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Chords In Open G 4 String

I'm looking for some help with forming chords in Open G tuning on a 4 string. Can anyone point me in the right direction????

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Permalink Reply by Mark on March 4, 2011 at 10:27pm

Been doing that for 20 years - hasn't made a lot of difference yet. I can span 4 frets for some chords no problem (depends on the shape and which fingers I have to use) but 5 frets is pretty much a no go.

Jef Long said:

you can do a 4 fret stretch dude. Let me tell you the same thing i tell 16 year old students on a full size guitar....

warm up...

and practice :D

start with a capo ;)

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Permalink Reply by Keni Lee Burgess on March 5, 2011 at 2:37am

The possibilities are endless. In my Devil tuning videos, I suggest going from GDg to ADf# tuning, if you are interested in exploring a system of movable chords. More relativity stuff...ADf# is basically Open D tuning. The notes from the major scale making up the D chord are stacked low to high on the fingerboard 513. Notice this: GDgb tuning (an extention of 3 string GDg tuning made by adding the 3rd tone (b) making a full major G chord) has the same major scale intervals G(Dgb) 1(513) as the above Open D tuning ADf# (513). You can use all the same moveable chord shapes taught on the video. The only difference is you will be in the key of G, instead of key of D.

Having multiple positions for the same chord to choose from, makes arranging songs work out better. Instead of having pages of chord charts and not understanding how chords relate to each other, understanding a moveable chord system will make your life a lot easier in the long run. This is actually the same approach used in standard guitar. Basic chords CAGED are turned into bar chords and are all moveable.

If you choose to use Dgbd tuning which is a mini version of 6 string tuning DGDgbd, the same major scale intervals are here Dgbd / (513)5. Use the same moveable chord shapes again. For the full chord, you just play the same note on the high d, as you do on the low D.

I understand learning can be confusing at times, but many times the frustration you may encounter in your practice comes in because you don't fully understand what you are doing and are limited by your knowledge. Understanding how music works and applying it to guitar will make you a better musician. Check out this book: http://www.edly.com/mtfpp.html

I encourage you in your own exploration. There are no rules. Just keep in mind, there are expedient means available too.

Enjoy your practice.

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Permalink Reply by Keni Lee Burgess on March 5, 2011 at 2:46am

Additionally, if you find chord stretches too large, either build a CBG with a shorter scale length or if the key is not essential, use a capo. Enjoy.

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Permalink Reply by Mark on March 5, 2011 at 5:18am

Some good suggestions there Keni Lee.

I hope I didn't come across as overly negative when I remarked about chords shapes that span 4 or 5 frets. I just think there are other approaches to playing which don't require so much concern with technical detail.

I spent a lot of the last 20 years trying to learn the types of techniques that guitar teachers teach or which you find in books. Some I got the hang of and some I didn't. I spent a lot of time practising but ultimately it was frustrating. But more recently I've come to realise that the most important thing to me is having fun and I don't need a huge arsenal of chords and skills to do that. I haven't stopped trying to learn new stuff but I'm less bothered about it - I feel it's a lot more important to have fun with what I can do already. If I can't play something in the original key then that's OK, I'll play it in whatever key will work with the guitar I've got. I enjoy life a lot more this way.

I feel quite strongly that many people are put off playing musical instruments because they're told they have to learn a lot of stuff before they can play properly. In contrast, many of the players who've had a big impact on me started with little or no technical skill but instead had confidence, conviction or just a determination to have fun. I honestly believe there is a great deal wisdom in the punk motto that goes along the lines: "Here's a chord, here's another, here's a third one...now form a band".

I got the impression that Cris was looking for something fairly basic when he started this thread. So the chord diagrams I posted originally were intentionally simple (also I created them in about ten minutes in Photoshop so I didn't have time for much more).

I think there's room for all approaches on here. I guess people are probably best starting simple and then, once they get the hang of a basic set of chords and riffs, they'll probably want more variations and more complex stuff so they can play in a greater range of keys.

I figure I might well try tuning one of my guitars to ADf# and see where it takes me.

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Permalink Reply by Keni Lee Burgess on March 5, 2011 at 6:09am

Hello Mark,

Yes, I hear what you are saying, and agree highly with the idea of having fun and that music doesn't need to be highly technical. I tried for many years to learn how to play like other players. It wasn't until I took a backward step and relearned a lot of my basics that I started to make progress. It is definitely about how well you want to play and how much time and effort you have to put into your practice.

I strongly encourage unguided exploration. There is no need to use conventional methods. As a teacher, I offer this information for those who are looking for more ideas and a method that is systematic to higher learning and skill development. If players feel like they reached a deadend, I think my lessons offer some good suggestions. I think of my CDs as a guide for exploring the fingerboard and looking at how basic music theory can help a student understand how music works. Figuring out songs and creating your own arrangements, is what it is all about

Thank you for your response. Enjoy.

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Permalink Reply by Mark Bliss on March 5, 2011 at 12:01pm

Ok guys, help an old guy out.....

How do you make those chord chart presentations? I meant what program, software, I bet Im missing something simple here....... Ok, I read further into it and see its Photoshop. Got any simple advise for someone who doesnt want to learn such a complex program to do something so simple? (In theory)

I want to be able to do that..........

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Permalink Reply by Mark on March 6, 2011 at 2:01am

The other way I do diagrams for posting is simply to draw them by hand on a piece of paper and then scan them - and if I'm not at home where I have a scanner I sometimes use the camera in my phone to take a close-up pic of the page.

Another traditional way to do chord diagrams and tab has been to do them as text files (using a fixed width font, such as Courier) - it's a cheap and cheerful method but it can be a bit fiddly.

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Permalink Reply by Mark Bliss on March 6, 2011 at 3:23am

Thanks Mark,

Ive done the scanning and the text method, tedious. I used to use a rubber stamp on my hand made tabs, but then I need one for 3 strings, 4 strings, 6 strings, then scan and save them etc. It works, but I am thinking theres got to be a better way to share.

I am thinking of learning the vector art thing on sketch-up, anyone mess with that for similar purposes?