In fact, memorizing the key signatures for all twelve major keys is probably the most important first step toward a working knowledge of music theory.

The dominant seventh chord is the chord you want to use when you are told to play “C7″. Construct this chord by starting with the MAJOR TRIAD and adding the flatted seventh note in the scale.

Function

The Dominant 7 Chord functions as a “V” chord.

This means that in a chord progression, this is the chord that is built upon the fifth note in the scale. For example, a G7 chord is built on the 5th note of the C MAJOR scale and therefore is the V chord in the key of C.Let’s try another one: What is the V chord in the key of “D”? The fifth note in the “D” scale is “A”, so the V chord in the key of D is A7.

The V chord determines the key because it occurs only ONCE in each key. For example, if you see the chord “E7″, you KNOW you are in the Key of “A” because “E” is the fifth note of the “A” major scale.

What if you see the chord “B7″? If you said that you are in the key of “E”, you are absolutely right because “B” is the 5th note in the “E” scale.

Try another one–what key are you in if you see a “C7″ chord?

Of course, to apply this formula to all 12 keys, you again need to know the Key Signatures.

If you would like more detailed information about chord formulas and music theory, there are extensive free lessons in the theory section of my website:

http://www.may-studio-music-lessons.com/music-theory-basics.html

http://www.may-studio-music-lessons.com

Visit this site for free (really–no trial periods, no tricks–just FREE!) guitar, drum, piano, theory and composition lessons.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Lynne_May
http://EzineArticles.com/?Basic-Music-Theory-Concepts—Dominant-Seventh-Chords&id=1049576