Resources and How Chords Are Named

How Chords Are Named

Resources

Interactive Virtual Piano Chords
Colm Mac Cárthaigh's wonderful piano chord script. [ No audio ]

Interactive Virtual Piano Keyboard
Click on any key to hear the note. [ Audio ]

Introduction to Music Theory
Free interactive online course.

How Chords Are Named
A chord is a combination of three or more tones sounded together. The construction of each chord is based on a tone called the root of the chord.
Chord symbols are frequently used to abbreviate chord names. The symbols consist of a letter (with or without a sharp or flat) identifying the root of the chord plus, in most cases, additional information identifying the other tones in the chord.
If the chord symbol consists only of the name of the root, the chord is a major triad (three note chord).
Examples of chord symbols represented in this site's Chord Charts are:

C	C major chord (C major triad).
C6	C major sixth chord.
C7	C seventh chord (C major triad).
+	Containing the interval of an augmented fifth.
sus	Suspended. The perfect fourth substitutes for the major third.
C9	C ninth chord (C major triad).
maj7	Containing the interval of a major seventh.
C+	C augmented chord (C augmented triad).
dim	Diminished seventh chord.
m	Containing the interval of a minor third.
6	Containing the interval of a major sixth.
7	Containing the interval of a minor seventh.

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Please Note: The information presented online in the "In A Nutshell" series, is offered as a free, and hopefully, helpful service. Time constraints, however, make it impossible to provide specific answers to individual inquiries.