Learn Acoustic Guitar – The 13 Most Important Open Chords Explained

By Dave Long

Open chords are one of the first things you learn on acoustic guitar.

The open chords consist of most of the very basic chords used in music, and while not every style makes as much use of them, it is still an important fundamental even to those kinds of music.

What differentiates the open chords from other chords is the use of the open strings within the chord shapes. This feature gives a little more play to some of the chords by allowing the guitarist to fret and unfret strings to form the sustained versions of several chords (chords where the third is replaced by a major second or perfect fourth).

Using sustained chords in the middle of progressions can make bars that really are just one basic chord sound much more interesting than just strumming the chord for the entire time. A very good example of this is the Dsus4,D,Dsus2,D chord riff in the chorus lead in of The Beatles ‘You’ve got to hide your love away”.

E and Em Chords

E: 0-2-2-1-0-0
Em: 0-2-2-0-0-0

The above are the notes of the E and Em open chords. The two chords are fairly easy to switch between, only requiring the lifting of the index finger. However, swapping between the major and minor versions of a chord is a pretty infrequent chord change, but it does make learning both the chords fairly easy.

A, Am, and Asus2 Chords
A: X-0-2-2-2-0 or X-0-2-2-2-X

The open A chord has two common ways it is held.

The first shows a variant that leaves the open high e string in the chord, while the second has the first four strings barred (which means that high e is not played in the second version).

Someone having difficulty holding the first chord shape may want to use the second version instead, since the first can be somewhat difficult to hold without bumping into the open A and open high e strings. The second version also can be much easier to get into and out of in some progressions (particularly ones using moveable bar chords), and may be a better choice even for guitarists who can hold the first fingering of the chord.

Am: X-0-2-2-1-0
Asus2: X-0-2-2-0-0
The above shows the Am chord, as well as the Asus2 chord. The Asus2 chord can be moved into by lifting the third finger in the first version of the A chord or by lifting the index finger on the Am chord. It can be used to add a little more interest to progressions using either the A or Am chord.

D, Dm, Dsus2, and Dsus4 Chords

D: X-X-0-2-3-2
Dm: X-X-0-2-3-1
The D and Dm chords do seem very similar, but due to the position on the neck, the fingering is slightly different for the two. It is one of the easier chords to learn because it does not really require the same amount of strength or dexterity to hold as some of the other chords.

Dsus2: X-X-0-2-3-0
Dsus4: X-X-0-2-3-3
D and Dm are probably the two nicest open chords for swapping to the sustained versions of the chords. Despite the different fingering, both work pretty much exactly the same for these chord shifts. To reach Dsus4, both chords simply require placing the pinky onto the fretboard. Dsus2 is reached by lifting the finger on the high e string to let the open string ring. There are quite a number of songs based fairly heavily around these types of switches because they sound good and are quite easy to perform.

C, C7M, and Cadd9 Chords

C: X-3-2-0-1-0

C can be a bit awkward at first, but it is still a good chord to get down well.
C7M: X-3-2-0-0-0
Cadd9: X-3-2-0-3-0
C has a few easy variants to move in and out of without too much effort. The index finger is just lifted off the B string. The Cadd9 variant is not quite as easy to do as Dsus4, but can sound quite nice in some progressions. For that variant, the pinky is brought on the B string to fret the third fret.

G Chord
G: 3-2-0-0-0-3 or 3-2-0-0-3-3

G is a useful chord for many songs, but there is not really all that much play to it besides the basic chord. There are two variants, but most guitarists just pick one. The second variant does have the advantage of being easily shifted into Cadd9, but that is about it (X-3-2-0-3-3 is also a valid way to hold Cadd9).

Learn more free acoustic guitar tips: Learn Acoustic Guitar

Dave Long is the owner of http://www.LearningAcousticGuitar.net where he provides acoustic guitar tips and advice.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Dave_Long
http://EzineArticles.com/?Learn-Acoustic-Guitar—The-13-Most-Important-Open-Chords-Explained&id=1473411