Chord

Two or more notes sounded together, and in practice a group of notes whose intervals give the harmony a name and a function.

Chords are built by stacking intervals, usually thirds, on a root, and their character depends on what those intervals are: the third sets major or minor, the seventh adds tension, and omissions or added notes blur the function. On guitar the same chord appears in many shapes and inversions across the neck, which is why the instrument rewards learning where the chord tones are rather than memorising diagrams. In a band the bass usually owns the root, so guitarists can drop it and play smaller, clearer voicings.

Example: a power chord of only root and fifth has no third in it, so it stays neutral enough to work over both major and minor progressions.

Chord

See also