# D Major piano chord (D)

D contains D, F♯ and A. A major third with a perfect fifth above the root. F♯ is a black key; D and A are white.

- Canonical page: https://piano.org/chords/major/d/
- Entity: chord:major:d
- Notes: D F♯ A
- Formula: 1 3 5
- Intervals from root: P1, M3, P5
- Interval stack (semitones): 4 3
- Also written: D, D, D major
- Parameters: A440, 12-TET, 165 mm octave, spans centre to centre

## Construction

| Degree | Note | Interval from root | Semitones |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | D | Perfect unison | 0 |
| 3 | F♯ | Major third | 4 |
| 5 | A | Perfect fifth | 7 |

## Fingering

Rest your right hand over the notes with finger 1 on D, finger 3 on F♯, finger 5 on A. The left hand mirrors it.
Right hand 1-3-5, left hand 5-3-1. Source: piano.org fingering method v1.

## Inversions

| Position | Bass | Notes in order | Figured bass | Span |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Root position | D | D3 F♯3 A3 | 5/3 | 7 st, 96 mm |
| First inversion (D/F♯) | F♯ | F♯3 A3 D4 | 6/3 | 8 st, 110 mm |
| Second inversion (D/A) | A | A3 D4 F♯4 | 6/4 | 9 st, 124 mm |

## Voicings (5)

| Voicing | Notes | Span | Relation | Omits or adds |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Close, root position | D3 F♯3 A3 | 7 st, 96 mm | identical | none |
| Close, first inversion | F♯3 A3 D4 | 8 st, 110 mm | identical | none |
| Close, second inversion | A3 D4 F♯4 | 9 st, 124 mm | identical | none |
| Open, fifth on top | D2 A2 F♯3 | 16 st, 220 mm | identical | none |
| Root and third only | D3 F♯3 | 4 st, 55 mm | subset | omits A |

## Diatonic function by key

| Key | Roman numeral | Function |
| --- | --- | --- |
| D major | I | Tonic, home |
| E minor | ♭VII | Subtonic |
| F♯ minor | ♭VI | Pre-dominant color |
| G major | V | Dominant, wants to resolve |
| A major | IV | Subdominant, away from home |
| B minor | ♭III | Relative-major color |

Classification system: common-practice functional harmony.

## Progressions (8)

| Progression | Key | Role | Sequence | Voice leading |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| ii, V, I | D major | I | Em to A to D | 1 tone held from A |
| IV, I | D major | I | G to D | 1 tone held from G |
| I, vi, ii, V | D major | I | D to Bm to Em to A | D opens the phrase |
| ♭VII, i | E minor | ♭VII | D to Em | D opens the phrase |
| ♭VI, iv, i, v | F♯ minor | ♭VI | D to Bm to F♯m to C♯m | D opens the phrase |
| i, ♭VI | F♯ minor | ♭VI | F♯m to D | 2 tones held from F♯m |
| V, I | G major | V | D to G | D opens the phrase |
| ii, V, I | G major | V | Am to D to G | 1 tone held from Am |

## One-edit neighbors

| Becomes | Edit | Changes | Common tones |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Dmaj7 | 1 3 5 7 | adds C♯ | 3 |
| D7 | 1 3 5 ♭7 | adds C | 3 |
| D6 | 1 3 5 6 | adds B | 3 |
| Dadd9 | 1 3 5 9 | adds E | 3 |
| Dm | 1 ♭3 5 | F♯ becomes F | 2 |
| Daug | 1 3 ♯5 | A becomes A♯ | 2 |
| Dsus2 | 1 2 5 | F♯ becomes E | 2 |
| Dsus4 | 1 4 5 | F♯ becomes G | 2 |
| Dm7 | 1 ♭3 5 ♭7 | F♯ becomes F, C | 2 |
| DmMaj7 | 1 ♭3 5 7 | F♯ becomes F, C♯ | 2 |
| Daug7 | 1 3 ♯5 ♭7 | A becomes A♯, C | 2 |
| D7sus4 | 1 4 5 ♭7 | F♯ becomes G, C | 2 |

## Set theory

- Absolute pitch classes: {2, 6, 9}
- Relative pitch classes: [0, 4, 7]
- Normal order: [2, 6, 9]
- Prime form: (037)
- Forte number: 3-11
- Interval vector: <001110>

## Frequencies (close root position)

| Note | MIDI | Frequency |
| --- | --- | --- |
| D3 | 50 | 146.83 Hz |
| F♯3 | 54 | 185.00 Hz |
| A3 | 57 | 220.00 Hz |

## Questions and answers

### What notes are in D?

D contains D, F♯ and A. The formula is 1, 3, 5.

### How do you play D on piano?

Play D, F♯ and A together. Right hand fingers 1, 3, 5; left hand 5, 3, 1. F♯ is a black key; D and A are white.

### What are the inversions of D?

3 positions: root position D F♯ A, D/F♯, D/A.

### What keys contain D?

6: I in D major, ♭VII in E minor, ♭VI in F♯ minor, V in G major, IV in A major, ♭III in B minor.

### What is the difference between D and Dmaj7?

Adds C♯. 3 of the notes are shared.

### What is an easy D for small hands?

The root and third only voicing, D3 F♯3, spans 4 semitones or about 55 mm.

### What are the frequencies of D?

From D3 at A440 in 12-TET: 146.83, 185.00, 220.00 Hz.

### What is the set class of D?

Prime form (037), Forte 3-11, interval vector &lt;001110&gt;.

### How do I transpose D to another key?

Keep the 1, 3, 5 formula on the new root. C is C, E, G; C♯ is C♯, E♯, G♯.

## Provenance

Every derived value above is computed by the piano.org theory kernel from the root, the quality and the stated parameters. Nothing is hand-entered per chord.

Machine record: https://piano.org/api/knowledge/v1/entities/chord:major:d
Last reviewed: 2026-08-12