How Many Chords Are There, Anyway?

Since chords (the main component of harmony) are one of the three most vital elements of music ? the others being melody and rhythm ? it would be useful to know how many chords there are. And it doesn't matter whether you play piano or guitar or some other instrument ? chords are chords.

It's certainly not necessary to learn all the chords in the whole wide world, but it is necessary to learn some of them ? at least enough to allow you to harmonize the songs you would like to play.

But meanwhile, there are 3 chords -- just 3 -- that you absolutely, positively have to know. If you don't know these three, there's hardly a song in the whole world that you could play. But by knowing just 3 chords, you can play hundreds, if not thousands of songs! And those chords are simply the primary chords in any given key:

·The I chord (the chord built on the 1st degree of the scale)

·The IV chord (the chord built on the 4th degree of the scale)

·The V chord (the chord built on the 5th degree of the scale)

For example, if you were playing in the Key of C, the I chord would be C (c, e, g), the IV chord would be F (f, a, c), and the V chord would be G (g, b, d).

But as you probably know, there are thousands of other chords, so it would be helpful to at least know of their existence and maybe someday learn them.

So here goes:

Since there are 12 major keys one can play in (not counting enharmonic keys ? keys that sound the same but are written differently), there are:

*12 major triads (a triad is a 3 note chord)

*12 minor triads

*12 diminished triads

*12 augmented triads

*12 diminished 7th chords (4 note chords)

*12 major 6th chords

*12 minor 6th chords

*12 dominant 7th chords

*12 major 7th chords

*12 minor 7th chords

*12 half-diminished chords

*12 9th chords

*12 flat 9th chords

*12 9th/major 7th chords

*12 9th/minor 7th chords

*12 11th chords

*12 13th chords

*12 suspensions

*12 flat 5th chords

*12 flat 5th maj 7th chords

If that's not enough chords for you, remember that each chord can be inverted ? turned upside down. So multiply all the triad chords by 3, and all the 4 note chords by 4, and all the 5 note chords by 5?.

Then there are:

· poly-chords ? chords that combine two or more other chords, and

· voicings ? the way chords are positioned on the piano keyboard

And that's just in one octave. A standard piano has 7 octaves, so multiply all that by 7 and you get the answer to how many chords there really are:

More than you can count.

But again, you don't need to know them all. Just master enough so that you can play the songs you want to play, then gradually over time learn more and more chords. Your musical world will continue to grow and maturity as a musician will become obvious to others.

Duane Shinn is the author of over 500 music courses for adults. His low-cost CD ROM software titled "Duane Shinn's Instant Piano Chord Finder Chart!" is used by musicians around the world. He is also the author of the popular free 101-week online e-mail newsletter titled "Amazing Secrets Of Exciting Piano Chords & Sizzling Chord Progressions" with over 60,000 current subscribers.

---

How Piano Lessons Benefit Young Children

Piano lessons provide a wide range of benefits to young... Read More

The History Of Drums - A Journey Of Sound

Music and musical instruments are an extremely important part of... Read More

Piano Music - How to Begin and End a Piece

How do you begin a piece of music? That's a... Read More

How To Overcome The Lyric Writing Hurdles That Are Keeping You Behind

The lyric writing side of songwriting is known to create... Read More

Try Some New Music!

Stuck in a music rut?It happens. After listening to your... Read More

Modal Theory for Guitar Players - Part 1

IntroductionThe fact that you are holding this in your hands... Read More

Performing, Whats the Big Deal?

Performance anxiety is not something that only happens to musicians,... Read More

The Time Machine Exist!

We call it music, ever noticed how vividly music triggers... Read More

Reasons to Ditch Your Guitar Pick

Lately, I haven't been using my guitar pick all that... Read More

How to Remove DRM from WMA - Is It Legal and Worth the Effort?

Technically, it's illegal to remove DRM from WMA protected music.... Read More

The Dark Side of P2P File Sharing

P2P file sharing programs are free. Period. But there are... Read More

Breathing Space in Music

While most students want to know when to play certain... Read More

The First Step and Most Important Thing in Learning Guitar

Most of the guitar lovers playing guitar for few years... Read More

Health and Beauty Tips for Your Brass: Keep It Shiny!

Did you know that the health and beauty of your... Read More

Dierks Bentley Brings The Heat From Nashville To The North!

Dierks Bentley is more than meets the eye, but what... Read More

Playing The Violin Is For Everyone Who Loves Music

Every day musical instruments enrich the lives of people around... Read More

Shut Up And Sing

What is it with these performers and their politics? Do... Read More

Free, Legal Music Online

Almost everyone has heard about the massive crack down on... Read More

Buying A Guitar

There are many things to consider when buying a new... Read More

When Does Practice Make Perfect? Not Much Of The Time Unless All The Pieces Fit First

Often people receive a banjo, mandolin, fiddle, guitar or some... Read More

Play Too Loud And Well Cut The Power!

"Turn it down!"How often have you heard that command in... Read More

A Quick and Easy Composition Method

Here's the method I use every time I want to... Read More

The Flower Garden and New Age Piano Music

If you've ever looked at a flower garden, not only... Read More

JOHN LENNON - The Man and His Times

John Lennon wasn't always my favorite Beatle; at first it... Read More

The British Invasion

The Kasabian concert at the Kool Haus seemed like a... Read More

Legend Vega Releasing New Pop CD

Legend Vega is scheduled to release her newest CD this... Read More

Are iPods Changing the Way We Listen to Music

They're everywhere, and not only are they everywhere, they look... Read More

Learn to Read Music Online

If you or anyone you know wants to learn to... Read More

CD Mastering using Har-Bal

Feel free to download the entire manual detailing the mastering... Read More

Is the Mainstream Ready Once Again for Dance Music?

Not since the heyday of Dance/Pop Artists like Taylor Dayne... Read More

To Record or Not To Record - At Home, That Is

I will be honest. I am addicted to music recording.... Read More

How To Find The Right Guitar Teacher

Finding a good teacher is not always easy, at any... Read More

Spectral Muses Revisited: The Channeled Melodies of Rosemary Brown

Rosemary Brown (1916-2001) was a middle-aged South London widow, making... Read More