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160
Market St. Brantford, Ontario Canada
519-757-0890 |
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MOBILITY
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If you've ever made a bar chord, you've entered the realm of mobility. Most typical bar chords are reconstructions of four common chords, E major, E minor, A major and A minor, found at the end of the neck. |
EXAMPLE;
 BECOMES
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This may sound rudimentary but the idea of reusing something familiar has some wonderful connotations! First off, you gotta remember the end of the neck is a very strange place full of abstracts. In order to recreate chord forms (and scales), the nut has to be perceived as another fret and not just that thing at the end of the guitar that holds your strings. For example, when you make an ordinary E chord, half the strings are taken care of by the nut but if you borrow that original shape and plow it up the neck, you've got to take the end of the guitar with you! This is where your first finger comes in handy imitating the nut and your other fingers reconstitute the rest of the chord shape. Now that we've got our heads wrapped around that idea, let's take it one step further... What about other common chord shapes like D, G, or even C? Does the same idea work for these? ..... I believe it does! Take that ordinary D chord and fly it up two frets - presto! you have an E! (careful to use only the strings your fingers are on, the other open strings don't necessarily fit - unless you want them to.) |
 BECOMES
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Now how about that G shape. Drive that one up the neck so you have your third finger on the top string at the eighth fret and look at that! - you have a brand new C! |
 BECOMES
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Speaking of C, take that old familiar shape, restructure it ahead two frets and you've got a nice big stretchy D, the first chord to Under The Bridge by the Chili Peppers! (it is a bit of a stretch and takes some getting used to but time heals all wounds.) |
 BECOMES
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This idea of planting chord shapes around the neck is certainly nothing new - I know I didn't invent it - but it's a very useful tool for discovering more about how the neck works as a whole and in combination with other elements of chord chemistry, it can't be beat. |
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