Major & Minor Triad Formula
In order to form a major triad or a major chord all you need to do is pick the 1st, 3rd, and 5th note of the corresponding major scale: the 1-3-5.
So in this example, the notes forming the A Major Triad are:
- 1: A
- 3: C#
- 5: E
The 1-3-5 Represent the degrees of the scale.
And now if you analyze the notes of the A Major chord you realize it's made up of those three notes + some duplicates.
NB: Notice how the 1-3-5 aren't in order, this is normal, because of the geometry of the guitar fretboard, this happens with many chord shapes, but as long as these 3 notes are simultaneously played together, its a major triad.
Now what if we want to play a minor triad, let's stick to the key of A.
The minor triad formula is: 1-b3-5
There are 2 ways to go about this you either:
- Play the 1st, 3rd, and 5th note of the MINOR SCALE.
- Start with the MAJOR SCALE, and just flatten the 3rd note.
Check out min @2:39 for a more comprehensive tutorial.
So in this example, the notes forming the A minor Triad are:
- 1: A
- 3: C
- 5: E
And this is why when you play the A Major chord vs the A minor chord, it's only 1 note difference: C vs C#
So now every time you want to form a triad you look at the respective major scale of that key, example:
- C major triad -> 1-3-5 of the C Major scale
- C minor triad -> 1-b3-5 of the C Major scale
Finding The Triads Without The Major Scale
In case you forgot your major scale, definitely review it, but here's an easy way to find your triads without referencing any scales.
Steps to follow to easily form MAJOR triads:
- Find your 1, your root note
- Move 4 frets up, to find the 3
- Move 3 frets up, to find the 5
Steps to follow to easily form MINOR triads:
- Find your 1, your root note
- Move 3 frets up, to find the b3
- Move 4 frets up, to find the 5
Check out min @4:24 for a demonstration in the key of G.
Let's take things up a notch, now that you know what are triads and how you can find them, it's time for us to start using them in our everyday playing.
A useful way to use triads on guitar, is to look for them on 3 strings, this will allow you to find and target those notes on command or even strum any progression you want in different areas of the fretboard.
We're going to start with major triads, all you need to do is:
-Pick the triad you want to play
-Identify it's chord tones (1-3-5)
-Pick one of those chord tones + Find it on the first string (High e string)
-Find the remaining chord tones on the 2nd and 3rd strings (B and G Strings)
Check out min @5:31 for a live demonstration.
Disclaimer: Try finding them yourself before looking at the diagrams below, the whole point of this lesson is to train you never needing to reference diagrams anymore.
Notice how you get 3 different inversions, that's because triads are made up of 3 notes.
Now for their minor counterparts all you have to do if flatten the 3rd, So Bb instead of B for the G minor triad.
Check out min @7:36 for the demonstration.
Remember, do the same process yourself, try applying it to other chords, or your favorite chord progressions.
The possibilities are endless, you could also do the same thing on other pairs of strings, I'm sharing with this lesson the triad shapes on the D, G, and B strings you will get new shapes for every other combination of strings.
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