Root

The root in a chord

A triad arises when you stack two thirds on a root. The three tones are called root, third and fifth. The chord keeps its name whichever of its tones is at the bottom: if the root is at the bottom, it is in root position, if the third is at the bottom, in first inversion, and if the fifth is at the bottom, in second inversion. The root stays the same; only the bass note changes. A chord symbol such as C/E therefore names the chord first and, after the slash, the bass note.

The root in a scale and key

In a scale the root is the first degree and gives the key its name. It is the centre a melody strives towards. If a phrase ends on this note, we feel rest and closure. If it ends on another, tension remains. That is the experience behind terms such as tonic and leading tone.

Major and minor on the same root, such as C minor and C major, are called parallel keys. Keys with the same key signature but a different root are relative keys.

Hearing the root

If you sing the root along while you hear a chord, its character comes out more clearly. According to the module Identify Chords this is the only trick that really works for four-note chords. In melodic dictation, too, reference and target note help: melodies are not stored as a chain of absolute pitches but as a pattern of distances related to a root.

Common mistakes

• Confusing root and bass note: In an inversion another note is in the bass; the root has stayed the same.
• Equating root and tonic: The root is a note, the tonic the chord on the first degree.