Guitar chords are the building blocks of songs; learn their formation with an effective visual learning system.
Each chord is displayed from both player perspective and front view for easy reference, while clicking Root or Type links loads more chords (inversions, and voicings) that fit your selected combination.
Basic Chords
This book does an outstanding job of teaching guitar beginners the fundamentals of chords. Starting from fretboard basics and progressing through basic music theory such as intervals, scales, chord construction and substitution it also covers modal harmony modal harmony and chord substitution in great detail – one of few guitar books which covers musical theory adequately!
Beginners need to learn standard chord shapes as the basis for all genres of music. A tablature section makes this easier by reading vertical lines representing strings and horizontal ones representing frets; making it clear which finger should play on which string.
This book comes equipped with downloadable audio demonstrations of each chord so that you can hear its notes being played one at a time before finally all together. Furthermore, Peter’s Picks showcase some of the most interesting chord shapes and combinations.
Movable Chords
Movable chords found in this book are fingerings you can move around the fretboard with one note as their root to produce different types of chords. For instance, moving G major up two frets onto string 6 will yield an A7 chord while taking it up two more frets will result in D minor chords.
Use these movable shapes to build chords from other scales. For instance, an E major shape at the first fret can be moved up to the fifth string for an F major chord.
This allows for easier chord location on the fretboard without needing charts for guidance, and helps reduce memory strain for smaller fingers or certain styles of playing (like finger-style). Memorizing full Cm13 chord forms requires you to press four strings with all four fingers at once; memorizing less chord shapes like these is key when working with smaller hands or finger styles such as finger-style.
Barre Chords
Barre chords are a set of shapes that can be moved up and down the fretboard to play any major chord, and are used by guitarists of all styles – from rock to blues, country and jazz. Barre chords also play an integral part of CAGED system which displays chords C, A, G and E that can be barred anywhere along the fretboard.
Each chord is depicted using a diagram which displays which strings are being played and which finger should fret each string. There are X’s and O’s present to help explain which notes are being played; an X signifies muted strings while an O indicates fretted ones with your index finger.
These diagrams are easy to read, making learning the right way from the beginning much simpler than making mistakes which stymie many players’ progress (weak hand position, dead sounding chords or collapsing shapes).
Scales
Guitar players of all levels must learn scales and chords in order to progress quickly and effectively on their instruments. This comprehensive book offers both techniques in one handy resource for maximum progress.
Beginners to guitar will find this beginner’s guide an invaluable way to progress from simple one-finger versions of open chords to two and three finger shapes for more complex song arrangements. Its visual system, used successfully by thousands of students worldwide, will give them confidence as they progress – either solo or with their teacher.
This essential reference for guitar beginners and pros features 10 movable shapes for each chord, showing how to quickly move up and down the fretboard, plus barre chords and more advanced voicings. Furthermore, there is an intelligently organized section on major and minor scales, with a workflow showing how notes create scales and chords; plus 18 essential guitar scales combined with chords, arpeggios, triads in context so memorizing these scales won’t become tedious or overwhelming!