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Click here to view Essential Chord Shapes (part 1) pdf with tabs.
Hello
As guitarists we all ‘dream’ to burn the fret board with endless runs and solos to try to impress our listeners... you might agree with me on that :-) But one of the most important aspects of music in general is the harmony i.e. the chord(s) progression that carries the song. And guitar is no less in this regards. So by knowing ‘all’ the chords and their different shapes is not an option but a must for every serious guitar player. Today’s article will start to deal with the essential chord shapes one should know and next time we’ll expand on it.
Many people start learning chord shapes in the open position i.e. chord shapes that are found in the first 3 frets of the guitar having at least one open string included. I myself did that too. I remember learning a shape in root position in one place and that was it! Because I was self taught I had to figure it out for myself that the best manner was to learn a Major chord with the root on the 6th string then find the same chord’s root on the 5th string then move to the 4th and 3rd strings and do likewise! In that manner I was covering the entire fret board with that same chord in no time plus learning the notes on the neck! Then I would flatten the 3rd degree to change its quality to minor and play the same roots and frets. After I would flatten even the 5th of the minor chord to change its sound to diminished.
So in a very short time I would have covered all the essential chord shapes that make up the Major Scale Diatonic Harmony of the traditional western music. Remember that it’s built up like this when using triads (3 chord notes)...
Major 2.Minor 3.Minor 4.Major 5.Major 6.Minor 7.Diminished
So if you choose GMajor the formula for the scale’s construction would be WWHWWWH which results in GABCDEF#G. Then just put every scale degree in front of the chord harmony formula and these will result...
GMajor 2.AMinor 3.BMinor 4.CMajor 5.DMajor 6.EMinor 7.F#Diminished
These entire chords relate to each other as they come from the same Major scale hence the word diatonic which means just that. Now go to the tab/standard notation and play all the shapes using the indicated fingerings. Be sure to pay close attention to the sound, location and shape so that you’ll start to form a mental photographic memory of them plus a sensitive ear to their quality. Be sure to play all the shapes in all the places! Very valuable finger twister too as some of the shapes are a little more demanding. When you get comfortable with them just apply the theory taught earlier and play all the ‘chords’ in a desired key/scale. Then move the same key to other locations and strings. Then mix them up i.e. find 3 chords with root on 6th next 2 with roots on 5th and last 2 with roots on 4th. There are endless possibilities to mix and create. Just keep in mind to memorize everything .
Knowing the Major, Minor and Diminished triads/chords is a very strong foundation to possess. All will be built from there and your musical growth will certainly benefit from it. Next time we’ll take everything a little further by learning the most essential 7th chords one can and should learn. Until then be sure to master all this information up here though!
Click here to view Essential Chord Shapes (part 1) pdf with tabs.
Best wishes
Jean
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