A **triad** is a [[chords|chord]] consisting of three notes that are stacked in thirds. The lowest note of a triad is called the **root**, the middle note the **third**, and the highest note the **fifth**. In any given triad, there are a total of three intervals: (1) between the root and the third, (2) between the third and the fifth, and (3) between the root and the fifth. **Example 1.** Triad construction. ![[example triads construction.png]] ## Types of Triads There are four types (or qualities) of triads: major, minor, diminished, and augmented. These are determined by the quality and arrangement of the intervals they contain. The root and quality of a triad can be identified using [[chord symbols]]. ### Major Starting from the bottom note, a major triad consists of a major third (M3) then a minor third (m3) while the interval between the root and the fifth is a perfect fifth (P5). The chord symbol for a major triad is just the name of the root as a capital letter. **Example 2.** Major triad. ![[example triads major.png]] ![[example triads major.mp3]] ### Minor A minor triad consists of a minor third (m3), then a major third (M3) with a perfect fifth (P5) between the root and the fifth. The chord symbol for the minor triad is the name of the root followed by a lowercase "m". **Example 3.** Minor triad. ![[example triads minor.png]] ![[example triads minor.mp3]] ### Diminished A diminished triad consists of two minor thirds (m3) with a diminished fifth (d5) between the root and the fifth. The chord symbol for a diminished triad is the name of the root followed by a degree symbol (º). **Example 4.** Diminished triad. ![[example triads diminished.png]] ![[example triads diminished.mp3]] ### Augmented Lastly, an augmented triad consists of two major thirds (M3) with an augmented fifth (A5) between the root and the fifth. The chord symbol for the augmented triad is the name of the root followed by a plus sign ($\mathrm{^{+}}$). **Example 5.** Augmented triad. ![[example triads augmented.png]] ![[example triads augmented.mp3]]