Fret Board, Chords And Capos
You Need to Know and Understand the Guitar Fretboard to be a good Guitar Player
The fretboard image above shows the string IDs on the left, with the low (bass) E string at the top and the high (treble) E string at the bottom. Across the top of the image are the fret positions, starting with the 1st “E” fret, which is the “open” E note (no strings depressed).
On the right side of the fretboard, you’ll see another E note. This position indicates that all notes on the fretboard repeat after the first 12 notes. The 13th (E note) is one octave higher in pitch. These higher-octave positions are usually used only by lead guitar players.
Fundamental Guitar Chord Relationships
For the vast majority of guitar players, there are only seven primary chords used when playing a song. These chords are E, A, D, C, F, G, and B.
In any three-chord song, these chords form a continuous circle: (E, A, D), (A, D, G), (D, G, C), (G, C, F), (C, F, B), (F, B, E), (B, E, A), and so on. This gives you seven primary chords and seven primary chord groups for every possible three-chord song. However, the most popular chord groups are (E, A, D), (C, F, G), and (E, A, B) – which is usually seen as (E, A, B7).
In practical use, the (E, A, D), (E, A, B), and (E, A, B7) chord groups are most often used for fast-moving songs because these chords have close finger groupings and are easier and faster to play.
The chords (C, F, G) are most commonly used for slower songs because their fingerings are more difficult to play quickly.
There are many four-chord songs as well, but the most popular four-chord progression is (C, Am, F, G).
The most common chords used with the primary seven chords are seventh chords and minor chords. (B7, F7, G7 etc, and Am, Dm, Cm, etc.
Chords beyond these basic groupings are usually added for pianists and are generally not necessary for guitarists. For the most part, they can be ignored.
What Is a Capo and How Do You Use It?
A capo is a small device that you attach to the guitar neck to shorten the length of all strings. This raises the guitar’s overall pitch; for example, placing a capo on the first fret raises the pitch by one semitone.
(A higher pitch increases the treble sound. a lower pitch increases the bass sound)
What Is the main purpose of a Capo
In the entertainment world, most songs require a vocalist, and musically, a guitar usually supports the vocalist.
The vocalists cannot alter their vocal range to match the guitar; guitar players must match the vocalists.
For example: If a song is played in the key of “A” and the singer cannot sing the “low A” notes…
Don’t try changing chords; use a capo and move it up the fretboard (one fret at a time).
The capo keeps raising the guitar pitch until the singer can sing the notes.
When I started learning guitar in the late 1960s, some players thought using a capo was cheating. Many of these guitarists wanted to learn barre chords because they thought it was cool.
Later, I discovered that recording studio musicians always used a capo when backing vocalists with different pitch ranges. So I thought: if professional musicians use a capo, I’d follow the professionals.
Looking at the image of the guitar fretboard above, you can see that the top “E” string is marked with note tags, starting with the “open” string of E. The distance between one fret and the next is called an increase of one semitone.
In practice: If you played a song using the open chord structure (meaning no capo) of A – D – E, and then placed a capo before the third fret, you would have raised the pitch by three semitones.
As a result, the A chord would sound like a C chord, the D chord would sound like an F, and the E chord would sound like a G chord.
Note: When you use a capo to raise the pitch by one semitone, every note and chord played afterward is also raised by one semitone. So, in the example above, raising the pitch by three semitones (making the A chord sound like a C) means all chords and notes are elevated by three semitones for the rest of the guitar.
Why use a capo instead of barre chords?
Using a capo to change the key lets you play chords, melodies, and strumming patterns quickly, easily, and naturally. It also enables a greater variety of strumming techniques.
In contrast, barre chords are more difficult to learn and execute. They also prevent playing melodies and the use of multiple strumming styles. Barre chords restrict your musical expression and slow your progress.
My advice… never use Barre chords, they make playing guitar more difficult and have little benefit.
What if the chord pitch is too high or too low?
When you have difficulty finding the right chord pitch to match your vocal range, you’ll need to explore different chord groups, capo positions, and octave or harmonic ranges.
One trick I use is to find a single note that matches a part of my song, then try different chords that contain that particular note.
Understanding and using a capo is the heart and soul of being a guitar professional. My advanced Quantum Guitar Method of playing guitar requires the use of the Major open chords.
Using a capo allows you to play “open” chords and gives you the freedom to do more than just strum chords. It also makes it easy to incorporate different strumming techniques, play single notes, and even play a song’s melody.
When you give yourself, your brain, and mind this freedom, a new world of self-expression opens. Your guitar playing will impress your audience and will seem (to you) as if the guitar is playing itself.