musictheory_cov

18. To identify a triad, you must first put it in root position. Once this is done, you
    can tell what kind of chord it is and in which position it is in.

If you take this inverted chord

and place it in its root position,

you can name the chord, the chord of C major.

KEY C Major D Major E Major

D minor D Major G
minor

2nd inversion 1st inversion Root

In the above example, the first chord demonstrates that the tonic is C (C major),

the root of the chord is D (chord of D, F, A), and the bass note is A ( 2nd

inversion). In the second chord, the tonic is D (D major), the root is D (chord of

D, F
, A), and the bass note is F (1st inversion). In the last chord, the tonic is E

(E major), the root is G
, (G
, B, D#) and the bass note is also G
(root position).

ATTENTION: Many people have difficulty differentiating between the root, the bass note, and

the tonic. The Root is always the lowest note of the triad in its natural state. The

bass note is the lowest note of the chord, whether it is in root position or in an

inverted position. The tonic is the name given to the first degree of a scale. The

root is not necessarily the tonic of the scale because you find chords on all the

degrees of the scale.