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How To Construct Basic Guitar Chords

In the present article we will talk about how to construct basic minor and major chords on the guitar. Before starting we must learn some rudimentary music theory, because this will lay the foundations of learning how to build chords anywhere on the fretboard.

Every basic major or minor chord consists of 3 notes – root, third and fifth. The chord carries the name of its root note, nevertheless the root is not always the cheapest note, because each chord has chord inversions. Because the guitar chords we’re talking about consist of only 3 notes, we now have 2 chord inversions in total or 3 different ways to play each chord. Now, why is the major and minor chords essentially different may be the third. You have probably heard the terms “minor third” and “major third”. Basically said a third (used for building minor chords) is an interval between the root as well as the third that equals to 3 semitones (or 3 frets on the guitar), while the major third (employed for building minor chords) equals to 4 semitones (or 4 frets). The fifth is the same for both types also it equals to an interval of 7 semitones from the root.

So, if you wish to build a chord, first determine which note you want take as root and where are you currently want to position it linked to the other two notes. Let’s illustrate this with several examples that will hopefully help you comprehend the music theory discussed above.

We’ll take the note A being a root, build a minor chord then all of its inversions. To begin with let’s determine which notes we want in order to build the chord. Since we’re going to build a minor chord, we will need the minor third as well as the fifth. The minor third from the is C (the length between A and C is 3 frets) as well as the fifth is E (the length between A and E is 7 frets). Great, given that we know the notes, we can build the actual chords.

Example 1 – A Minor Chord & Inversions

A in root First Inversion Second Inversion A in root, octave up
E||————–|————–|————–|–0———||
B||————–|————–|–1———–|–1———||
G||————–|–2———–|–2———–|–2———||
D||–2———–|–2———–|–2———–|————||
A||–3———–|–3———–|————–|————||
E||–5———–|————–|————–|————||

A-C-E C-E-A E-A-C A-C-E

Let’s say we want to build the key ones? Just use a significant third – that’s C sharp (C#)

Example 2 – An important Chord & Inversions

A in root First Inversion Second Inversion A in root, octave up
E||————–|————–|————–|–0———||
B||————–|————–|–2———–|–2———||
G||————–|–2———–|–2———–|–2———||
D||–2———–|–2———–|–2———–|————||
A||–4———–|–4———–|————–|————||
E||–5———–|————–|————–|————||

A-C#-E C#-E-A E-A-C# A-C#-E

Pretty clear, don’t you think? Using this principle, you can build basic guitar chords literally anywhere on the fretboard. Just remember to practice these examples changing the root note and the inversion randomly, so that you learn them well. For example, instead of saying “I desire to play all B Minor Chords” and playing all of the inversions one after another, say to yourself: “I want to play in the second inversion of B Minor, from then on I want to play D# Minor in root position” etc. and you will see that you will quickly learn all guitar chords.

Just thought you may well be interested in reading this guide: all guitar chords and acoustic guitar chords.


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