A major chord on piano

The A chord (A major) is three notes: A, C♯ and E. Start on A, count four half steps up to C♯, then three more to E.

  • Aroot, 1
  • C♯major 3rd, 3
  • Eperfect 5th, 5
A1E5C♯3

Fingers are numbered from the thumb, 1, to the little finger, 5. Right hand 1, 3, 5; left hand 5, 3, 1.

How to play A major on piano

  1. Find A, the white key between the second and third of a group of three black keys.
  2. Put your right thumb (finger 1) on A.
  3. Count four half steps up, black and white keys alike, to C♯. Rest your middle finger (3) there.
  4. Count three more half steps to E for your little finger (5).
  5. Press all three keys together.
  6. For the left hand, play the same keys with fingers 5, 3 and 1, or play A an octave lower with your little finger.

Inversions

  1. A1E5C♯3

    Root position

    A, C♯, E

    Right hand 1, 3, 5; left hand 5, 3, 1.

  2. E2A5C♯1

    1st inversion

    C♯, E, A

    Right hand 1, 2, 5; left hand 5, 3, 1.

  3. E1A3C♯5

    2nd inversion

    E, A, C♯

    Right hand 1, 3, 5; left hand 5, 2, 1.

Practice A major

Hold each position of A major for four beats, then move to the next: root position, 1st inversion, 2nd inversion, and round again. Start at 60 beats a minute and move up toward 100 once every change lands on the beat.

AEC♯
  1. Root positionA–C♯–E
  2. 1st inversionC♯–E–A
  3. 2nd inversionE–A–C♯

The shape of A major

A major is white, black, white: C♯ is the only black key. D major and E major have the same pattern.

A major is built from the A major scale: take its 1st, 3rd and 5th notes, skipping every other note.

  1. A1
  2. B2
  3. C♯3
  4. D4
  5. E5
  6. F♯6
  7. G♯7

Smooth changes from A major

Jumping from one root position chord to the next moves the whole hand. The right inversion keeps shared notes still and moves the others the shortest way. Below are the chords built on the 4th and 5th notes of A major's own key: D and E.

  • ADF♯

    From A to D, play D in 2nd inversion (A–D–F♯): A stays, C♯ moves up a half step to D and E moves up two half steps to F♯.

  • BEG♯

    From A to E, play E in 1st inversion (G♯–B–E): A moves down a half step to G♯, C♯ moves down two half steps to B and E stays.

A major on the staff and on guitar

♯
On the treble staff, A sits in the second space, C♯ in the third space and E in the top space.
×123AEAC♯E
Open AFrets, low E to high E: x 0 2 2 2 0
5fr134211AEAC♯EA
E shape, 5th fretFrets, low E to high E: 5 7 7 6 5 5

Keys with A major in them

  • D majorVD, Em, F♯m, G, A, Bm, C♯dim
  • E majorIVE, F♯m, G♯m, A, B, C♯m, D♯dim
  • A majorIA, Bm, C♯m, D, E, F♯m, G♯dim
  • C♯ minorVIC♯m, D♯dim, E, F♯m, G♯m, A, B
  • D minorVFrom D harmonic minor, which raises the scale's 7th note a half step so this chord leads back to D.
  • F♯ minorIIIF♯m, G♯dim, A, Bm, C♯m, D, E
  • B minorVIIBm, C♯dim, D, Em, F♯m, G, A

Progressions that use it

  • I–IV–V, in A major

    1. IA
    2. IVD
    3. VE

  • I–V–vi–IV, in A major

    1. IA
    2. VE
    3. viF♯m
    4. IVD

  • vi–IV–I–V, in A major

    1. viF♯m
    2. IVD
    3. IA
    4. VE

  • I–vi–IV–V (the 50s progression), in A major

    1. IA
    2. viF♯m
    3. IVD
    4. VE

Related chords

Hearing a chord you can't name? Press its keys in the chord identifier.

Save or print the A major chord chart

A major chord on piano keyboard, notes A C♯ E
Download the A major chord chart (PNG). Free to print and share. For every chord on one page, see the piano chord chart.

Practice notes for A major

A major is white, black, white: A and E are white keys and C♯ is the black key in the middle. It is the same shape as D major and E major, and the last of the three before the shapes start using more black keys.

Where it goes wrong. C♯ is the first black key of the group of two, and the middle finger sometimes lands on D instead, just past it. Aim the middle finger slightly forward into the black keys, keep the thumb on A, the white key between the second and third black keys of the group of three, and the shape falls into place.

How to practice it. Play A major and A minor one after the other: only the middle finger moves, from C♯ down to C. Then practice the change to D in 2nd inversion (A–D–F♯): the thumb keeps A, the middle finger moves to D and the little finger to F♯.

What to listen for. All three notes at the same volume. A major in the middle of the keyboard has a clear, open sound; low in the left hand it can turn muddy, so play the left-hand version an octave below middle C, not two.

What to learn next. D and E major, the IV and V chords in A, and F♯ minor, its relative minor.

Questions

What notes are in a A major chord?

A, C♯ and E. A is the root, C♯ is a major 3rd above it and E is a perfect 5th above it.

How is A major different from A minor?

Only the middle note changes. A minor lowers C♯ a half step to C; the other two notes stay.

What does the chord symbol A mean?

A letter on its own means a major chord, so A means A major: A, C♯ and E. You may also see it written AM, Amaj or AΔ.