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Guitar
(Fretboard Mastery)
Music Theory For Guitar (Fretboard Mastery) is Copyright 2012 by Brandon C.
Farris. Reproduction without permission is prohibited.
Introduction
Hey everyone! My name is Brandon Farris. I am the creator of Full Score Guitar
Lessons.com.
This ebook was made just for you!
Ill tell you a little about me and how I came to writing this book.
I started playing guitar when I was 12 and ever since then I have wanted to learn
everything there is to learn about guitar.
This may seem like an impossible task and it just may be, but the journey and the
information Ive gathered is an irreplaceable experience.
Those moments when things just CLICK!
This ebook was made to help you in Guitar Theory.
When you buy a typical music theory book you get ALL music theory. This can be
a lot to handle at first. Especially if you are only interested in guitar theory.
That is where this book comes in handy. This takes the guess work out of what to
learn. With the lessons in this book you will have a great foundation in guitar
theory and be ready to expand your knowledge further.
My advice to you is never stop learning. Make your goal be to learn everything
there is to learn and you will always be learning.
I hope this helps!
This is for you!
Each line represents a specific note and each space also represents a specific note.
Here are all the notes and their names on the staff.
Now here are the same notes on the staff but also in Tablature.
The top is the musical staff and the bottom half is guitar tablature.
What is tablature?
Tablature or Tabs as they are normally called is an easy way for us guitar players to
read sheet music.
Most guitar players dont learn how to read sheet music like the above example. So, we
learn tabs to learn all our music.
I think it is extremely helpful to learn both.
How do you read tabs?
There are 6 lines in tablature. The spaces arent used in tabs. The 6 lines represent the
6 strings on your guitar.
The bottom line represents your low E string on your guitar which is the top string.
The next line above that represents your A string which is right below your low E string.
The next line is your D string then the G, B, and high e string.
The numbers on the lines show you what fret you play on that string. So, in the example
above the tablature is showing us that we will play the 2nd fret of the D string then the
3rd fret of the D string.
Next, play the open G string then the 2nd fret of the G string.
Get the point?
Now, back to the musical staff. Notice how the notes go in alphabetical order then start
repeating. Notes dont stop at the top of the staff or below.
This is what I mean. The staff continues above and below the staff to accommodate the
lower and higher notes.
Here is a picture of the notes above and below the staff.
Notes Above The Staff.
Intervals
Before we learned that there are 7 main notes to music and 12 notes all together.
What are the other 5 notes?
In between the main notes there are whats called sharps and flats.
If you play any open string on your guitar then move up 12 frets (12 notes) then you will
be at the 12th fret where the 12 notes start to repeat again.
The 12th fret on your guitar is the same note as your open strings except they are a
higher pitch.
First lets learn what Sharps and Flats are.
This is the symbol for a sharp
#
This is the symbol for a flat
b
To sharp a note means to raise that note up a half step or one fret on your guitar.
To flat a note means to lower that note a half step.
So anytime you see one of these symbols in front of a note then you know to take that
note and either raise it a half step or lower it.
What is an interval?
An interval is the space between two notes.
I will explain this more in a minute. Another term you need to know is unison.
When two of the same notes are played at the same pitch then they are played in
unison.
Another term you should know is octave. When you play a note then play the same note
just higher or lower in pitch it is considered an octave.
So, if you play your open A string then play the 12th fret of your a string then you are
playing an octave up from the open A.
Perfect Intervals
Notice in the examples above the 4th, and 5th intervals were left out. That brings us to
our next type of interval.
Some intervals cant be sharpened or flattened so they are called perfect intervals.
So if you play C then play F then that is a perfect fourth interval in the key of C.
If you play C then G then that is a perfect fifth interval.
Scales
So what is a scale? A scale is 7 notes in a row in alphabetical order.
Every scale will start with a root and will end on that root an octave higher. So, actually
a scale is 8 notes in a row.
An example is, The C major scale starts and ends on the note C.
The G major scale starts and ends on the note G and all the scales have 6 different
notes in between these starting and finishing notes.
Here is what the C major scale looks like on the musical staff and tablature.
The first note of any scale is called the tonic or the first degree. The second note of any
scale is called the second degree and so on.
There are certain intervals used to make up a Major scale. There are also different
intervals that make up the major scales.
The different intervals are what give the different scales their unique sound.
The most common scale is the Major scale. This scale has a happy and uplifting sound
to it. Opposite of the major scale is the minor scale. The minor scale is a sad and
depressing sound.
When you listen to music try to tell is it is a major or minor scale. You will be able to tell
by the way the music feels.
Both the major and the minor scale can start on any of the 12 available notes because
each scale, no matter what note you start on, has its own combination of intervals that
make up that scale.
Now, when you hear a minor scale you can tell because it has a dark depressing sound
compared to the major scales you just learned.
Lets start with the natural minor scale.
The natural minor scale is the easiest of the three minor scales to learn because all
natural minor scales have a corresponding major scale.
Here is an example of what I mean.
If you take the C major scale
C,D,E,F,G,A,B
and start playing the scale at the sixth note of the scale, which is A, and play until you
reach A again then you just played the A natural minor scale.
So, the notes of the A natural minor scale are in order.
A,B,C,D,E,F,G
The exact same notes as the C major scale just starting on the 6th note (A).
If you start any of your major scales with the sixth note then you are playing that natural
minor scale.
Lets use A major as another example.
The notes of the A major scale are...
A,B,C#,D,E,F#,G#
So play this same scale but start on the 6th note (F#).
This is called the F# natural minor scale.
F#,G#,A,B,C#,D,E
Pretty easy huh?
So as long as you know the notes of all your major scales then you know all the notes to
all the natural minor scales.
Here is a list of major scales and their related minor scale.
C major (A minor)
A,B,C,D,E,F,G
These are the notes of the A natural minor scale.
To make this a harmonic minor scale simply sharp the 7th note.
(Raise the note one fret)
Here are the notes of the A harmonic minor scale.
A,B,C,D,E,F#,G
Its that simple!
Here are the interval movements to make the harmonic minor scale.
Start with any note and...
Move up 2 half steps (2 frets)
Move up 1 half step (1 fret)
Move up 2 half steps (2 frets)
Move up 2 half steps (2 frets)
Move up 1 half step (1 fret)
Move up 3 half steps (3 frets)
Move up 1 half steps (1 frets)
A,B,C,D,E,F,G
To make this a melodic minor scale you will raise the 6th and 7th notes up a half step.
So, the notes of the A melodic minor are...
A,B,C,D,E,F#,G#
Now that you are familiar with scales lets break these scales down even further into....
Modes
There are 7 different modes in each scale. Each of the 7 modes start on a different
degree of the scale.
An example is the Phrygian Mode starts on the 3rd degree of your scale.
So, lets use C major as an example.
To play the phrygian mode of C major you just start with the 3rd note of the C major
scale. So, the notes for the phrygian mode of C major are...
E,F,G,A,B,C,D
Now that you kind of have an idea about modes lets go through all seven modes and
how they are made.
Ionian Mode
This is an easy mode to remember because its just the major scale.
The C Ionian mode is...
C,D,E,F,G,A,B
The Ionian mode starts with the first note of the scale.
Dorian Mode
The dorian mode starts with the second note of the scale. In the key of C the Dorian
mode is...
D,E,F,G,A,B,C
This is called the D dorian mode.
Phrygian Mode
We previously learned the phrygian mode. This mode starts with the 3rd note of the
scale.
So, here are the notes of the E phrygian mode.
E,F,G,A,B,C,D
Lydian Mode
The lydian mode starts with the 4th note of the scale.
Here are the notes of the F lydian mode.
F,G,A,B,C,D,E
Mixolydian Mode
The mixolydian mode starts with the 5th note of the scale.
Here are the notes of the G mixolydian mode.
G,A,B,C,D,E,F
Aeolian Mode
The aeolian mode starts with the 6th note of the scale.
We learned this before. This is also called the minor scale.
Remember back to the natural minor section. Remember that the natural minor scale
starts with the 6th note of the scale.
Here are the notes of the A aeolian mode.
A,B,C,D,E,F,G
Locrian Mode
The locrian mode starts with the 7th note of the scale.
Here are the notes of the B locrian mode.
B,C,D,E,F,G,A
Practice these modes in all of your major keys. All you really need to know is all your
major scales and you can figure out all of your modes and your corresponding minor
scale.
Here is a free eBook with 25 plus scales that you can learn. They are all in the Key of C
so keep that in mind when you want to transpose these.
These scales range from the basic Major Scales to bebop minor and 8 tone scales.
Instrument Proficiency
Good Ears
Basic Scale, and Chord Theory
Lots Of Practice!
Instrument Proficiency
This basically means you have to know how to play guitar. You don't have to be at the level of
Eddie Van Halen or Paul Gilbert to make great sounding solos.
Your solos will be as good as you are on your guitar. You need to be able to play what you hear
in your head. Don't let your fingers get in the way of your creativity.
One of the most important things you should practice and know by heart is Scales. Learn all of
them inside and out all over the guitar.
Good Ears
You need to be able to hear what the melody of a song is and what the rhythm sounds like. What
is the bass playing? What is the other guitar players playing? These are things you need to hear
in songs.
Try to hear the chords and the chord changes in the song.
You should know what notes and scales go over those chords. You may already know what notes
sound good over certain chords, but you need to let your ears be the deciding factor.
Your ears may surprise you and make you hear and play notes that you normally would never
play. You have to hear the music to easily and creatively improvise.
A good soloist builds his solo on the foundation on the other musicians.
Hear the music to know when to climax your solo or to bring it back down.
You may even get creative ideas listening to the drummer or hear a creative live from the piano
player.
Basically... listen, listen, listen.
Chords
(What notes make up what chords, which scales go with what chords, and extended
chords).
Try writing a novel without first learning the alphabet. It can be done but it's going to be difficult
and not flow.
Lots Of Practice
This can only come with time. Playing along with other musicians and with CD's. The best way
to learn is to actually improvise on the spot.
Once you start doing this enough you won't even think about chords and scales it will become
second nature.
Experience will help you gain confidence and skill, but this won't come on its own; you have to
put in the practice time.
Hearing Pitches
When listening you need to hear the notes. When I say hear the notes I mean listen to every note
that comes up hear it and register it.
You must be able you hear a pitch and find it and play or sing it back. So if you have an
instrument try this exercise. Let's use piano as an example. Say you close your eyes and play a
note on the piano. Could you eventually find that note or sing that exact note?
This is easier than it sounds believe me. To be able to do this you need what is called tonal
memory, or pitch memory. Put simply, be able to recall any given pitch when played.
Here is an exercise to help you develop your pitch memory.
Listen to a solo or any part of a song and pick any note in that song, pause the song up to that
point and fix that note in your head. Think about that note for a few seconds and then play it back
on your instrument or sing it back.
When you have selected a note go back to the song and see if you were correct. Compare the
notes if you played the wrong note then try again until you can do this every time.
When starting out hold the note in your head for only a few seconds, 4 or 5 will do. When you
get good enough to do this almost every time then hold that note in your head longer before you
play it back.
Once you have that note down move on to the next note. This is a great way to learn a solo...one
note at a time.
Hearing Rhythms
Start this by playing the solo that you want to hear and get the rhythm down. Tap the rhythm of
the notes on the table with your hand. Get the first measure down then the next until you can do
the whole solo.
Remember to hold the rhythm in your head before you try to tap it out. Build your rhythmic
memory. Once you have the rhythm down break it up into measures. This may sound difficult but
with a basic understanding of theory you will get this in no time.
If the song is in 4/4 then make sure the notes add up to 4 beats when you break it up into
measures.
Write It Down
After all these steps you should now have a transcribed solo. This may seem like a lot of work
but very few acquire this skill. Transcribing solos is a tool you will use every day of your
musical journey.
Stay a step ahead of the game with this new found skill!
Melody Solo
This is the most common and the easiest. A melody solo is nothing more than you playing the
melody of the song. Yep that's it. If it's time for you to get in front of the crowd and play and you
play the melody of the song then your soloing.
There is absolutely no improvisation in this type of solo. Try this with a couple of your favorite
songs. Listen to the song and play the melody as it's played.
Trading Fours
This is a very common jazz solo. When you hear two different players going back and forth
soloing for a short time they are most likely trading fours.
This can happen with a drummer and a guitar player or a keyboardist and guitar player or even
two different guitar players. The point of this unique solo is to build off of the previous players
solo and together build a great sounding solo.
It might be fairly easy since you're not composing long solos on the spot you're just soloing in
bursts.
Solo A Verse
Most rock and jazz songs contain this next solo type. This may sound familiar to you. This solo
is when you solo over a chord progression, typically the verse chords or even the chorus.
Soloing over a verse allows you to make up whatever you want or stick to the main melody it's
all up to you.
Listen to your favorite music and see if you can figure out which one they play.
Cadenzas
The last type of solo is a real solo. A cadenza solo is when the music stops and it's all you. The
lights are on you and you are the focal point of the moment.
You step out and play whatever comes to mind building a solo for however long you want. This
idea lets limitless ideas flow.
Riffing
This approach is all about wowing the crowd. All you do is play licks you know as fast as you
can and show off your guitar techniques.
A good approach if you're Van Halen, Paul Gilbert, or John Petrucci. If you can do that then
maybe you will like this solo. You probably won't hear this often because most guitar players are
focusing on making the song sound good and not showing off. Then again we like to show off
quite a bit.
Horizontal improvisation is the most common solo you will hear. The key to playing this is just
to know what scale and key the song is in.
Find a simple melody and simplify it but finding all the important notes. Another way for more
complex solos would be to look at the chord structure. By this I mean you can eliminate all the
notes that aren't in the chord.
You can also take out any syncopation or notes on the up beat. Syncopation is when a note is
played in a part of the beat that's not expected.
Once you have simplified the syncopation notes then make the existing notes either half or
quarter notes. Make it simple.
Back Phrasing
This method applies to the whole melody. When you back phrase a melody you're starting the
melody on a beat after the beginning beat. So if the melody starts on the 1 beat you could start it
on the 3rd beat or even 2 beat of the second measure. Although, when you back phrase you have
to end the melody in the same place as it normally ends.
So if you started the melody on the 2nd beat instead of the 1st then you would just have to play
some notes shorter to make the melody end on the right beat.
So the more you wait to play the melody the faster your going to have to play to catch up and
end the song on the right beat.
Don't worry if this is confusing, it will hit you one day believe me.
Front Phrasing
This one is pretty easy. When you want to front phrase all you're doing is starting one beat early.
If you want it to have a syncopated feel then start it on the up beat before the melody starts. Give
it a try.
Adding Notes
This is when you have some long notes like half or whole notes and you play more shorter notes
to replace the long ones. If the melody starts out with a whole note try taking out the whole note
and replacing it with 4 quarter notes.
You can use this for any note not only half or whole notes
Playing Harmony
To play a harmony you can play a certain interval above the original melody note. The most
commonly used harmony is the 3rd.
To play a 3rd harmony, all you do, is know what key you're in and whatever the note is, just go
up 2 notes in the key. In the key of C if the note C was played then the 3rd harmony note would
be E.
You are not limited to just the 3rd harmony. You can play different harmonies for every note if
you wanted to. Experiment with different harmonies and see what you like. This will spice up a
melody.
Solos on Chords
To solo over chords you first need to know basic chord theory. The first thing you can do to solo
over chords is to simply arpeggiate the chord. To do this, you hold the chord being played but
instead of strumming it you would play each note separate.
Also you can invert the chords. This means you can arpeggiate the chord but start on a different
note other than the root note. Soloing over Scales and Modes
First, you have to understand scales and modes.
Now, to solo with scales all you have to know is what key the song is in. If you know you're in
the key of C then you know you can play any note of the C major scale and it would sound good.
When you're building a melody or song you want to have tension and release. To do this you
build up the music to a climax point where it's at its highest point then bring the tension down
and release it to the end.
There are so many way to build a song whether it's with dissonant sounding notes to more impact
on the music to whatever. Be creative but always build tension then release it.
Be creative when writing melodies and building a climax in your song.
How to Transpose
Guitar Chords
Do you want to learn how to transpose guitar chords? This lesson breaks down the mystery of
transposing.
You will be able to play any chord in any key without having to use a capo.
Transposing music is a very important key to guitar. Lets first start with what transposing
actually is.
Basically, transposing is when you take a song in one key and play it the exact same way but in a
different key (higher or lower in pitch).
Lets say you want to play and sing one of your favorite songs, but the song is too high for your
voice. What do you do? That is what this lesson is all about. Learning how to transpose guitar
chords will make you a better musician and expand your knowledge of the guitar and its theory.
Lets get started with...
A - (3 sharps) F#,C#,G#
E - (4 sharps) F#,C#,G#,D#
B - (5 sharps) F#,C#,G#,D#,A#
F# - (6 sharps) F#,C#,G#,D#,A#,E#
C# - (7 sharps) F#,C#,G#,D#,A#,E#,B#
Guitar Arpeggios
What is an arpeggio?
This is very simple. An arpeggio is simply when you play the notes of a chord separately
rather than all together.
Its really that simple. Lets use the C major chord as an example.
The notes of the C major chord are C,E,G.
So instead of strumming all of these notes together to make a chord you simply play
each note separately. So you could play C then G then E or any other pattern.
Thats all it is.
This may sound simple and boring but once you play some interesting arpeggios you
will be hooked.
Arpeggios can take your music a long way. Here I will show you the basic forms of 4
different arpeggios.
I suggest buying a Guitar Arpeggio Book.
Or check out my website Full Score Guitar Lessons.com
for more guitar arpeggios and tons of other lessons.
Here are the 4 basic guitar arpeggios.
The next 6 pictures are the notes of the C major arpeggio on all the 6 strings. The next 10
examples are the C major arpeggio in one octave.
The next three examples are the C major arpeggio in three octaves.
Your fingers on your left hand should be in an ark. When you play you dont want any of your
other fingers to mute strings. Also, watch your palm of your left hand, it will naturally want to
creep down into a lazy position and rest on the fretboard.
Keep your fingers in an ark. Here is a visual for you. Reach out and pretend to grab a ball the
size of your hand. Your hand shouldnt close but your hand should look like its holding a ball.
Now, turn your hand towards you. Make sure that your thumb is on the bottom of the ball and the
fingers are on top.
This is the form you should have. Also, when you play with your left hand you will play with
your finger tips not the pad of your finger. This is why the ark in the hand comes in handy. You
are going to want to move your hand and thumb around to find a position that isnt stressful on
your wrist and fingers.
Ok, so the left hand has been covered. Lets move on to the...
Guitar Strings
Before moving on you should know what each string is. So, if you are holding your guitar in the
playing position then the string closest to you, which is the biggest, is the low E string this is
how I will address it from now on.
The strings in order from largest to smallest after the low E string are the A, D, G, B, and high E
string. What are these random letters here for? Great question! Lets explain that now with
learning the guitar...
Fundamentals
So, what about those notes we learned about before? Those were 5 of the 12 different notes that
make up the guitar and its sound. Yes, there are only 12 different notes on the guitar. Just like
there are only 12 notes on the piano and most other instruments.We will cover this later on
though.
Music is written on a musical staff. The picture below is of a blank musical staff.
As you can see there are 5 lines and 4 spaces on this staff. Each line and space represent a
specific note that you will play when a note is placed on it. Dont freak out this will all come
together I promise you.
First go over to the How To Read Guitar Tabs page and first learn what guitar tabs are. Tabs are
another way to read music. If you have been around this site you will notice that most of my
examples are in sheet music (the staff you just learned) and tabs (the way you will learn once you
go to the guitar tabs page).
After you go to the tabs page and get a good understanding of how to read tabs then go to the
Learning Guitar Strings page. This page will show you every singe note on the fretboard of the
guitar on every string. You have to know what youre looking at though so thats why I
recommended those pages.
Do you remember the notes of the 6 strings? E, A, D, G, B, and e? Well, now we will put those
notes on our staff that we learned about earlier.
When you play any string without pressing any note on the fretboard then that is called an open
note. So, if you were to play all the strings of the guitar from low E to high E then you are
playing all open notes.
Now that we covered what open notes are here are your 6 open notes on the musical staff.
Im sure you noticed that there are some notes below the staff. You will have notes above and
below the staff depending on how high the note your playing is or how low it is.
The lines below or above the staff like in the above example are called ledger lines. If you
havent noticed this already, the higher the sound of the note youre playing the higher it will be
on the staff. The lower the sound of the note you are playing the lower it will be on the staff.
Right now dont worry about the weird oval things on the staff. So, anytime you see any oval
thing (note) on the very top space of the staff then you can play the high E string. Go to the
Guitar Theory page for more on the staff and its notes.
Now, lets talk about all those notes we can play. I mentioned before that there are 12 different
notes you can play on the guitar. Well, there are actually 7 natural notes. Natural notes are notes
that arent sharped or flat. Ill show you. The 7 notes are just the first 7 letters of the Alphabet.
A, B, C, D, E, F, and G. So, where are the other notes? They are in between each of these notes.
Each note has a sharp and flat note. To sharp a note simply means to raise it one half step which
is one fret on the guitar. A fret is the space between each of those metal bars. To flat a note means
you will lower it a fret or move that note one space back on the neck.
This might confuse you, but remember you will understand it soon. Between the notes B, and C
and E, and F there are no sharps. So the notes in order will look like this
Try this. Find your A string on your guitar. It is your second string the one right below the low E
string. Play it open, this is the note A. If you play the first space at the very top of the A string
this is the first fret and also the note A# or Bb. The symbol # means sharp and the symbol
b means to flat.
If you continue up another space or fret on the A string that note will be B. Look back at the
example before about all the notes in order and try to go all the way up to A again on your A
string.
Name the notes when you do it too. So, the open string is A, the next note is A# or Bb the next
note is B, the next note is C, because there is no sharp or flat between B, C and E, F.
Moving on. So we covered that the frets are the spaces right? Now, when you hear the term
move up a half step this means to move the note you are playing up a fret. Or, you can move in
down a half step by moving it back towards your open note.
If you hear the term move up a whole note this means move that note up 2 frets. The last one is
move up (or down) an octave. An octave is from one note to either the same note higher or
lower. So, from A to A is an octave. If you play your open A note and move up 12 frets you will
reach the note A again. It will sound higher but it is the same note. An octave has the same sound
just a different pitch. It will sound higher or lower but it will be the same sounding note.
This part of the beginner guitar lesson online can get a little overwhelming. Id suggest you go
watch some tv and give your mind a break. Im probably the only guitar teacher that suggests
you watch tv. Yeah, Im pretty cool.
Ok, here is something all guitar players should know...
play the 5th fret note and tune your open A string until it matches the pitch of the note you are
playing on the low E string.
Once your A string is tuned do the same thing as before, play the 5th fret of the A string and
make the D string (the next string down) sound the same. Then play the 5th fret of the D string
and match the next string to that note (the G string). This next step is different so listen up. Now,
on the G string play the 4th fret and match the B string to it. After that is tuned play the 5th fret
of the B string and match the high E string to it.
There! By now you should be in tune and ready to go. If it still sounds bad, which is normal, then
go back through the process until it sounds perfect.
Now you are ready to...
Start Playing
Lets start off by playing your first notes. We will be building chords while we do this. A chord is
2 or more notes played at the same time. We will build the E minor chord first.
Remember to ark you hand and play with the tips of your fingers and put your thumb behind the
neck directly behind your first or second finger. Now, place your second finger on the second fret
of the A string. Hold this note down and put your third finger down on the 2nd fret of the D
string. Your fingers will be close together but you want each note to ring out.
All the other notes will be open notes. So, all you have is your second and third fingers on
second fret of the A and D string. Press these down as hard as needed to get them to ring out.
Strum all the strings from the low E string to the high E string. If you hear any buzzing or muted
notes figure out what it is and try to fix it.
Once you get this you have played your first chord! Here is what the E minor chord will look like
on the staff and tab.
To make the E major chord all you have to do is hold your E minor chord and place your first
finger on the first fret of the G string. It will look like this...
The next chord we will make is the A minor chord. This is really easy, it looks exactly like your
E major chord. All you have to do to make this chord is to move each of your fingers down a
string.
So, your first finger will be playing the first fret of the B string, and your third finger will play the
second fret of the G string, and your second finger will play the second fret of the D string. It will
look like this...
The last chord we will learn for now is the D major chord. This chord is different from the others
and will take practice. Start by placing your first finger on the second fret of the G string. Then
place your second finger on the second fret of the high E string. Last, place your third finger on
the 3rd fret of the B string. With the D major chord you will only strum the last 4 strings.This is
your D major chord. It will look like this...
Now that you know 4 different chords, lets put them together. We are going to play a chord
progression of E minor, E major, A minor, and D major.
It will look like this on the staff and tab...
You will get your fingers in place and strum the chord then move to the next chord. Do this until
you get comfortable with these chords and can change them with ease.
Here is a list of the other chords I want you to learn with the fingerings. Practice these until you
are comfortable with them. Take it slow dont expect to be perfect the first couple times you play
them.
Here is the G major chord on the musical staff and tab. This may look difficult to play but this is
one of the most simple chords to start with.
Here is the A major chord. This will be a little weird because three of your fingers are grouped
together real close.
Here is another really great first chord to learn. The C chord Is another chord that is really simple
after a while but kind of a stretch at first. Keep practicing and these will become second nature to
you.
This chord give some people problems. It's really easy but when you are starting out it is a
strange form for your fingers. Use the fingers that feel the most comfortable.
Here are some chord progressions you should practice before moving on.
G maj - C maj - D maj
E maj - A maj - E maj
D min - E min - C maj - E min
A min - C maj - G maj - D maj
Practice these slow and even make your own chord progressions! You have 8 chords to work
with. Most songs are written with only 3 chords.
The next thing you need to know is....
Practice this until down picking is really easy for you. You are going to have a constant
downward picking motion the whole time.
The upstroke will be a little more awkward than the downstroke because you normally won't
constantly upstroke. For the sake of this lesson practice with just upstrokes.
This is what you are trying to master. Alternate picking is what all the shredders use. You can
cover a lot of ground with the least amount of effort.
Practice this until you are comfortable. Take every lick you learn where you can apply this
technique and practice it.
Awesome! Now keep practicing these and use them when you play and practice. Here are more
easy guitar chords. The chords below are in order...D dominant 7th, E dominant 7th, F major, G
dominant 7th, and A dominant 7th.
Practice these like the last set of chords and make some progressions with them! Making music
is the best part of playing guitar for most players.
This next chord is the E dominant 7th chord. Remember to keep your fingers in an ark so you
don't touch the other strings.
Here is the F major chord. This chord will need some practice because you will have to lay your
first finger over the last two strings. This is called a barre. Barre chords will be your best friend.
Here is the G dominant 7th chord. If you got the G major chord down then this should be fairly
easy as well.
This is another really easy chord to play. This is the A dominant 7th chord.
I hope this beginner lesson helps. If you are interested in even more lessons, styles and
techniques you can check out my website..