If you want a step-by-step system to build your vocabulary of basic guitar chords, learn how to strum like a pro, and understand rhythms in music once and for all check out my home study course below. Cyberfret LLC 947 E Johnstown Rd Suite 125 Gahanna, OH 43230 USA Copyright 2013 by Shawn Bradshaw International Copyright Secured. All Rights Reserved. No part of this publication (graphics, text, video) may be reproduced in any form or by any means without prior written permission of the Publisher.
Table of Contents Table of Contents Intro... 3 How to Read... 3 What s with all of the blank chord charts?... 3 Notes on the neck of the guitar... 4 How To Use The Moveable... 5 Chords Symbols... 6... 7 Major... 7 Major 6... 8 Major add 9... 9 Major 6/9... 10 Major 7... 11 Minor... 12 Minor add 9...13 Minor 6... 14 Minor 6/9... 15 Minor 7... 16 Dominant 7 th... 17 Minor 7 Flat 5... 18 Diminished 7 th... 19 Augmented... 20 Suspended 2 nd (sus2)... 21 Suspended 4 th (sus4)... 22 Dominant 7 th sus2 (7sus2)... 23 Dominant 7 th sus4 (7sus4)... 24 Power Chords (5)... 25 Blank... 26-2 -
Chord Book Intro How To Read A chord chart is a picture of a section of the fretboard and neck of the guitar if it was standing up vertically. The vertical lines are the strings, and the horizontal lines are the fret bars. The vertical line furthest to the right is the 1 st string, and the furthest to the left is the 6 th string. If the top horizontal line is thicker, then that represents the nut of the guitar. Then the next lower horizontal line is the 1 st fret bar, and the next lower would be the 2 nd and so on. The dots tell you where to put your fingers, and the numbers underneath the chord chart tell you what fingers to use. A 0 stands for an open string. An X means to either not play the string, or mute it. We will talk more about muting a string shortly. If there is a T, then you use your thumb to play that note. the right vertical line represents the 1 st string the left vertical line represents the 6 th string the horizontal lines represent the fret bars the space between the horizontal lines represent the frets the dots tell you where to put your fingers the numbers underneath tell you which finger to use if there is a 0 then play that string open X means don't play, or to mute that string T means to play that note with your thumb Finger Numbers Different instruments use different numbering systems for your fingers. On the guitar your index finger is your 1 st finger, and your picky is your 4 th. Your thumb is just indicated with a T. If you also play piano this may be a little confusing because your thumb is considered your 1 st finger, and your pinky is considered your 5 th finger. Notes on the neck of the guitar - Standard Tuning To make use of the moveable chord forms in this book, you have to know what the names of the notes are on the neck of the guitar. I strongly suggest moving this up on your list of practice priorities. Everything you do that involves moveable chords will be drastically easier if you have a good grasp on where the notes are on the neck. - 3 -
Chord Book Intro Below are 2 charts that show the names of the notes on the neck of the guitar up to the 12 th fret in standard tuning. Most chord forms are played below the 12th fret. The first chart shows the natural notes and the sharp notes. The next one shows the natural notes and flat notes. You might make a copy of this page so that you can have it handy and avoid having to constantly flip back to this page. Notes On the Neck With Sharps Notes On the Neck With Flats - 4 -
Chord Book Intro How To Use The Moveable Here is a minor chord with the root on the 2 nd string. Let s say that you want to play this chord form as an A m chord. So I need to find an A note on the 2 nd string and line the open circle in the chord chart with that note. So using the note chart that shows the flats you find the A note is on the 2 nd string 9 th fret. So here is how that chord would look horizontally in relationship to the note chart. - 5 -
Chord Book Intro Chords Symbols One thing that adds a bit of confusion when you are first learning about chords is that the symbols and names for some charts are not 100% standardized. This means that 2 different guitar players may call a chord by a slightly different name. That is why it is often hard to line up a chord symbol that you see in a piece of music with a chord book. Sometimes there are chord names and symbols that can confuse what type of chord you are actually supposed to play. I have often run into a situation where a private student asks me how to play a particular chord, and the chord symbol is vague. My answer ends up being, Well it could be this chord or that chord, but there is no way to tell for sure. A great example is something like A2. I see this chord symbol written a lot in country and praise music. What is this chord? It can actually be one of 2 chords. It could be an A(add9) chord, sometimes referred to as an A(add2) or it could be an Asus2 chord. These chords are often interchangeable, but sometimes they are not. So which one are you supposed to play when you see the symbol A2? The answer is, I don t know. This definitely goes into the category of bad chord symbol. Unfortunately this is something you are going to have to deal with as a guitar player. At the beginning of each chord section of the standard tuning part of the book I will give you some common alternative ways that you might see a chord symbol listed. You will also notice the same chord symbol may be used for different chords, like the A2. So that is a good reason for you not to use a chord name or symbol that could be used for more than one chord type. - 6 -
Major Chord Formula 1 3 5 Best Option Avoid C - Just the letter C by itself is enough, and therefore the best option. CM - Bad because minor chords use a small m. CMA, CMAJ, Cmaj - All of these are redundant because you can just use C. c - Lower case letters should never be used for major chords. C - The triangle is an old jazz chord symbol for major, which could be confused with a circle (o) which means diminished. Major Open Position Major Moveable - 7 -
Major 6 Chord Formula 1 3 5 6 Best Option C6 Other Common Cmaj6, CMA6, C(6) You may see these, and they could be used, but C6 is the clearest option. Major 6 Open Position Major 6 Moveable - 8 -
Major add 9 Chord Formula 1 3 5 9 Best Options Avoid C(add 9), C add 9 Often written with or without the parentheses. C(add D) Sometimes the actual note that is added is indicated rather than a number. C(add2), C add 2 The 2 is sometimes used instead of the 9. C+9, C(+9) The plus symbol often indicates a 5, so it s use can confuse what the chord is. C(9) This could be confused for a C9 chord, which is different than a C(add 9) Major add 9 Open Position Major add 9 Moveable - 9 -
Major 6/9 Chord Formula 1 3 5 6 9 Best Options C6/9 C - Sometimes the 6 and 9 are offset. Other Common C6(9), C6(add 9) Major 6/9 Open Position Major 6/9 Moveable - 10 -
Major 7 Chord Formula 1 3 5 7 Best Options Avoid Cmaj7, CMA7 Both of these are common CM7 This could be confused for a minor 7 chord, which is Cm7. C 7 Triangles can be confused for circles (o), which mean diminished. C - European 7 s are sometimes used to indicate major 7 chords, but should be avoided because of confusion with Dominant 7 th chord that just use a 7 without the horizontal line. (C7) Major 7 Open Position Major 7 Moveable - 11 -
Minor Chord Formula 1 3 5 Best Options Cm or cm Minor chords can use upper or lowercase. Other Common Cmin, CMI These are used, but the simpler m is much more clear. C- The minus sign is often used to indicate minor chords. This is an old jazz short hand symbol. Minor Open Position Minor Moveable - 12 -
Minor add 9 Chord Formula 1 3 5 9 Best Options Avoid Cm(add 9), Cm add 9 Often written with or without the parentheses. Cm(add D) Sometimes the actual note that is added is indicated rather than a number. Cm(add2), Cm add 2 The 2 is sometimes used instead of the 9. Cm+9, Cm(+9) The plus symbol often indicates a 5, so it s use can confuse what the chord is. Cm(9) Could be confused for a Cm9 chord, which is different than a Cm(add 9). Minor add 9 Open Position Minor add 9 Moveable - 13 -
Minor 6 Chord Formula 1 3 5 6 Best Options Cm6 or cm6 Minor chords can use upper or lowercase. Other Common Cmin6, CMI6 C-6 The minus sign is often used to indicate minor chords. This is an old jazz short hand symbol. Minor 6 Open Position Minor 6 Moveable - 14 -
Minor 6/9 Chord Formula 1 3 5 6 9 Best Options Cm6/9 Cm - Sometimes the 6 and 9 are offset. Other Common Cm6(9), Cm6(add 9) Minor 6/9 Open Position Minor 6/9 Moveable - 15 -
Minor 7 Chord Formula 1 3 5 7 Best Options Cm7 or cm7 Minor chords can use upper or lowercase. Other Common Cmin7, CMI7 C-7 The minus sign is often used to indicate minor chords. This is an old jazz short hand symbol. Minor 7 Open Position Minor 7 Moveable - 16 -
Dominant 7 th Chord Formula 1 3 5 7 Best Options Avoid C7 C - European 7s are sometimes used to indicate major 7 chords; they should be avoided all together. Dominant 7 th Basic Open Position Dominant 7 th Moveable - 17 -
Minor 7 Flat 5 Chord Formula 1 3 5 7 Best Options Cm7( 5) or cm7( 5) Minor chords can use upper or lowercase. Other Common Cmin7( 5), CMI7( 5) C-7( 5) The minus sign is often used to indicate minor chords. This is an old jazz short hand symbol. 7, A circle with a slash through it is the symbol for half diminished. Half Diminished is another name for the Minor 7 Flat 5 chord. Sometimes you will see the seven, and sometimes it is left out. Minor 7 Flat 5 Moveable - 18 -
Diminished 7 th Chord Formula 1 3 5 7(6) In this chord formula you see a double-flatted 7, which is also the same as sound as a 6. Double flats lower a note by 2 half steps (2 frets). Best Options C 7 or c 7 Other Common Cdim7, C Dim7, or C DIM7 Diminished 7 th Moveable Because of the structure of diminished 7 th chords, any note can be considered the root. So every chord form could have multiple names depending on which note you are considering the root. You can also take any one of the following chord structures, and move it up or down 3 frets on the neck of the guitar and get the same notes in a different order. - 19 -
Augmented Chord Formula 1 3 5 Best Options C + Other Common Caug, or C( 5) Augmented Moveable Because of the structure of augmented chords, any note can be considered the root. So every chord form could have multiple names depending on which note you are considering the root. You can also take any one of the following chord structures, and move it up or down 4 frets on the neck of the guitar and get the same notes in a different order. - 20 -
Suspended 2 nd (sus2) Chord Formula 1 2 5 Best Option Csus2 Other Common Avoid C(sus2) C2 This symbol is vague. It could be a Csus2, or it could be a C(add9) or C(add2). Csus There are sus2 and sus4 chords, so just a sus is vague. Suspended 2 nd (sus2) Open Position Suspended 2 nd (sus2) Moveable - 21 -
Suspended 4 th (sus4) Chord Formula 1 4 5 Best Option Csus4 Other Common C(sus4) Avoid Csus There are sus2 and sus4 chords, so just a sus is vague. Suspended 4 th (sus4) Open Position Suspended 4 th (sus4) Moveable - 22 -
Dominant 7 th sus2 (7sus2) Chord Formula 1 2 5 7 Best Option C7sus2 Other Common C7(sus2) Avoid C9(no 3 rd ), C7(9) no 3rd Dominant 7 th sus2 (7sus2) Open Position Dominant 7 th sus2 (7sus2) Moveable - 23 -
Dominant 7 th sus4 (7sus4) Chord Formula 1 4 5 7 Best Option C7sus4 Other Common C7(sus4) Avoid C11 This symbol sometimes implies a C7 chord with no 3 rd, and an added 9 and 11. Dominant 7 th sus4 (7sus4) Open Position Dominant 7 th sus4 (7sus4) Moveable - 24 -
Power Chords (5) Power Chord is a common slang term for these chords, they are also known as 5 chords. Chord Formula 1 5 Best Option C5 Avoid C(no 3 rd ) C5 is shorter, very common a clear. Power Chords (5) Open Position Power Chords (5) Moveable - 25 -
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