The key of D major is built around the D major chord, D, F-sharp, and A. Let’s go through that chord and its inversions, then the other chords that belong to the key, and then put the most important ones together in cadences.
The most fundamental chord in any key is its triad, three notes built from the first, third, and fifth degrees of the scale.
In D major, those notes are D, F-sharp, and A. The key signature of D major has two sharps: F-sharp and C-sharp. The third, F-sharp, is a major third above D, which is what makes this a major chord. Because there are three notes, there are three ways to stack them, which we call inversions.
Let’s start with the D major triad in each of its three positions, so the chord becomes familiar from every side.
Root position stacks the D major chord in thirds from D: D, F-sharp, and A. The notes sit evenly on the staff, all on lines or all in spaces, and the hand lies over them with 1-3-5 in the right hand and 5-3-1 in the left. F-sharp is the only black key, so the finger that plays it reaches slightly further in than the others.
In first inversion, the third of the chord, F-sharp, becomes the bottom note, and the root, D, moves up to the top: F-sharp, A, D. The gap between the top two notes is now a fourth, so the right hand changes to 1-2-5, with the 5th finger reaching up to D. The left hand keeps 5-3-1. In this position the right thumb starts on F-sharp, a black key. Letting the hand come in toward the fallboard keeps the thumb from catching the front edge of the key.
In second inversion, the fifth of the chord, A, is on the bottom, and the third, F-sharp, moves to the top: A, D, F-sharp. Now the fourth is at the bottom of the chord, so the left hand changes to 5-2-1, while the right hand goes back to 1-3-5. Now the right thumb gets A, a white key, while the 5th finger sits on the black key F-sharp. In the left hand it’s the other way around: the thumb lands on F-sharp, a black key, so the whole hand moves in a little to meet it.
Building a triad on every note of the D major scale gives us the other chords of the key. Each chord takes its notes from the scale, so the same shape changes quality as it moves up: in D major, the triads are D major (I), E minor (ii), F-sharp minor (iii), G major (IV), A major (V), B minor (vi), and C-sharp diminished (vii°). E minor and G major use only white keys; the other five bring in the black keys F-sharp and C-sharp, so the hand moves in toward the fallboard for them.
Try playing them in a row, keeping the same hand shape, and listen to how the color changes from chord to chord.
The primary chords are the I, IV, and V chords, also called the tonic, subdominant, and dominant of the key. In D major, those chords are D major, G major, and A major.
A cadence puts them in order: I–IV–I–V–V7–I, with the A dominant 7th just before the end. The hands move as little as possible between chords, so each one connects to the next by the nearest notes. Played slowly, it shows how the key holds together, and it gets the fingers used to shapes that come up constantly in real music. A few notes connect the whole cadence. D is a common tone of the I and IV chords, and A is shared by I and V, so each change has a common thread running through it. In the A dominant 7th, C-sharp, the leading tone, sits a half step below D and rises to it at the end, while G falls to F-sharp. Listening for those two moves is the quickest way to hear the cadence close.
Next, try starting the cadence from each inversion of the D major triad. The chords are the same; only the voicing moves, so each version sits in a different part of the hand and ends on a different note at the top:
When we play and practice chords and chord progressions, it’s important to keep technique in mind. After all, we’re not just trying to push the right buttons or remember the theory, we want to make our chords sound as musical as possible.
Play with a rich, full sound. The deeper into the keys we get, the more our fingers remember the spacing and hand positions of each chord.
Make sure all fingers go down at the same time. This is actually accomplished by using the weight of your arm and back instead of trying to just play many notes together at once with each separate finger.
Instead of stiffly or matter-of-factly lifting our hand to exit a chord, we gently float off of each chord, subtly rolling the wrist and moving our arms out in a push-up motion for a smooth exit sound and transition to the next chord.
Other techniques related to D major piano chords:
Is it ok to use a different fingering if it feels right in my hand?
Asked by Ben
Great question! You can, but it helps to learn a single standardized fingering first, so you have a template. Then you can adapt to different contexts you find in music without always having to second-guess yourself.
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