Chord Inversions And Chord Voicings
Are you always stuck in a rut while playing rhythm guitar? Perhaps the open chords or standard major/minor barre
chords are all that you know in rhythm guitar.
During my first 2 years of playing the guitar, the standard guitar chords (found in most chord books) are
all that I knew.
It was until I started to listen more widely to Japanese rock music that I came across inverted chords.
Famous J-Rock bands such as L’arc en Ciel often incorporate guitar chords inversion into their playing.
This has helped them added depth and avoid sounding monotonous during rhythm and lead guitar playing.
Guitar Chords Inversions - Guitar Chord
Voicings
Basically, guitar chords inversions refer to chords whereby the lowest note (bass note) is NOT the root
note of the chord. The most common chord inversions are often referred to as the first inversion, second inversion
and third inversion. Let me use a Cmaj7 example to illustrate this. In the Cmaj7 chord, we have the following
notes: C E G B

|
Inversions of
Cmaj7

The first inversion of
the Cmaj7 chord is played using the third as the bass note. (i.e. Using E for the bass
note)
The second inversion of the Cmaj7 chord is played using the fifth as the bass
note. (i.e. using G for the bass note)
The third inversion of the Cmaj7 chord is played using the seventh as the bass
note. (i.e. using B for the bass note)
|
In a nutshell, you can create your own inversions by jumbling up the order of the notes in the chords
while keeping in mind the lowest note of the chord.
How to use chord inversions
Chord inversions is a powerful tool to add to your arsenal and here are some guitar tips to help you out in applying it to your playing.
|
Tips to Use Chord
Inversions
- For a start, if some one is playing a C G Am F progression,
an example of using simple inverted chords could be the following:

- Try different notes
and combinations too. : p
-
If you are the only rhythm guitar player around, it is not
advisable to start playing inverted chords at the 14th frets of the guitar. In such
circumstances, you would probably be better off playing open/barre chords to achieve a fuller
sound.
-
In music phrases, you might find it easier to inject chord
inversions in the middle portions. The more stable standard chords are used typically in the
beginning and end of phrases to maintain the stability of the music.
|
It is important that you play and listen to the different inversions. The different inversions have unique
sounds and moods even though they are made up of the same notes. The next time you get you need to inject some
freshness and spice up your rhythm playing, you can simply
substitute inverted chords with the standard chords that you are playing.


Click here now => http://www.guitarplayerworld.com/BluesGuitarBlueprint.html
|