
Since the minor third is always one note lower than the major third, we often describe the minor third as a flatted 3rd. To flat a note means to lower it by one note. Here is an example of a major 3rd (C to E) and a minor 3rd (C to Eb) :Īll major-sounding scales and chords contain major 3rds while all minor-sounding scales and chords contain minor 3rds. A minor 3rd is one note lower than a major 3rd. If you’ve studied the basic intervals that are the building blocks of all scale and chord patterns, you should remember there were two types of thirds major thirds and minor thirds. Compared to major scales and chords, minor scales and chords have different 3rds.

Similarly, most chords and arpeggios usually contain 3 or 4 different notes like a Root, 3rd, and 5th (triads), or a Root, 3rd, 5th, and 7th (seventh chords).Īll of these scales and chords contain that important note the 3rd in them. For example, the major scale contains a Root, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, and 7th. If you’ve spent any time studying a few scales you should know many scales contain seven different notes. The third is what gives major-sounding scales and chords their brighter, cheerier sound, and what gives minor scales and chords their darker, sadder sound. The difference between major and minor chords and scales boils down to a difference of one essential note the third. The Deceptive Cadence with ♭\(\left.\text\)=5.) As you descend in fifths (counterclockwise), key signatures get one degree “flatter.I hear this question from beginning students all of the time: What Is the Difference Between Major and Minor?.Harmonization of Borrowed Scale Degrees.Secondary Diminished Chords in Major and Minor.Irregular Resolutions of Secondary Chords.The Subtonic VII Chord in Popular Music.Exceptions Created by Harmonic Sequences.Shorter Progressions from the Circle of Fifths.9 Harmonic Progression and Harmonic Function.Roman Numerals of Diatonic Seventh Chords.How to Write Perfect, Major, and Minor Intervals.

How to Identify Perfect, Major, and Minor Intervals.
