Intervals

*I have chosen the terminology “Diminished 5th” and “Augmented 5th”, as they are used to construct of Diminished and Augmented chords. They are more commonly referred to as “Tritone” and “Minor 6th”, respectively.

Chords

Just the essentials

Inversions:

Interval + Inversion = 12 half-steps →

Triad/Chord Inversion:

Chords of Major Scale:

• The 1,4,5 are Major , as expressed by upper case roman numerals I, IV, V.
• The 2,3,6 are Minor, as expressed by lower case roman numerals ii,iii,vi.
• The 7 is Diminished, denoted by lower case roman numeral with dominant superscript, vii°.
• To build each chord’s triad, simply use the 1,3,5 from the each respective root.
• Using C Major as our example framework:
  • Primary chords are C Major, F Major, and G Major.
    • C Major triad is C-E-G. F Major is F-A-C. G Major is G-B-D.
  • Secondary chords are D Minor, E Minor, and A Minor.
    • D Minor triad is D-F-A. E Minor is E-G-B. A Minor is A-C-E.
  • The leading tone is B Diminished, which can build tension as it wants to resolve to the tonic - C Major.
    • B Diminished triad is B-D-F.

*C Major is chosen as the example because it has only natural notes (no #/♭). Be sure to change the tonic and use notes of it’s major scale for different keys.