Perfect fifth
The interval of seven semitones above a note, the most stable consonance after the octave.
The fifth is so consonant that it can be played on its own without sounding either major or minor, which is exactly why the power chord, built from a root and its fifth, works under distortion for both major and minor contexts. It is also the interval that the fifths of the circle of fifths are named for, and the anchor of the open-string tunings of most instruments. Because it appears in nearly every chord, the fifth is often the first interval a beginner learns to find across strings.
Example: A two-note power chord containing a root and the note seven semitones above it is made of a perfect fifth.
See also
Related
- PageInterval
- PagePower chord
- PageTriad
- PageAugmented chord
- PageBlue note
- PageBlues scale
- PageAaron Dessner
- PageAce Frehley