Triad Chords [2/3]

View the full lesson at Triad Chords [2/3] | JustinGuitar

The pitch of the root note doesn’t matter? G-D-B is still a G triad where ever it shows itself on the fretboard? For example, in the G triad at the third fret, G is the “highest” note. But the G triad on the 7th fret is not. But it’s an octave away and the same note.

Hi there,

As long as the notes of the triad are G-B-D, it’s a G major triad. The root note (G) is not necessarily the lowest note of the chord. Similarly, if the notes are G-A#-D, it’s a G minor triad.

The various configurations of the notes of a given triad are called inversions. If the root note is the lowest note, it’s called the root position; if the 3rd (B) is the lowest note, it’s called the 1st inversion; and if the 5th (D) is the lowest note, it’s called the 2nd inversion. And these are all G major triads.

1 Like

Thanks for the info! “Inversions” is new to me. Good to know.

1 Like

Great explanation and help @Jozsef :slight_smile:

1 Like

Thank you :slight_smile: I think this particular piece of theory is easy to explain and understand, but the practical application of the triad shapes adds a lot of depth and breadth to guitar playing. Some time after getting into the major and minor triad shapes (still haven’t got to strings 3-4-5) I started to feel that the fingerboard kind of “opened up” and encouraged me to experiment more with various chord shapes.

@Jozsef

Another article I wrote: Triads & Soloing & Targeting Chord Tones Part 1 - getting started