How to Build Augmented Chords in Less Than 10 Minutes

Augmented chords have a unique sound and might require your musical palette to become a little more seasoned before you embrace them.   Augmented chords have an eerie and unsettling sound quality, and they aren’t widely used in popular music.  However, learning how to build augmented chords will prove to be a valuable skill under your belt.  I have broken down and simplified augmented chords so that you’ll be able to construct them in less than 10 minutes. 

Augmented chords are similar to major, minor, and diminished triads in the sense that are made up of 3 notes.  The lowest note is called the root, the middle note is called the third, and the highest note is called the fifth.  While the notes will change depending on which note you start on, the distance between the notes will never change.  The first step in building an augmented chord is to select a starting note, or root.  Once you have picked your root note, follow this formula to figure out the other two notes... 

(Root)  ---- 4 half steps up-->  (Third)  ---- 4 half steps up ----> (Fifth) 

For this exercise, I’ll pick the root note as C.  Start on the note C and count up 4 half steps:  One (C#), two (D), three (D#), and four (E).  I landed on E, which make that the middle note in the chord, or the third.  Next, start on the third (which was just calculated to be E) and count up 4 half steps:  One (F), two (F#), three (G) and four (G#).  The last note in the chord, or fifth, is calculated as G#. 

The three notes I ended up with are C, E, and G#.  I would call this a C augmented chord because all augmented chords are named after the root note they start on.  If you were to play the notes C, E, and G# at the same time, and you will sound a C augmented chord. 

The easy part about figuring out any augmented chord is that no matter which note you decide to start on, the formula will never change.  Once you figure out the root, the third and fifth are easily calculated by simply sticking to the formula.