7 Chords That Belong
Every key has a family of 7 chords. Learn who's who.
🎯 Practice it: Chord Quality →A Family of Chords
Just like 7 notes 'belong' in a key, there are 7 chords that belong. Each is built on a scale degree.
Listen to all 7 chords of the key:
Notice: some sound major (bright), some sound minor (dark). They're a family – different personalities, but all related.
Train your ear with these drills
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A Family of Chords
Just like 7 notes 'belong' in a key, there are 7 chords that belong. Each is built on a scale degree.
Listen to all 7 chords of the key:
Notice: some sound major (bright), some sound minor (dark). They're a family – different personalities, but all related.
The Diatonic Chord Family
In any major key:
• I, IV, V are Major (uppercase)
• ii, iii, vi are Minor (lowercase)
• vii° is Diminished (rare, unstable)
Roman Numerals Tell You Two Things:
- Which scale degree the chord is built on
- Whether it's major (I, IV, V) or minor (ii, iii, vi)
Explore the Family
Play each chord of the key in order:
I → ii → iii → IV → V → vi
Notice how they all belong together even though some are major and some are minor. They share the same notes from the scale.
The Big Three: I, IV, V
Most songs use primarily I, IV, and V – the three major chords.
Listen for I-IV-V patterns in songs you know — once you start hearing them, you'll recognize them everywhere.
Adding Depth:
Adding ii, iii, and vi creates emotional depth and sophistication. The minor chords add shadow to the major chords' light.