The Standard Basic Chords

Root C C# D D# E F F# G G# A A# B Chord Major Minor Diminished Augmented Major 7th Dominant 7th Minor 7th Half Diminished 7th Diminished 7th Suspended 2 Suspended 4 Major 6th Minor 6th

Formula

Spatial Degrees

C Major

Spatial

M3 + m3

Degrees

1 3 5

Symbols

C, CM, Cmaj

Active Formula

1 3 5

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Play Relative Chords I-IV-V I-V-vi-IV

C Major selected

There are two systems of thinking to play our standard basic chords.

The first is to think of the chord notes spatially (how they’re constructed by intervals). The second is to think of the chord notes as degrees of the Major Scale.

The following two pages are formula sheets that outline both ways of thinking.

Try playing the “C” version of each standard chord. And work through each chord using the formulas on both pages. Your brain will start making connections and you’ll begin to internalize the formulas.

After finishing the “C” version of each chord, you can experiment with other versions of the chords as well as come back to the sheets anytime you encounter a chord.

Standard Chord Formulas Sheet: Spatial

Chords	Spatial
Major	M3 + m3
Minor	m3 + M3
Diminished	m3 + m3
Augmented	M3 + M3
Major 7th	Maj Triad w/ M7
Dominant 7th	Maj Triad w/ m7
Dominant 7th #5 (Augmented 7th)	Aug Triad w/ m7
Dominant 7th b5	M3, Tritone, and m7 (starting from root)
Minor 7th	min Triad w/ m7
Minor(Major 7th)	min Triad w/ M7
Half Diminished 7th (Minor 7th b5)	dim Triad w/ m7
Diminished 7th	m3 + m3 + m3

Standard Chord Formulas Sheet: Major Scale Degrees (WWHWWWH)

Chords	Major Scale Degrees
Major	1   3   5
Minor	1   b3   5
Diminished	1   b3   b5
Augmented	1   3   #5
Major 7th	1   3   5   7
Dominant 7th	1   3   5   b7
Dominant 7th #5 (Augmented 7th)	1   3   #5   b7
Dominant 7th b5	1   3   b5   b7
Minor 7th	1   b3   5   b7
Minor(Major 7th)	1   b3   5   7
Half Diminished 7th (Minor 7th b5)	1   b3   b5   b7
Diminished 7th	1   b3   b5   bb7

Standard Chord Symbols List

Chords	Symbols
Major	C	CM	Cmaj	C∆
Minor		Cm	Cmin	C-
Diminished			Cdim	C°
Augmented			Caug	C+
Major 7th		CM7	Cmaj7	C∆7
Dominant 7th	C7		Cdom7
Dominant 7th #5 (Augmented 7th)	C7(+5)	C7(#5)	Caug7	C+7
Dominant 7th b5	C7(-5)	C7(b5)	Cdom7(b5)
Minor 7th		Cm7	Cmin7	C-7
Minor(Major 7th)		Cm(M7)	Cmin(maj7)	C-∆7
Half Dim 7th (Minor 7th b5)		Cm7(b5)	Cmin7(b5)	Cø7 / C-7(b5)
Diminished 7th			Cdim7	C°7

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Church Music Application

Practice the I-V-vi-IV progression in C as C, G, Am, and F. Listen for how major and minor triads carry the emotional center of many worship choruses.

Move the same progression to G as G, D, Em, and C once the shapes feel steady.