Triad
Root, third and fifth stacked — four qualities that carry harmony
Related
A triad is three notes stacked in thirds: root, third and fifth. The third decides the quality — a major third above the root makes a major triad, a minor third a minor triad — and the fifth then makes it augmented or diminished. Major, minor, augmented and diminished are the four basic words of harmonic language.
Triads can be inverted: move the root above the third or fifth and the name stays the same while the weight and colour change. A triad is not "any three notes": it specifically means a stack of thirds; clusters built from seconds or fourths are something else.
Read deeper → Triad
Sources
- 三和弦的构成与四种性质，参 The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, "Triad"；本文为原创表述
Used for fact-checking only; all prose is original.