Chord progressions, explained by pattern

A chord progression is a series of chords played in sequence. Most Western songs draw from the seven diatonic chords of the current key. In C major those are C, Dm, Em, F, G, Am, and B diminished. In Roman-numeral shorthand they become I, ii, iii, IV, V, vi, vii diminished.

The four workhorses

I-V-vi-IV (Let It Be, Don’t Stop Believing). vi-IV-I-V (a mode shift of the same set). ii-V-I (the jazz cadence). I-IV-V-I (blues shell, folk shell, hymn shell). Every one of these lives in three adjacent segments of the circle of fifths.

Try them in the chord progression generator so you can hear them in every key.