A free, self-paced textbook in 8 chapters. Read a chapter, then drill it with the 100 companion flashcards using spaced repetition.
The first chords every guitarist learns are open chords, which use a combination of fretted and open (unfretted) strings to produce rich, resonant tones. The open A major chord is...
Seventh chords add a bluesy, soulful quality to progressions and are extremely common in folk, country, rock, and blues. They are built by adding a flatted seventh (the ♭7) interva...
Once open chords feel comfortable, movable chord forms unlock the entire fretboard. A barre chord is created when your index finger presses flat across all — or several — strings a...
Chord diagrams are the most common visual shorthand for learning new chords, and understanding their conventions is essential. On a standard diagram, vertical lines represent the s...
Once chords are in your hands, the right hand adds rhythm and texture. The simplest strumming pattern is all downstrokes on every beat (1-2-3-4), creating steady quarter notes that...
Standard guitar tuning from the thickest string to the thinnest is E-A-D-G-B-E, easily memorized with the phrase "Eddie Ate Dynamite Good Bye Eddie." Most adjacent strings are tune...
Chords combine into progressions, and progressions are the structural backbone of virtually every song. The most fundamental relationship is the I-IV-V progression, where I is the...
Beyond rhythm, the guitar is a versatile lead instrument. Legato techniques let you play sequences of notes smoothly without picking each one. A hammer-on sounds the second note by...