D piano chord — the keys, the inversions, the theory

D is a major chord built from D, F#, A. Below: the keys to press, every inversion with its own diagram, the intervals it is made of, the keys whose scale contains it, and a progression that actually uses it. Press any diagram to hear it.

D

D · F# · A

Piano keyboardC4C5

Semitones above the root: 0 – 4 – 7

A major third at the bottom is what makes this bright and settled.

Inversions of D

  • Root position

    D · F# · A · bass D

  • Inversion 1

    F# · A · D · bass F#

  • Inversion 2

    A · D · F# · bass A

Same chord, different note at the bottom. Press a diagram to hear it — inversions are how you move between chords without jumping your hand across the keyboard.

Keys that contain D

  • GV
  • DI
  • AIV

In G it does this job: I – V – vi – IV

  1. G
  2. D
  3. Em
  4. C

Questions