It can seem like there is an endless stream of chords when you’re first getting into playing guitar and often how to put them together can seem baffling…

So , How DO we find which chords work together?

There are a few ways with slightly different approaches that compliment each other.

Today I’m going to focus on one of these…

LEARN THE CHORDS IN A KEY

 

Chords & Keys

Chords and Keys are the foundations of music:  Music is grouped into Keys. Keys are made up of Chords.  Chords in the same Key work together. 

By understanding the sound of chords in a single key and what their relationships are to each other is a priceless attuning for your ears, your guitar playing and consequently the craft of songwriting.

There are certain tried and tested chord combinations that we will know without knowing we know. Music history is full of them. Just listen to any legendary epic song and you are presented with a successful chord sequence.

Once you understand how the chords in a key work you can then dive further into key changes and borrowed chords.

 

Major Keys

Today we start with Major Keys. Major Keys are made up of 7 chords. These 7 chords are specific and always in the same order.

To give some context lets look at C Major.

 

The chords that make up the KEY OF C MAJOR ARE:

C   Dm   Em   F   G   Am   Bmb5

They are given a Roman Numeral  –

C = I

Dm = ii

Em = iii

F = IV

G = V

Am = vi

Bmb5 = vii

 

Exercise: Play the chord sequence in order on your guitar.  Get used to the sound of the chords next to each other and in order. These chords always work together. Any songs that exclusively use these chords is in the Key of C.

 

There are 3 Major chords – C F G (I IV V)

3 Minor chords – Dm Em Am (ii iii vi)

1 Diminished chord – Bmb5 (vii)

Chords evoke a mood.  Major chords are said to be happy and cheerful. Minor = sad, sombre.  Diminished = eerie, tense

By using different Quality (major, minor etc) chords and combinations we can evoke a different mood in our music.

Chord Sequences

• The first chord in a sequence in this key will generally be the C (I) but not always.
• Songs are commonly made up of 3 or 4 chords (though again…not always).

 

Well-known songs in the Key of C

A great way to get more context and build our musical ear is by looking at some successful songs to give us an idea of what works and how we can adapt the information above.

No Woman No Cry – Bob Marley:  Chords – C G Am F C G C   (Numerals Sequence =  I V vi IV I V I)

La Bamba – Ritchie Valens: C F G G   (Numerals = I IV V V)

Hallelujah – Leonard Cohen: C Am C Am F G C G   (I vi I vi  IV V I V)

Love Yourself – Justin Bieber:  C G Am Am Dm C G G   (I V vi vi  ii I V V)

Let it Be – The Beatles: C G Am F C G F C   (I V vi IV I V IV I)

 

There we have 5 different chord sequences that evoke different (and some similar) moods.  All in one key.

 

Exercise: Play the chord sequences above on your guitar and really listen to the sound and mood they create. 

 

Formula

Due to the addition of the Numerals we now have formulas for successful chord progressions. This can now be transposed into different Keys.

For Example:

The chords in the Key of G are: G  Am  Bm  C  D  Em  F#mb5

Again, number them 1 – 7 with the Roman Numerals and we can use a chord formula from one of the songs in C above and play it using chords in the Key of G

eg. La Bamba is  I   IV   V   V  

in the Key of G this is: G  C  D  D

Exercise: Play I IV V in C then play it in G and see how the relationship between the chords being the same means the final effect of the chord progression is the same (though in a different key).

Try this with the other numerical sequences.  When you’re ready look for some more common chords number sequences, there are many more.

 

Conclusion

Learning how to understand and hear chords in a key and how their relationships work is excellent ear training. Chords in a key work together and when they are put into different combination have a different effect. You will notice some chords are put together more frequently than others.  Have fun playing with this. As an introduction into how we find which chords work together this will give you a foundation on which you can build.