Finding the 1, 4, and 5 Chords in Any Key

I'm going to show you something helpful if you want to learn music by ear and play along with music as you're hearing it: finding the principal chords in any key.

I'll show you how to find the 1, 4, and 5 chord in both major and minor keys.

Let's start in the key of G. Playing through the G major scale, we find the 1 (which is the root, G), the 4 (C), and the 5 (D).

In the major key, we build major chords off each one: G major to C major to D major, resolving back to G.

For a minor key, take the 1, 4, and 5 chords and make them minor. In G minor: G minor (1 chord), C minor (4), D minor (5), back to G minor.

There you go: the 1, 4, and 5 chords in both major and minor keys.