Moving whole steps and half steps

Musicians measure the distance between pitches (sound frequencies or notes) with intervals called whole and half steps. The distance between one pitch and the next is called a half step or semitone. On a guitar, a half step is one fret. Two half steps make up a whole step or whole tone, which is two frets. For example, E-F and B-C are half steps, and F-G-A-B and D-C-E are whole steps. These pitches are always separated by these distances, regardless of where you play them on the fretboard.

Sharps and flats

The pitches between the natural notes are called flats and sharps. A flat is one half step lower than its corresponding natural note and is marked with the musical symbol ♭. A sharp is a half step higher and is marked with the symbol ♯.

For example, the pitch in between F and G on the 6th string is either F♯, meaning one half step higher than F, or G♭, meaning one half step lower than G. F♯ and G♭ are enharmonic, meaning they’re two different note names with the same pitch.

Grouping notes

To memorize the remaining notes on both strings, think of the notes in groups. Grouping notes together helps you remember string areas that don’t connect easily to a common open chord or open string.

As you review the note groups covered here, take a moment to rehearse all the notes in each group, playing through them forward and backward and calling them out as you go. After you have all these natural notes memorized, you can easily fill in the gaps with flats and sharps.

A-B-C

To start, take the first three notes on the 5th string: A-B-C. You can play this same group of notes with the same spacing beginning at the 5th fret of the 6th string, as shown in Figure 1-5.

Wherever you find an A, B is always a whole step higher, and B and C are always a half step apart. If you memorize these notes on the 5th string between the open position and the 3rd fret, then you also know the notes on the 6th string between the 5th and 8th frets — they’re the same!

C-D-E

Similarly, you can group the notes C-D-E. These notes are always separated by whole steps. On the 5th string, they’re at frets 3, 5, and 7, and on the 6th string, they’re at frets 8, 10, and 12 (see Figure 1-6).

Whenever you’re on a C, you can reach up a whole step to D and another whole step to E. Likewise, whenever you’re on an E, you can reach down a whole step to D and another whole step to C.

E-F-G

You can also group the notes E-F-G on the 6th and 5th strings, as shown in Figure 1-7. On the 6th string, these notes are between the open position and the 3rd fret; on the 5th string, they’re between the 7th and 10th frets.

Wherever you find an E, F is always a half step higher, and F and G are always a whole step apart.

F-G-A

Finally, you can group the notes F-G-A, which are always separated by whole steps. On the 6th string, they’re at frets 1, 3, and 5; on the 5th string, they’re at frets 8, 10, and 12 (see Figure 1-8).

Whenever your 1st finger is on F, you can reach up a whole step to G and another whole step to A. Similarly, whenever your 4th finger is on A, you can reach down a whole step to G and another whole step to F.

Shaping octaves with your 1st finger on strings 6 and 5

The first octave shape you need to know stems off of strings 6 and 5. Place your 1st finger somewhere on the 6th or 5th string and use another finger to reach over two strings and up two frets: You now have the same note an octave higher. Figure 1-9 shows what this octave shape looks like. Notice that you can also play octaves of the open strings.

You can finger these octave shapes with either your 1st and 3rd fingers or your 1st and 4th fingers — whichever is more comfortable. Guitar players usually opt to strum octave shapes on strings 6 and 5 by using a pick and leaning their fretting fingers back to touch (but not fret) other strings to prevent them from ringing. This technique creates a raking sound from the muted strings. In fact, jazz guitar legend Wes Montgomery was famous for playing melodies and solos by using octave shapes in this fashion, opting to strum across the strings with the pad of his right thumb for a soft, mellow sound. You hear this technique in his song “Bumpin’ on Sunset.” Jimi Hendrix strummed the same kind of octave shapes with a pick, using distortion, for his songs “Fire” and “Third Stone from the Sun.”

For a demonstration on playing octave shapes, watch Video Clip 17.

If you need to identify a note on string 4 or 3, use octave shapes to trace it back to the notes you have memorized on strings 6 and 5.

Octaves starting on strings 4 and 3

You can play octave shapes with your 1st finger on string 4 or 3 and the octaves on string 2 or 1, although the shapes are slightly different than they are on strings 6 and 5. With the way the 2nd string is tuned (one half step lower), you need to move over two strings and up three frets to reach the octave (see Figure 1-10).

If you have to identify a note on string 2 or 1, use octave shapes to trace it back to strings 4 and 3 and then again to strings 6 and 5. However, keep in mind that the 1st string is E, just as the 6th string is E, and the positions of all the notes on both strings are the same.

Octaves that are three strings apart

Another octave shape that’s less common but still good to know reaches over three strings and in the direction opposite the previous shape’s direction. You can play these octaves by placing your 1st finger on either string 1 or 2 and then reaching over to either string 4 or 5 with either your 3rd or 4th finger, as shown in Figure 1-11. Notice that you can also use the open strings.

Repeating octaves beyond the 12th fret

The preceding sections cover notes between the open strings and the 12th fret, but what about the fretboard area beyond that? Fortunately, everything — including notes and spacing — repeats at the 12th fret. Just as strings 6 and 5 open are E and A, the same strings are E and A at the 12th fret. Just as the first inlay marker past the open 6th string is G, the first marker past the 12th fret is also G. As you can see in Figure 1-12, the guitar neck between 0 and 12 is identical to the neck between 12 and 24, though your guitar may not have a full 24 frets. Note the fret numbers indicated below the neck diagrams.

After you can identify any note on the fretboard by using various octave shapes to trace it back to a note you have memorized on string 6 or string 5, it’s time to practice your skills. Pick a note and track it across the whole fretboard. For example, see how many E notes you can play.

Playing intervals 1 through 7

The distance from the 1st to the 2nd scale degrees in the major scale is called a second interval, from the 1st to the 3rd is called a third, from the 1st to the 4th is called a fourth, and so on. Here’s what makes up each interval:

• 2nd: A whole step above the 1st scale degree.
• 3rd: Two whole steps or over a string and back one fret.
• 4th: Two and a half steps or over one string.
• 5th: Three and a half steps or over a string and up two frets.
• 6th: Four and a half steps or over two strings and back one fret. (The same note is also over one string and up two whole steps.)
• 7th: Five and a half steps or over two strings and up one fret. (A 7th is one half step shy of an octave.)

When you move from string 3 to 2 to play an interval, you need to move up an extra fret because the 2nd string is tuned a half step lower than the others.

A 3rd is normally over a string and back one fret, but when moving from string 3 to 2, a 3rd is over a string and in the very same fret. Normally a 4th is over one string, but it’s up one fret from string 3 to 2. You see this earlier in the section on octaves where you have to reach up an extra fret between strings 4 and 2 and 3 and 1. Moving from the 6th string to the 1st, everything changes at the 2nd string, and an extra fret is needed. Because the 1st string is tuned to the 2nd string in the same manner that strings 6 to 3 are tuned, intervals between them are normal.

3rds

Guitarists often play harmonic intervals, which are really just intervals you play together to create harmony. Thirds are a common harmonic interval.

To play thirds, play the 1st and 3rd scale degrees simultaneously and then ascend or descend the scale in groups of two with the notes always 3 scale degrees apart. You can do this in five different positions by following the tab in Figure 1-15. You can also hear and see this example in Video Clip 18.

Figure 1-15 and Video Clip 18 show just five examples in the G major scale. You can play in 3rds in other keys by starting at a different fret and using the same interval shapes. For example, start on A at the 5th fret of the 6th string to play 3rds in the A major scale.

Many songs feature guitar parts played in 3rds. One of the best examples is the opening to “Brown Eyed Girl” by Van Morrison. The guitar plays the G major scale in 3rds over the G chord and the C major scale in 3rds over the C chord.

6ths (or inverted 3rds)

Sometimes guitarists invert 3rds by moving the 1st degree up an octave. What was 1-3 becomes 3-1. The interval is inverted, get it? For example, G-B would become B-G. Figure 1-16 shows examples of inverting the 3rd G-B.

With intervals, you always count from the note in the lowest position to the note in the highest position. Thus, inverted 3rds are more commonly called 6ths. G to B is 3 scale degrees (G-A-B, one-two-three), so the interval is called a 3rd. B to G, on the other hand, is 6 scale degrees (B-C-D-E-F♯-G, one-two-three-four-five-six), so it’s called a 6th.

You can play through the whole scale in 6ths in two different positions by following the tab in Figure 1-17. Because you only want to sound the notes in the tab and not the other strings, and because these interval shapes are two strings apart, you need to either fingerpick or apply some left-hand muting technique (like you do with octave shapes).

Harmony-wise, when you play in 6ths, you hear 3rds and roots, but technically, the distance between each pair of notes from low to high is identified as a 6th.

5ths

By far, the most popular harmonic interval among guitar players is the 5th. After all, a root and a 5th make up the so-called power chord that appears in almost every distorted rock song ever recorded. A 5th is written as G5, A5, and so on in a chord chart. Figure 1-18 shows the G scale in 5ths in two different positions. Notice that the 7th scale degree has a 5th that’s different from all the rest. It naturally occurs one half step lower in the scale and is called a flat 5th.

4ths (or inverted 5ths)

Sometimes guitarists invert 5ths by moving the lower note up an octave while keeping the upper note the same. For instance, G-D would become D-G. Figure 1-19 illustrates two examples for you.

Inverted 5ths are called 4ths for the same reason that inverted 3rds are called 6ths. G to D is a 5th (G-A-B-C-D), while D to G is a 4th (D-E-F♯-G). You can play the G major scale in 4ths by following the tab in Figure 1-20.

In harmony, when you play in 4ths you hear the upper note of the interval as the root and the lower one as the 5th, but technically, the distance between each pair of notes from low to high is a 4th. By far the most famous example of using 4ths is in the song “Smoke on the Water” by Deep Purple. The opening guitar riff uses 4ths in G minor. Other songs include “Money For Nothing” by Dire Straits and “Wish You Were Here” by Pink Floyd.

Filling in the gaps with flats and sharps

Like the spaces between natural notes, the spaces between intervals are filled with flats and sharps. For example, the 1st and 2nd major scale degrees are a whole step apart, meaning they have a pitch in between them. This pitch is called a flat 2nd (♭2) because it’s one half step lower than a 2nd interval. Here are the rest of the flats between the major scale degrees:

• Flat 3rd (♭3): The pitch in between 2 and 3
• Flat 5th (♭5): The pitch in between 4 and 5
• Flat 6th (♭6): The pitch in between 5 and 6
• Flat 7th (♭7): The pitch in between 6 and 7

Figure 1-21 shows flat intervals on the fretboard marked in black.

Some flats can also be considered sharps. For example, you can also call a flat 5th a sharp 4th (♯4). However, musicians usually use the term flat in these cases because flats are used to identify minor intervals. For example, a flat 3rd is also called a minor 3rd, a flat 6th is also called a minor 6th, and a flat 7th is also called a minor 7th.

While playing in 3rds, you may notice that some 3rds are one half step lower than others. For example, in the G major scale, G and B (G-A-B) are two whole steps apart, while A and C (A-B-C) are only one and a half steps apart. In music, the distance from G to B is major, while the distance from A to C is minor, which is why the same intervals are called major and minor 3rds.

When you play the major scale in 3rds (see Figure 1-15), note that three of the scale degrees have major 3rds, and four have minor 3rds. Specifically, the formula is major-minor-minor-major-major-minor-minor. They each have what’s called a perfect 5th, except for the last one (which has a flat 5th).

Major triad: Building from the 1st scale degree of the major scale

Building a triad starting from the 1st degree of the major scale produces a major triad. Sounding the triad’s notes produces a major chord. In the first diagram in Figure 1-22, you see all 7 degrees of the G major scale in one sample position. In the second diagram, you see just the root, 3rd, and 5th triad. When you strum all three of these triad notes simultaneously, you play a chord. Specifically, this chord is G major — G because the root is G and major because the distance between the root and 3rd is two whole steps, which make up a major 3rd. The third diagram in Figure 1-22 shows you that the actual note names of the G triad are G, B, and D.

Need help building and playing triads? Watch Video Clip 19.

A G major chord is always made from the notes G-B-D; however, you can have more than one occurrence of each note. For example, you can play a G major chord as G-B-D-G or G-B-D-G-B. You can even stack the notes out of order like this: G-D-G-B. Whatever order you play the notes in and however many occurrences of each note you play, all combinations of G-B-D produce harmony that’s recognized as a G major chord.

Figure 1-23 shows a handful of common G major chord shapes. Notice that they all use the same notes, although not necessarily in the same number or order. Chords like the ones shown here are considered triads because, technically, they’re still based on three pitches even though they vary in the exact number and order of their notes.

Minor triad: Building from the 2nd scale degree of the major scale

Using the G major scale introduced in the preceding section, count one-two-three-four-five from the 2nd degree, A (A-B-C-D-E), and take every other note, 1-3-5 or A-C-E. This is an A minor triad — A because the root is A and minor because the distance from 1 to 3 is a step and a half, which makes up a minor 3rd or flat 3rd (♭3) interval.

Figure 1-24 shows you how to build a triad from the 2nd major scale degree, A. The major scale used here is exactly the same as the one used for the previous triad, G major. The only difference is that you’re now counting from the 2nd scale degree, A, to determine its 3rd and 5th. The G note was left at the 3rd fret of the 6th string blank so that you know not to start on it.

You can play the note A either on the open 5th string or at the 5fth fret of the 6th string. You need to do the latter to play the triad as a chord. From the figure, you can see that the notes of this A minor triad are A-C-E.

Figure 1-25 shows a handful of common A minor chord shapes. Notice that they all use the same notes, although not necessarily in the same number or order. (In case you don’t know, an “X” at the top of a string indicates that you don’t play that string.)