What are intervals?

In music, we have ONLY 12 tones, each of these tones has a name, and the distance from tone 1 to tone 2 (and so on) also has a designation; these are called intervals.

So, an interval is simply the distance between two tones that sound either simultaneously or successively. If I list all the tones, starting with “C,” it looks something like this;

If we now start with an F as the root note(referred to as the root or 1, for example), the intervals remain exactly the same. However, the fundamental tone is changed, and consequently, its other interval designations are also altered.

Between 3 and 4, there is no half-tone designation. This interval is always referred to as a major interval, even though it is only one half-tone.

Here you can find all the intervals on the guitar fretboard.

All Intervals On Guitar Fretboard

Interval Names

Each number represents a new fret! For example, 1 = 1st fret. b2 = 2nd fret. 2 = 3rd fret, and so on.

Intervals 1–3 are labeled as “minor” or “major,” whereas 4–5 are described as “perfect,” “diminished,” or “augmented.” This distinction arises because fourths and fifths are considered perfect intervals and naturally sound very pure compared to, for example, thirds or sixths.

Intervals in Chords

Intervals are logically needed everywhere, including chords. Hence, EVERY chord has its specific intervals.

I’ll provide a simple example of how intervals behave in a chord and what each interval precisely determines. I’ll use the C7 chord as an example, which everyone should be familiar with.

1:
Root Note. The root note determines which letter the chord has. If the root note is G, the chord is called G(blabla), if the root note is A, the chord is called A(blabla).

b3:
Third -> Determines whether it’s minor or major. Since it only says C7 and not Cm7 (C minor 7), it means that the chord is major.

5:
The fifth remains the same, whether it’s major or minor; it is never altered unless you play a C7b5 (C major 7 b5). ← Here, it explicitly states that the fifth (5) must go down one fret.

b7:
The seventh is an additional tone that represents the 7 in the chord notation of C7. The sound becomes immediately jazzy, which is why in jazz, seventh chords are primarily used.

Examples with Triads

Here are two examples of minor and major triads. Triads, as the name suggests, consist of 3 tones — hence the term “triad.” Specific intervals are required to make it sound right or, conversely, not sound right.

For instance, if the major chord has 1–3–5 intervals, the minor chord has 1-b3–5. So, 1 and 5 remain the same, only the third (3 or b3) is changed.

Major Triad (1–3–5) Audio Example
Minor Triad (1-b3–5) Audio Example

Examples with a Seventh Chord

The same principle applies to a seventh chord. Seventh chords are chords with 4 tones. For example, all chords with a “7” after them (e.g., C7 or Dm7, etc.) are seventh chords.

Major7 (1–3–5–7) Audio Example
Minor7 (1-b3–5-b7) Audio Example

Intervals in Scales

There are also intervals for scales. In contrast to chords, which only have 3–4 tones, scales use 7 tones. (For example, the pentatonic scale has only 5 tones, and the blues pentatonic scale has 6.) Let’s take a look at C Ionian as an example, and we can see the intervals 1–7. All major or perfect intervals. This is because Ionian (= Major) must sound major. Here is the example for a major and a minor scale:

Ionian (Major Scale = 1–2–3–4–5–6–7) Audio Example
Aeolian (minor Scale = 1–2-b3–4–5-b6-b7) Audio Example

Chord Types Intervals (CheatSheet)

Excel File with all the lists above downloadable here: Patreon