Chord Basics - Yamaha PSR-S550 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 "inver-
sions"). 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 additional 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").
● 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.
● Some Chord Types
(These are just some of the "Standard" chord types recognized by the PSR-S550.
Suspended 4 th
C
sus4
Perfect 5 th Perfect 4 th
Minor/major 7 th
C
mM7
th
Major 7 Minor chord
Minor chord
C
m
Major 3rd Minor 3rd
7 th
C
7
Flatted 7 th Major chord Flatted 7
7 th , flatted 5 th Minor 7
( b5 )
C
7
th th
Flatted 5 7 chord Flatted 5
Style (Auto Accompaniment) Functions
Minor third–three half steps (semitones)
Augmented chord Diminished chord
C
aug
Minor 3rd
Major 3rd Major 3rd
Root note
Minor 7 th
C
m7
th Minor chord Major 7
th , flatted 5 th 7 th , suspended 4
( b5 )
C
m7
th th
Minor 7 chord Flatted 7
3rd
3rd
Root
C
dim
Minor 3rd
C
m
Chord type
)
Major 7 th
C
M7
th Major chord
th
C
7sus4
th Suspended
4 th chord
61
PSR-S550 Owner's Manual