Minor chords appear on scale degrees ii, iii, and vi.Ī diminished chord appears on scale degree vii. Major chords appear on scale degrees I, IV, and V. However, the D Major chord is a diatonic chord in the keys of D Major, G Major and A Major.Įven though this example is in C Major, the pattern of major, minor, and diminished chords is true for all major scales. The D Major chord, D F# A, is not a diatonic chord in the key of C because the F# does not occur in the scale of C Major. For example, the d Minor chord is a diatonic chord in the key of C because its notes, D F A, occur in the C Major scale. The standard chord inversion symbols indicate the inversion:Ī diatonic chord is a chord whose notes occur naturally in a given scale or key. Upper and lower case indicate chord quality:ĭiminished is lower case with an added º, e.g.: vii°Īugmented is upper case with an added +, e.g.: III+

The Roman Numeral indicates the scale degree of the chord root e.g.: I, ii, iii, IV V. The naming conventions for triads also apply to Roman Numerals. Using notes of the G major scale, build triads on every scale degree. Number the notes of the G Major scale as follows. 15-Triads and Scales MUSC 101 Music Fundamentals - Spring 2012 Unit 15 - Triads and Scales

F flat major triad