Chord Chart For Keyboard

This is an easy-to-use and fast reference tool for discovering more about various keyboard chord constructions. You can find out what notes form each chord shape, hear them played out loud, and see the notes contained within the selected chord. This is for everyone from the novice player to advanced musician needing to check the interval structure of a chord or the ‘voice leading‘.

As you explore the interface it will respond instanty showing the musical information and lighting keys. At its heart are two groups of selections; first, you select your root note from the available options and next, you select which kind of chord you want this to be. As each is altered it change immediately in the display, allowing you to switch easy from major to minor forms of same root to demonstrate how changing a single semitone alters the whole feel of the harmony.

How to Use This Tool

This visual information brings together theory and practice. As your eyes sees what happens with a one-semitone change, you will relate it to how instrument feels under your fingers. After you’ve chosen what you want to play, look at big panel above the keyboard to find the notes used for that voicing and traditional name of the chord. Beneath this there are scale degrees relating to each note so you can easily identify the notes’ relationship to the key and therefore their role.

The semitone formula mathematically shows how many semitones (half steps) each note in the stack is from the root of the chord. These notes are shown physically on the piano keyboard as follows: The white keys is natural. Black keys are flats or sharps. As soon as you select a chord all of its component keys light up in green indicating where they are in relation to each other. There will also be a white ring around the root key to serve as an anchor point. This allows you to instantly know which note form the basis of this chord. This visual clue trains your eye to pick out patterns over keyboard/neck span.

The way it plays audio back is simple and on demand. Just click on the next chord or root type you want to hear and it sounds straight away. This allows you to listen through the options side by side easy. Alternatively, tap the play button (above the keyboard) to cycle through what’s currently selected with no need to change selections again.

This makes it easier if you want to loop a sound while reading the interval information in the info panel below or learning names of the notes shown. The right side has a volume control so you can adjust the output level to match your situation: you might want more gain with background noise and less when working in a quiet space. You don’t need to fiddle around with a sustain effect; instead each chord simply rings out for a set length of time then fades. This means you get clear, distinct notes that you can easily hear separately from the harmony without echoes blurring the sound.

There’s a help button which, upon tap, opens a panel with step-by-step directions on using each feature found within this widget; it’s tucked away until necessary as well as a fullscreen button for better visibility. Tap the full-screen button at the top to expand the data panels and keyboard to their maximum size. This makes keys easier to hit and text easier to read from a presentation stage or practice session by removing distractions from the page.

To get the best from this instrument involves some hands-on experience: using a root note and trying each type of chord that can be played on it, in order to familiarise yourself with sounds of the different variations, including major, minor, diminished, augmented and seventh chords. Listen carefully to what happens when you play suspended chords. In these chords, the third is replaced by either the fourth or the second note, which creates an unresolved, open tension.

As you move up or down the chromatic scale try to notice which keys change to further embed the keyboard layout in your mind. This gives you the opportunity to apply your theoretical knowledge too. You can guess which keys will light up before you select them, such as testing the semitone formula of a minor seventh chord. Then, you can click on it to see if you calculated correctly. It turns passive observing into an active learning experience that will strengthen how well you can write and read music theory over time.

Because it’s built responsively, the widget adapts to whatever screen size you’re using (desktop monitor, mobile device) and in some cases on smaller screens the keyboard will scroll horizontally, allowing you to reach any key if they don’t all initially fit into the visible part of the view. So no matter what screen size you use, the interface is always usable: whether working on the go on your tablet, or sitting at your desk trying to practice.

There is no right or wrong answer when using this tool; it’s simply a reference guide and an aid for education. Play around with various combinations of chords in each family until they become intuitive instead of something you should of remembered. Eventually, you’ll start to know what is coming without seeing the lights flicker across the screen.