Learning Objectives

Learn how to spell different types of triads.

Triads IV: Spelling Triads

Chord Labels

There are various methods for labeling chords. Later in the course, we will learn how to use roman numerals, for example. But for now, we will adopt a simpler approach, as outlined in the table below. Major triads are represented with an uppercase letter (indicating the root). Minor triads use a lowercase letter. Diminished triads use a lowercase letter with a degree sign (indicating "diminished"). Augmented triads use an uppercase letter with a plus sign (indicating "augmented"). We will use these labels in the discussion that follows.

Quality	Major	Minor	Diminished	Augmented
Label	G	g	g°	G⁺

Spelling Triads

You can always spell triads by figuring out how to spell the individual thirds that it contains. (A piano keyboard is very useful for this, since it allows you to more accurately see major and minor thirds.) But in this lesson, we will learn how to use the white-key method to spell different types of triads. This involves using the white-key triads as a reference point and altering these triads with accidentals by using the triad transformation rules that we learned in the previous lesson. Here are the steps for spelling a triad:

Spelling Triads

1. Determine the quality of the white key triad that shares the same root as the triad you want to spell
2. Apply triad transformation rules to add the necessary accidentals for the triad quality that you want

For example, if you wanted to spell an F minor triad, you would (1) think of the quality of the white-key triad on F: F–A–C is F major; (2) transform F major into F minor. To change major into minor, lower the third by a semitone (transformation rule number 2). The result is F–A♭–C. Click "Show Me" in the example below to see this illustrated.

Spelling F minor

To spell an E major triad, you would (1) think of the quality of the white-key triad on E: E–G–B is E minor; (2) transform E minor into E major. To change minor into major, raise the third by a semitone (transformation rule number 2). The result is E–G#–B. Click "Show Me" in the example below to see this illustrated.

Spelling E Major

Spelling E major

To spell a G diminished triad, you would (1) think of the quality of the white-key triad on G: G–B–D is G major; (2) transform G major into g diminished. To change major into diminished, we follow the triad chain by first lowering the third to create G minor (transformation rule number 2) and then lowering the fifth to create G diminished (transformation rule number 3). The result is G–B♭–D♭. Click "Show Me" in the example below to see this illustrated.

Spelling G diminished

To spell an A augmented triad, you would (1) think of the quality of the white-key triad on A: A–C–E is A minor; (2) transform A minor into A augmented. To change minor into augmented, we follow the triad chain by first raising the third to create A major (transformation rule number 2) and then raising the fifth to create A augmented (transformation rule number 1). The result is A–C#–E#. Click "Show Me" in the example below to see this illustrated.

Spelling A augmented

Spelling Triads with an Accidental on the Root

You can use the approach descibed above to spell any triad with a white key as its root. But how would you spell a triad that had an accidental on its root, such as B-flat major or F-sharp minor? For these kinds of triads, we will need to add an additional step.

Consider the E minor triad in the example below. If we were to add a flat to every note in this triad, how would it affect the quality? ... It wouldn't! Since we are moving all of the notes down by a semitone, the result would be the same minor triad, just a half step lower (E-flat minor). Similarly, if we were to add a sharp to all of the notes in an E minor triad, the result would be an E-sharp minor triad. Click on "Show Me" to see this illustrated.

Same accidentals

We can summarize this with another transformation rule.

Triad Transformation Rule #4

Adding the same accidental to all of the notes of a white-key triad does not alter its quality

And we can amend the steps for building a triad as follows:

Spelling Triads

Determine the quality of the white key triad that shares the same root as the triad you want to spell
If there is an accidental on the root of the chord you want to spell, add that accidental to all of the notes in the triad (the quality will remain the same)
Apply triad transformation rules to add the necessary accidentals for the triad quality that you want

Let's test this new procedure by spelling an F-sharp minor triad: (1) Think of the quality of the white-key triad on F: F–A–C is F major; (2) since there is a sharp on the root of the chord you want to spell, add sharps to all of the notes (resulting in F-sharp major); (3) transform F-sharp major into F-sharp minor by lowering the third from A# to A-natural (transformation rule number 2). The result is F#–A–C#. Click "Show Me" in the example below to see this illustrated.

Spelling F-sharp minor

If you wanted to spell a B-flat major triad, you would (1) think of the quality of the white-key triad on B: B–D–F is B diminished; (2) since there is a flat on the root of the chord you want to spell, add flats to all of the notes (resulting in B-flat diminished); (3) to transform B-flat diminished into B-flat major, follow the triad chain by first raising the fifth to create B-flat minor (transformation rule number 3) and then raising the third to create B-flat major (transformation rule number 2). The result is B♭–D–F. Click "Show Me" in the example below to see this illustrated.

Spelling B-flat major

Using this white-key approach (along with the four transformation rules), you should be able to spell any type of triad (major, minor, augmented, or diminished) starting on any pitch. In the next lesson, we will use a similar approach to identify triads.