D Major Intro

Hey Friend,

I know it feels like nearly everything we've done with the key of G major has been review. Of the four chords in the key so far, G, Am and C have been duplicated from the key of C major.

Today, we'll start looking at D major - a brand new chord - Yay!

D major is the V chord (five) in the key. The D note also represents the perfect fifth interval in the key, placing it seven semitones above the tonic note G.

It is constructed using the D, F# and A notes, all of which can be found in the G major scale:

Since it is D major, you would normally figure out its notes by looking at the D major scale (from the key of D major). We know a major chord is constructed using the 1 3 5 notes from the scale, so to help you anchor the notes in your brain, here is the D major scale with the notes of the chord highlighted:

The most common D major chord is in the open position. Open position D major is a second inversion, meaning the ascending note order is 5 1 3. By ascending I mean that as we move up the notes in pitch, from the sixth string up to the first string.

So when you play the open D major triad, your pick will pluck the notes A, D and F#, in that order. Of course, because the open D string (fourth string) is conveniently located where it is, we usually include that in the strum to double up the D note.

You can form the chord by placing your index finger on the third string, second fret, your ring finger on the second string, third fret and your middle finger on the first string, second fret. Strum from the fourth string down. Simple, no?

Like all other major chords, D major shows up in six different keys. Here are the major keys:

And the minor keys:

I'll get some exercises put together, but I would guess most of you are already familiar with D major. It tends to be one of the first chords people learn, it's easy on the fingers, and it sounds nice. Gotta love those fast wins!

Peace~

Dave