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G Major Chord on Guitar, Piano and Ukulele – How to Play it

Sergio J. C.
14 de August de 2022

The G major chord is built from a root note (G), a major third (B), and a perfect fifth (D):

  • Type: major triad.
  • Formule: 1 3 5.
  • Music notes: G (1) B (3) D (5).
  • Chords to play with: IV (C) y V (D).
G chord pentagram staff stave

G chord [Musical explanation]

The G major chord is a major triad with formula 1 – 3 – 5. Therefore, to build it we need G (1), B (3) and D (5):

what notes are in the G chord

This is due to the fact that a major chord is made up of 2 third intervals:

  • A major interval (4 half steps between the 3rd and root).
  • A minor inteval (3 half steps between the 5th and 3rd).

If we apply this principle to the G chord we obtain that:

  • B is the major third of G because it is 4 half steps above the root.
  • D is the perfect fifth of G because it is 3 half steps above the 3rd.

Thus, this confirms that the G major chord is defined by:

Root (G) – Major Third (B) – Perfect Fifth (D)

G Guitar Chord

The G major chord guitar has the following shape on the fretboard:

how to play G on guitar

Let’s analyze in detail this chord diagram above to make sure that we understand how to play the G on guitar:

G major guitar chord
G guitar diagram

Let’s start by analyzing the 3 circles in blue, which indicate that on the strings 6 (E), 5 (A) and 1 (e) we have to place the fingers 2 (middle), 1 (index) and 3 (ring finger).

Note by the way the number 1 in black on the left that indicates on which fret we start playing the chord.

On the other hand, at the top we see that we have the characters:

G B D G B G

This simply means that in the:

  • Sixth string sounds the G note.
  • Fifth string sounds the B note.
  • Fourth string sounds the D note.
  • Third string sounds the G note.
  • Second string sounds the B note.
  • First string sounds the G note.

And at the bottom we find the numbers:

1  3 5  1  3 1

This indicates that in the:

  • Sixth string sounds the root (1).
  • Fifth string sounds the major third (3).
  • Fourth string sounds the perfect fifth (5).
  • Third string sounds the root (1).
  • Second string sounds the major third (3).
  • First string sounds the root (1).

⚠️ Important: it is not mandatory to memorize all this information to play the G chord on guitar. But it is highly recommended to know it in order to understand the musical theory behind each chord.

Other ways to play the G guitar chord

In addition to the diagram shown at the beginning of the article, we can also find the G chord in the following fretboard positions:

G major chord guitar

G major triad chords and inversions

Triads

G major guitar triad chord

First Inversion (G/B)

G/B guitar chord first inversion

Second Inversion (G/D)

G/D guitar chord second inversion

What chords are in G major?

The G major scale harmonized results on the following chords:

G (I) – Am (ii) – Bm (iii) – C (IV) – D (V) – Em (vi) – Fº (viiº)

G major scale harmonized

A very good chord to practice with G is the D chord, since it is the fifth chord in the progression and the dominant.

G guitar chord

G Ukulele Chord

Here you can see as well two ways to play the G chord on the uke:

G ukulele

G Piano Chord

To play the G chord on piano we only need to find the same music notes on its keys:

G piano chord
g piano

First Inversion (G/B)

G/B piano chord 1st inversion

Second Inversión (G/D)

G/D piano chord 2nd inversion

Music scales in which the G major chord can be found

  • G major scale (harmonized with triads)
    • G Am Bm C D Em F#dim
  • C major scale (harmonized with triads)
    • C Dm Em F G Am Bdim
  • D major scale (harmonized with triads)
    • D Em G♭m G A Bm D♭dim
  • E minor natural scale (harmonized with triads)
    • Em G♭dim G Am Bm C D
  • A natural minor scale (harmonized with triads)
    • Am Bdim C Dm Em F G
  • B natural minor scale (harmonized with triads)
    • Bm D♭dim D Em G♭m G A
  • A harmonic minor scale (harmonized with triads)
    • Am Bdim C Dm Em F G
  • C harmonic minor scale (harmonized with triads)
    • Cm Ddim E♭aug Fm G A♭ Bdim
  • D natural minor scale (harmonized with triads)
    • Dm Em Faug G A Bdim D♭dim
  • C natural minor scale (harmonized with triads)
    • Cm Dm E♭aug F G Adim Bdim

G Major Chord PDF

If you liked this lesson and want to download it in PDF click here below:

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