Lesson Objectives

Introducing the concept of minor and major chords.
Introduce the chords of G, E minor, A minor and D7.
Develop fluency in playing each of the new chords.
Develop the ability to change chords fluently and in time.

Introducing major and minor chords

In Lessons 1 to 6 we have dealt with power chords only. There are, however, many other chords which have more than the two notes found in a power chord (or a 5-chord).

These chords are played in every type of guitar playing and in every style of music. They are the basis of acoustic rhythm guitar playing but are equally found just as commonly in electric guitar playing.

The new chords we will be studying are divided into two main areas:

major chords; and
minor chords.

To compare the sounds of major and minor chords, watch and listen to our first video example.

Video 1. Major and minor chords

You will hear how a minor chord sounds melancholy compared with a major chord.

There are many major and minor chords to learn, but in this lesson we are going to concentrate on 4 chords only. These are G, E minor, A minor and D7.

Many chords have numbers in the title. You need not worry about the reasons for the names of the chords at this stage. Full explanations will be given later when dealing with chord theory. For the moment though, if a chord has an ‘m’ after the letter, for example ‘Am’, then this would be the chord of A minor. If no letter appears after the name of the chord, then the chord is a major chord.

Next: Introducing E minor