Chord Basics - Yamaha Portatone PSR-E403 Owner's Manual

Chord Basics

Two or more notes played together constitute a "chord".
The most basic chord type is the "triad" consisting of three notes: the
root, third, and fifth degrees of the corresponding scale. A C major triad,
for example, is made up of the notes C (the root), E (the third note of the
C major scale), and G (the fifth note of the C major scale).
In the C major triad shown above, the lowest note is the "root" of the
chord (this is the chord's "root position" ... using other chord notes for
the lowest note results in "inversions"). The root is the central sound of the chord, which supports and
anchors the other chord notes.
The distance (interval) between adjacent notes of a triad in root position is either a major or minor third.
Major third–four half steps (semitones)
The lowest interval in our root-position triad (between the root and the third) determines whether the triad
is a major or minor chord, and we can shift the highest note up or down by a semitone to produce two addi-
tional chords, as shown below.
Major chord
C
M
Major 3rd
Minor 3rd
The basic characteristics of the chord sound remain intact even if we change the order of the notes to create
different inversions. Successive chords in a chord progression can be smoothly connected, for example, by
choosing the appropriate inversions (or chord "voicings").
G Reading Chord Names
Chord names tell you just about everything you need to know about a chord
(other than the inversion/voicing). The chord name tells you what the root of the
chord is, whether it is a major, minor, or diminished chord, whether it requires a
major or flatted seventh, what alterations or tensions it uses ... all at a glance.
G Some Chord Types
(These are just some of the "Standard" chord types recognized by the PSR-E403/YPT-400.)
th
Suspended 4
C
sus4
th th
Perfect 5 Perfect 4
th
Minor/major 7
C
mM7
th
Major 7 Minor chord
Minor chord
C
m
Minor 3rd
Major 3rd
th
7
C
7
th
Flatted 7 Major chord
th th
7 , flatted 5
( b5 )
C
7
th th
Flatted 5 7 chord
Style (Auto-accompaniment) Functions
Minor third–three half steps (semitones)
Augmented chord
C
aug
Major 3rd
Major 3rd
th
Minor 7
C
m7
th
Flatted 7 Minor chord
th th
Minor 7 , flatted 5
( b5 )
C
m7
th th
Flatted 5 Minor 7 chord
PSR-E403/YPT-400 Owner's Manual
3rd
3rd
Root
Diminished chord
C
dim
Minor 3rd
Minor 3rd
C
m
Root note Chord type
th
Major 7
C
M7
th
Major 7 Major chord
th th
7 , suspended 4
C
7sus4
th
Flatted 7 Suspended
th
4 chord
75