Virtual Star Guitar Lesson 8
How are you doing? Do you think you have that G Major chord down yet? Let’s move on to our next chord in the key of G Major. The next chord we are going to learn is the C Major (C) chord. Here is the chord diagram. See if you can figure out what you are supposed to do with this one.
Got it? For our C Major chord, we will put our first finger on the first fret on the second string. We will put our second finger on the second fret on string 4. Finally we will put our third finger on the third fret of string 5.
You may have noticed the little X in the upper left corner of the chord diagram. This means that you are not supposed to play that string at all. When strumming, make sure that you do not strum that string. If you are doing it correctly, playing the C Major chord will look something like this.
Ready to give it a strum? We will continue to hold our fingers as depicted by the diagram and then we will strum just the last five string strings since the diagram told us not to play the 6th string (the little X). It should sound something like this.
Audio Example C8_1:
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Give it a try. How did it sound? Here is the tablature for the C Major chord we are learning to play.
(Click to enlarge)
If you walk through the tablature for the C chord, again you will find that it matches the chord diagram picture as far as what strings you play and where you put your fingers. However, just like our G chord example, we don’t need to actually read all of the tablature to know what to play. See that C over the top of the first chord on the tab diagram? That’s right. We know when we see the C over the tab that we can play our C chord as depicted in our C chord diagram and we don’t necessarily have to read all of the individual tab notes.
Let’s take a closer look at the tab example. Again the tablature is written using whole notes which get four beats (we are fixing to add some new types of notes very soon). Whole notes get 4 beats so will are going to down strum and hold the C chord for 4 beats before moving to the next C chord. We know that we will strum downwards because of the little half box symbol below the tab. Remember not to actually play the 6th string for a C Major chord. Here is what it should sound like.
(Click to enlarge)
Audio Example C8_2:
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Are you ready to give it a try yourself? Here is the drumbeat without my guitar.
Audio Example C8_3:
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Practice this for a while until you think your C chord sounds good. Don’t get too frustrated if some of the notes in your chords don’t ring out. It will take a little bit of time for your hand and fingers to memorize exactly where they need to be. One day it will just click.
The tab below is similar to what you just played except that it uses half notes instead of whole notes. Give it a try along with me.
(Click to enlarge)
Audio Example C8_4:
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Think you can handle it by yourself? Give it a try.
Audio Example C8_5:
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Ok. That is sounding pretty good. Let’s try an example using both whole notes and half notes. Remember that a whole note gets 4 beats and a half note gets 2 beats. You will count it like this. 1-2-3-4, 1-2, 1-2, 1-2-3-4, 1-2, 1-2. Got it?
(Click to enlarge)
You may have noticed something strange at the end of the tab example above. Something that looks like this.
This is called a repeat symbol. When you see the repeat symbol, that means that you go back to the beginning and play everything again. It’s just a way to reduce the number of notes that have to be written out. So instead of playing 4 measures, you will actually play 8. Here is what it should sound like.
Audio Example C8_6:
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Audio Example C8_7:
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Excellent. Let’s finish with a hard one. This example contains both whole and half notes and uses both the G Major and C Major chords. Now, I know that you practiced the G chord from the previous chapter real good and you can play it from memory (right?). How long do you think it will take you to switch from one chord such as the C chord to another such as the G chord?
In most cases you get less than one beat. You must be able to switch from one chord to another instantaneously. This will take some time and practice, but you will eventually be able to do this. I do not expect you to be able to switch instantaneously right this minute though. You are still learning the chords.
I am going to help you out with the chord changes by introducing a new musical symbol called a rest. A rest is the opposite of a note. Rests show periods in the music where you are not supposed to play anything. You are supposed to rest.
Just like notes, rests come in many different units. Just like there is a whole note, there is also a whole rest. Below is a picture of a whole rest. If you play a whole note for 4 beats, how long do you think you rest for a whole rest? That’s right. You rest for 4 beats.
One way to remember that this symbol is a whole rest, is to visualize it as a little hole. See? If the line the rest is attached to was the ground, it looks like a little hole. A hole rest. A whole rest. Get it?
So how is this whole rest going to help you switch chords? Well, just because its called a rest doesn’t mean you have to actually rest. You will not play any music during the rest, but that is a perfect time to get your fingers set for the next chord. Take a look at the tab for this exercise.
(Click to enlarge)
You will start off like the previous example playing a C chord for a whole note followed by two half notes. (1-2-3-4, 1-2, 1-2). And then again. (1-2-3-4, 1-2, 1-2). Then you will come to the whole rests. There are two of them so you will rest for 8 beats. (1-2-3-4, 1-2-3-4).
During the rest, you will need to get your fingers in place to play the G chord. You will have 8 beats to get set up for that G chord. After the rest, you will play a similar pattern for the G chord. A whole note followed by two half notes. (1-2-3-4, 1-2, 1-2) And then again. (1-2-3-4, 1-2, 1-2).
Next are the two whole rests. It may seem silly to have rests at the end of the song, but remember that repeat sign we learned earlier? There is one of those at the end so that means we are actually not finished. We have to go back to the beginning and play it all again. Since the beginning starts back with the C chord, I put the rests in to give you time to set your fingers up for the C chord before you have to play it. You are quite welcome. Here is what it should sound like.
Audio Example C8_8:
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Ready to give it a try yourself? Here you go.
Audio Example C8_9:
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We will now add a third chord to our list of known chords – the D Major chord. Don’t forget to practice the scales and chords you have learned in the previous lessons each day. We will be putting it all together soon.
Continue on to Lesson 9…
View the Virtual Star Guitar lesson index…
Do you have any questions or comments on this lesson? If so send me an email and I will respond shortly. rbrewer@myguitaruniversity.com