GUITAR
Hal Rodriguez is a published writer, music teacher, and musician based in Toronto. He has transcribed music for virtuosos Oz Noy and
Derryl Gabel and has interviewed artists such as John Scofield, Paul Gilbert, and Robben Ford. Contact him at [email protected]
and visit youtube.com/halromusic and @halromuso on Instagram.
By Hal Rodriguez
Tapping Chord Extensions
T
wo-handed tapping on the guitar
is commonly used to perform fast
single-note passages, but recently,
I’ve been exploring how to use it to
play chords in new ways. In the following ex-
amples, I’ve illustrated four different approach-
es to extending chords by tapping additional
notes with my picking hand.
In Ex.1, I arpeggiate a C7 chord with my fret-
ting hand and then tap the 9 th on the B string
with the index finger of my picking hand.
EX. 1
EX. 2
In Ex. 2, I tap both the 9 th and the 13 th of C7
with the index and ring finger of my picking
hand.
In Ex. 3, I use three fingers on my picking hand
to add extensions to the C7 chord: the index
finger taps the 4 th on the D string; the middle
taps the 9 th on the B string; and finally, the
ring finger taps the 13 th on the high E string.
I find that tapping these extensions and let-
ting the notes ring into each other creates
a pleasant pianistic effect. This adds a nice
contrast to the usual way I arpeggiate or per-
cussively strum chords with a pick.
To expand on this concept, you could also
practice tapping in different keys, tapping ex-
tensions over other chord qualities, and slid-
ing the tapped notes to other frets.
For example, in Ex. 4, I arpeggiate an Am7
and then tap three notes, which I slide up to
higher frets.
EX. 3
EX. 4
For more ideas to practice, check out Hal’s
YouTube page at YouTube.com/halromusic.
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