Gaining knowledge and practicing these major chords includes learning to move from chord to chord, which is known as chord progressions. To play a major chord, you’ll only need to use a few fingers and simple placements. The major chords are the easiest to start with because more adjustments for minor chords are needed. So when you read the guitar tab, the five chords should look like this: The five chords listed below show you the C Major, A Major, G Major, E Major, and D Major. These are the more essential chords that you will work on when starting to play since they will be the easiest ones to practice and master. There are five guitar chords that any guitarist should learn first, and if you work with a guitar instructor, these will more than likely be the chords you start with in the beginning. Most of the chords are straightforward, but some symbols and indicators become challenging with more complex chords. The letters you see at the top of the guitar chord chart should tell you the chord’s name. You should always see an X or O to represent any string without a number to indicate where your finger is going. The “O” or circle means strum the line open or without pressing down on the fret. The “X” means to avoid playing the string or muting it. They are sometimes placed in the row of numbers at the bottom. You see the X or O above the top bar on your guitar chart. X’s and O’s don’t mean hugs and kisses on a guitar. The numbers may be at the bottom of the chart of inside the dots to indicate what fingers to play on the specific strings: These dots on the chart indicate what fret you are pressing on and which string, and the finger you will use. When you look at a chord chart, you will also see black dots and red dots. The Black Dots or Red Dots on a Guitar Chord Diagram However, with the guitar, the finger placement is different. The thumb in the piano is usually considered the first finger, and the pinky is the fifth. If you play the piano or have in the past, the concept of the numbers for fingers can be a tad confusing.

If you see a “T” symbol indicated over a string on the chord chart, that means that you need to use your thumb to make the note. Each number represents a finger like this: The numbers on the guitar chord diagram tell you which finger to use when you play. The first row of boxes represents the first fret, the second with the second fret, and so on, like this:

The nut is usually a thick white or cream-colored piece across the top of your guitar, elevating the strings over the fretboard. Knowing this helps you identify what fret or “box” on the guitar you are playing based on where the nut is. If the top horizontal line is thicker, it is meant to be the nut, a part located at the end of the fingerboard. Depending on if you play with your right or left hand, you can figure out where to put your fingers on the strings and frets of your guitar with the chart. The horizontal lines represent the fret bars. The line all the way to the right on the chart is the first string on your guitar, all the way to the left is the sixth string. The lines going up and down vertically are the strings of the guitar, and the horizontal lines are the fret bars. When you read a guitar chord chart (also called a diagram or guitar tab), you will see the picture as if the guitar was being held straight up vertically. Reading guitar tabs does not have to be difficult, here is a simple breakdown so that you can get started. Many people also refer to it as a guitar tab. It is the part that demonstrates where you put your hands and fingers to play the chord. The idea behind this visual representation is to give you what it looks like to look at a guitar fret or fretboard.

All chords guitar chart