Piano Chord Dictionary
Pick a root and a chord type. You’ll see every note highlighted on the keyboard — press Play to hear it.
C Major
3 notes · starts at C4
Hear it in context — chord progressions
Chords rarely appear alone. Listen to three classic progressions built from this dictionary.
The Pop Progression
I – V – vi – IV in C major: C · G · A minor · F. The backbone of hundreds of hit songs.
Canon Chords
The descending sequence from Pachelbel’s Canon in D, transposed to C. Elegant and endlessly reusable.
12-Bar Blues Turn
C7 – F7 – C7 – G7: the opening of a blues chorus. Dominant 7ths give it that gritty color.
What is a chord?
A chord is a group of notes played together, usually three or more, built by stacking intervals above a root note. The most common chord in Western music is the major triad — a root, a major third (four semitones above the root), and a perfect fifth (seven semitones above the root). Play a C major triad and you hear the bright, resolved sound behind thousands of songs.
Change one interval and the mood flips: lower the major third by one semitone and you get a minor chord, darker and more melancholic. Add a seventh, suspend the third, or flatten the fifth, and you unlock the colors used in jazz, blues, and film scores.
How to use this tool
- Choose a root note — the note the chord is built on.
- Choose a chord type — the recipe of intervals stacked above that root.
- Look at the keyboard: every highlighted key belongs to the chord.
- Press Play chord to hear it, then find the same keys on the big piano above and play it yourself.
Chord types worth knowing first
| Chord | Formula (semitones) | Sound |
|---|---|---|
| Major | 0 – 4 – 7 | Bright, happy, resolved |
| Minor | 0 – 3 – 7 | Dark, emotional |
| Dominant 7 | 0 – 4 – 7 – 10 | Bluesy, wants to resolve |
| Major 7 | 0 – 4 – 7 – 11 | Smooth, dreamy |
| Minor 7 | 0 – 3 – 7 – 10 | Mellow, soulful |
| Sus4 | 0 – 5 – 7 | Open, floating |
Start with major and minor triads in all twelve keys, then add dominant 7ths. Those three shapes alone cover most pop, rock, and folk music — and the progressions above show how they connect.