Piano Chords for Singers · Part 4
Chords in a Key. Roman numerals: find the I, IV, V and vi chords in different major keys
Akkorde einer Tonart: Stufenakkorde: I, IV, V und vi in verschiedenen Dur-Tonarten finden
1 Building Chords on a Scale
Akkorde auf der Tonleiter
Build a triad on every note of a major scale, using only notes from that scale. Each chord gets a Roman numeral. Capitals are major chords, small letters are minor, and ° is diminished.
Auf jeder Stufe der Tonleiter entsteht ein Dreiklang. Große römische Ziffern = Dur, kleine = Moll.
C major
G major
Das Muster gilt in jeder Dur-Tonart.
2 Name the Chord
Benennen Sie den Akkord
Choose the chord that matches the Roman numeral in each key. You get one try per question.
Wählen Sie den Akkord, der zur Stufe in der Tonart passt. Ein Versuch pro Frage.
3 Music English
Musik-Englisch
| English | Deutsch | Example |
|---|---|---|
| scale | Tonleiter | The G major scale has one sharp. |
| scale degree | Stufe | The fifth degree of C is G. |
| tonic (I) | Tonika | The song starts on the tonic. |
| subdominant (IV) | Subdominante | Go to the subdominant in bar 3. |
| dominant (V) | Dominante | The dominant leads back home. |
| relative minor (vi) | Moll-Parallele (Tonikaparallele) | A minor is the relative minor of C. |
| diminished | vermindert | B diminished sounds unstable. |
| Roman numerals | römische Ziffern / Stufen | Write the chords in Roman numerals. |
Say it aloud
- “It’s a one–four–five song.” (I–IV–V)
- “Go to the four chord.” = Geh zur Subdominante.
- “What key is it in?” – “G major.”
4 Why Singers Need This
Warum das für Sängerinnen und Sänger wichtig ist
Transpose easily
If you know a song is I–IV–V, you can play it in any key that suits your voice.
Understand rehearsals
Musicians often say “go to the four” instead of naming the chord.
Learn songs faster
Most pop songs use only four or five of these chords.
Play each chord slowly, say its name in English, then sing along.
Langsam spielen, auf Englisch benennen, mitsingen.
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