Part 1 of TRIADS: Inside Out - Learning your Closed Voicing Triad Inversions

The first thing you need to learn about triads is the intervals that make up the four different types (major, minor, diminished and augmented) and how to play their different ‘inversions’ up the neck.

The graphic below summarises the content of the first module of my latest video course release ‘TRIADS: Inside Out’. You can sign up and join us inside right now if you want to find out more (which you really should. Triads are SO useful).

Closed voicings find the three notes of the triads as close as they possibly can be within one octave. With the triad containing three notes (a Root, third and fifth), there are three different combinations of these three intervals, known as the inversions.

We have (in order of pitch)

  • Root - Third - Fifth (a root position triad)

  • Third - Fifth - Root (a first inversion triad)

  • Fifth - Root - Third (a second inversion triad)

Closed Voicing Triads String Set 1.png

The examples shown are the four different triad shapes rooted in C on (what I call) string set 1 (the high E, B and G strings).

There are a couple of great exercises within the course to help you memorise the shapes so definitely check it out and I hope to see you inside!