Chords
A chord is a group of three or more notes played simultaneously. All pieces have an underlying chord sequence. Different types of chords can be formed by using different combinations of notes. The most basic type of chord contains three different notes and is called a triad. The most common triad is the major chord. All major chords contain three notes taken from the major scale of the same letter name. These three notes are always the 1 (first), 3 (third) and 5 (fifth) degrees (notes) of the major scale, so the chord formula for the major chord is: 1 3 5.
The C Major Chord
The C major chord is constructed from the C major scale. Using the 1 3 5 chord formula on the following C major scale, it can be seen that the C major chord contains the notes C, E and G.
Once you have the correct notes for a C chord they can be arranged in any order. As long as the notes are still C, E and G, you still have a C chord. For example, a C chord could be played C E G, or E G C, or G C E, or even G E C. These various arrangements of the notes within a chord are called inversions. It is also possible to double notes within a chord. The following diagram shows a common way of playing a C major chord on the guitar. It contains two C notes and two E notes. It is still a C major chord because it only contains notes called C, E and G. Doubling notes is common when playing chords on the guitar.
To play this chord, place your left hand fingers in the positions indicated by the fingering numbers and strum (brush) your right thumb across the strings.
C
The G7 Chord
G7
The most common chords used to harmonize melodies in the key of C major are C and G7. A common fingering for the G7 chord is shown in the following diagram.
