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Piano chord inversions are chords played with the notes in a different order.
When studying piano technique, it is important to learn how to play the basic musical patterns that you'll find in most piano repertoire. These basic patterns are scales, chords and arpeggios.
C Major chord second inversion, denoted as C/G For a four note chord such as C7 (C E G A#) there are four possible ways to play it. With either the C, E, G or A# on the bottom. Try out each of the different ways of playing this chord and see how they sound. Understanding music. Chord inversions add a richness to a chord progression and are a great tool for composers to use. First Inversion Sheet Music Example.
Here we'll take a closer look at piano chords and their inversions. You'll learn how to play inverted chords and what fingering to use, with free printable piano chord inversions charts (PDF).
Best of all, you will learn how chords are inverted so you wont need charts anymore!
Piano Chord Inversions for Beginners
By learning to use the correct fingers and how to play all the patterns in all keys, you will master more difficult music easier and with less effort.
The good news are that all chords share the same fingering in all keys for each chord inversion!
All chords should be practiced both 'blocked' (all notes played simultaneously), and 'broken' (one note at a time from bottom up).
You can start with one set of inversions (1 octave) and then add more octaves as your confidence grows!
Let's take a closer look!
Major and Minor Piano Chord Inversions (Triads) Step by Step
Triads are three note chords. Major and minor triads can by rearranging the notes, be played in three different positions;
- Root position
- 1st inversion and
- 2nd inversion.
Print Free Piano Chord Inversions Charts in Major and Minor
If you are a visual learner this is for you: Print free PDF charts and learn to use the correct fingers for each chord and inversion. Make sure to practice to play the chords both 'broken' and 'blocked'.
Print your free Major and Minor Piano Chord Inversions Charts here (PDF). (opens in new window)
Root Position
In root position you will use fingers 1-3-5 in the right hand and 5-3-1 in the left hand for all keys in both major and minor.
Major
A major triad in root (basic) position has the notes spaced a third apart. The bottom third is a major third (2 whole steps apart) and the top third is a minor third (1 1/2 whole steps apart).
The lowest note, the 'root', gives the name to the triad/chord. For example; this is a C major triad or chord:
You can play a triad starting from any key on the piano of course. Just count 2 whole steps (or 4 half steps) from your starting note (counting as 1) up to the next, and then 1 1/2 whole steps (or 3 half steps) up to the last note.
Minor
A minor triad has the notes spaced 'the other way'; The bottom third is a minor third and the top third is a major third:
1st Inversion
In the first inversion you will use fingers 1-2-5 in the right hand and 5-3-1 in the left hand for all keys in both major and minor. A major or minor triad in 1st inversion is simply re-arranged so that the root has been moved one octave higher.
![Chord Chord](https://www.musikalessons.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/Screen-Shot-2017-09-11-at-2.07.30-PM.png?x55391)
Major
The distance (interval) between each note in a major triad is now; a minor third and a perfect fourth.
Minor
In the minor triad it the intervals are a major third and a perfect fourth.
2nd Inversion
In the second inversion you will use fingers 1-3-5 in the right hand and 5-2-1 in the left hand for all keys in both major and minor. Changing the chord from the 1st to the 2nd inversion is done by again moving the bottom note one octave higher.
Major
The intervals between the notes in a major triad in the 2nd inversion is now a perfect fourth and a major third:
Minor
In minor it is a perfect fourth and a minor third:
Recommended Resources
You might like these
Introduction to Chord Piano
Chord piano is what we call the style of 'comping' or 'faking' chords either together with a melody, or by playing only chords (or harmonies).
Easy Piano Chords for Improvisation
Learn how to get started improvising with easy piano chords for improvisation in this guest post: A Beginners Guide to Basic Piano Chords For Improvisation.
Learn Piano Chords -The Basics of Chord Piano Playing
If you learn piano chords you have found an easy and quick way to play. Read a short introduction about chords and how you can use them when playing the piano.
Always playing chords on the piano or keyboard with the root at the bottom means you have to jump your hand around the keyboard, which can result in difficult, choppy-sounding playing.
By simply rearranging the order of the notes of a given chord, you can make much smoother transitions. These different groupings of the notes are called inversions. Rearranging the order of the notes doesn’t affect whether a chord sounds major or minor.
The three triad inversions
You can play any three-note chord from three positions:
The root position: The traditional note grouping (root, third, and fifth)
The first inversion: The root note moved to the top of the chord (third, fifth, and then root)
The second inversion: The third moved up on top of the root (fifth, root, and then third)
As you play the three inversions, you can hear that the chord quality sounds basically the same.
Listen to hear the chords and inversions you see above.
Here you see how to play the blues progression by always moving to the closest note to form the needed chord. Moving to the nearest note is called voice leading in music theory, where each note in the chord is considered a voice. Pay attention to the marked fingerings to play them as smoothly as possible.
Listen to hear the blues progression using chord inversions.
You can apply the same concept to make the pop/doo-wop progression sound smoother as well; Example 1 uses the ii chord, or the Dm, and Example 2 uses the IV chord, the F major. Now it sounds like what you hear on recordings, right?
Three-note chords in your left hand
If you play an arranger keyboard or play in an ensemble with a bass player, you can use these types of inversions in your left hand for a smoother sound. Because the arranger style or the bass player always provides the root tone, you’re free to use these close inversions.
Here are some possible ways to play the three-chord rock sound with some rhythm added. Each example starts on a different chord inversion and uses different rhythm patterns. If you have onboard drums, pick a simple rock pattern and play along with it. Repeat each two-bar phrase over and over.
You can do the same thing for the doo-wop chords. You have two variations for each starting chord inversion, one always using the straight repeated rhythm with good use of close chord movement, and the other varying the rhythm a bit more. Repeat each two-bar phrase over and over.
This example employs a time signature, 12/8, that you may not be familiar with. Each measure has 12 beats, and each group of three eighth notes forms a strong pulse. So it feels like each measure actually has four beats, with each beat getting three subdivided pulses: 1-2-3, 2-2-3, 3-2-3, 4-2-3.
Listen to hear the blues and doo-wop progressions played using left hand chord inversions.
Two-handed chords in a pianistic style
When you’re playing chords on an acoustic piano or an electric piano, you use the closest inversion chords possible in your right hand and play the root note in your left hand — either a single note or two notes an octave apart for more power (best on acoustic piano). Check out the basic voicings and fingerings, and then examples with rhythm added to each hand.
Check out the blues progression played in a two-handed, pianistic fashion.
Listen to the doo-wop progression played in a two-handed, pianistic fashion.