Here’s something with respect to chords on guitar that I wish I had learned when starting out, as it would have saved me a lot of time in the long run.
The diagram below shows all possible major guitar triad fingerings on adjacent strings, with open strings omitted.
What’s a “triad” you ask? Well, all harmony (or chords) can be defined as two or more notes played simultaneously. A major triad is comprised of the root, 3rd and 5th degrees of a major scale. The “root” is basically the letter you use to designate a chord’s tonal center. So for example a C major triad has a root note of C, with the 3rd being E and the 5th G.
By thinking intervallically you can more easily harmonise a melody by constructing your own chords, which will result in better voice-leading. You will however need to know the note names on every fret in order to correctly orient the root.
If you memorise where the intervals are on the fingerboard, relative to any given root, you’ll gain the ability to more easily construct your own chords. Learning where the intervals are on the fingerboard will actually save you from having to memorise the near infinite number of possible chord shapes or “grips” as pictures or geometric patterns.
Once you’ve memorised the triad chart above, you can “flatten” the 3rd a semitone to create minor triads, or raise the 3rd to a 4th to create sus4 chords. Need an augmented chord? Raise the 5th. Need a diminished chord? Flatten both the 3rd and 5th. From this point you can include additional notes for more complex voicings, until you run out of strings or fingers.
This was kind of a revelation for me, as I found it easier to tailor chords to a song and test out variations. Memorising chord diagrams as abstract geometric patterns on the neck is all well and good, but it can be limiting to not really know what notes and intervals you’re playing by simply learning common grips. The point I’m trying to make is that just learning where to put your fingers for a C major chord is not as useful as knowing a chord’s component parts as intervals on the neck.
So in a nutshell, all you really need to know with this method is what intervals comprise a chord type, and where those intervals are on the fingerboard relative to the root.
If you’ve been playing for any length of time, you probably already know some of these shapes, as they’re typically played in first position with open strings (often referred to as “cowboy chords”). While studying the chart above, I’d recommend not playing open strings, but rather fretted notes somewhere towards the middle of the neck.
Once comfortable, try playing a chord for each note in the cycle of 4ths with as little left hand movement up and down the neck as possible, using the adjacent-string triads provided in the diagram above. To get the most out of this exercise, call out the interval of each chord note.
