certain point, power chords on the 5 th string will overtake the voicings on the 6 th string. See the accompanying video for more explanation. 5. CAN YOU PLAY THE SAME POWER CHORD IN DIFFERENT REGISTERS? You sure can. A low G power chord can be voiced on the 3 rd fret of the 6 th string, as well as an octave higher on the 10 th fret of the 5 th string.
6. WHAT ABOUT OPEN POWER CHORDS? We’ ve got two basic low open power chords that qualify, based on open string 6 and open string 5. The first one is E5, or E5 no 3 rd.
7. CAN YOU PLAY OPEN POWER CHORDS WITH MORE THAN 3 NOTES? You sure can. G5 no 3 rd can be voiced with just G and D notes, leveraging all but the 5 th string. There are other power chords( demonstrated in the video) that span more then 3 notes.
9. CAN YOU PLAY POWER CHORDS ON AN ACOUSTIC GUITAR? Yes. But if you haven’ t played power chords before, get an electric guitar in your hands and run it through a distortion pedal. That’ ll add some serious rock depth to your sound.
“ But” – you might be thinking“ That’ just looks like an open E minor chord.” You’ d be right, but only if you had open strings across the neck. Look closely. Those Xs are meant to show that the chord only has 3 notes ringing.
For the other open power chord – A5, I can lay my index across strings 4 and 3.
Remember, this is A5, NOT Asus2, right? Watch those Xs. The trick here is to make sure the open 6 th string doesn’ t ring, and that’ s where the thumb can move around to lightly touch that string and keep it from ringing.
8. CAN YOU TUNE YOUR GUITAR WITH POWER CHORDS? Absolutely. It’ s actually the best way to prove that your guitar is in tune. I came across a book 25 years ago or so called“ Tuning the Guitar By Ear: A practical new approach for the uncompromising musician” by Gerald Klickstein. This book opened my eyes to the process of tuning and tempering the strings. This is our affiliate link to that book if you want to buy it – we get a small commission at no additional cost to you. Click here to purchase this book.
It’ s not for the faint of heart, but it will enhance your tuning in an unprecedented way. In addition to tuning each string carefully to the 5 th string and testing it, using harmonics and fretted notes, Klickstein walks you through the importance of testing multiple strings with neutral, power chords. Power chords aren’ t just fun to play – they’ re useful for tuning as well.
10. CAN YOU DE-TUNE YOUR GUITAR TO ALLOW FOR MORE POWER CHORDS? I’ ve arranged and performed songs in at least a dozen tunings. Alternate tunings open all kinds of possibilities up for the adventurous guitarist. One of my favorites is DADGAD, which can allow for 6-string power chords( see the video for a demonstration.)
11. WHERE TO FROM HERE? You can take a worship song you know and just play it with power chords. Our ears will hear them in the context of a progression and be able to tell if we’ re in a Major or minor key. Real music can totally be made with power chords.
© GuitarSuccess4U. All rights reserved. David Harsh David Harsh is a nationally touring worship leader, songwriter and performing artist. He is passionate about equipping guitarists to discover their potential. Learn more and join now at www. GuitarSuccess4U. com
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