music theory without tears
… “Now, and indulge me in this, imagine that you are the leader of a small choir. “How small is it?” There are only six voices in your choir. Okay? This is your guitar. Each string is one voice and each voice can only “sing” one note at a time. You chose whether one note is being sung at a time or whether (and which notes) all six voices are sounding at once. If you strike two or more separate strings, but they sound the same note (playing the fifth fret of the A string and an open D string, say), then the voices are in unison. If they are sounding different notes, you are playing a chord. Maybe. A chord must be at least three different notes – two different notes are not a chord. “
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David Hodge, Lead Editor and Senior Columnist. Currently living just outside Great Barrington, Massachusetts, David teaches privately and also writes lessons for Acoustic Guitar Magazine and Play Guitar! Magazine. His first tutorial book, The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Playing Bass Guitar, is available from Amazon.com. To hear some of his original music, visit his page at Soundclick.com. For his schedule and latest news check out David’s home page. You can contact David by email at dhodgeguitar@aol.com.
Tags: chords, david hodge, guitar, music theory
