Power Chords

Hey kids, it's Ky again! Today we will learn about power chords! Last time we learned the half-step and whole-step intervals. To start this lesson off we will learn a new interval: the Perfect Fifth. A perfect fifth is equal to seven half steps, I. e. two notes seven frets apart. However, since we are talking about a chord, that means we want to strike both notes simultaneously, and the only way to do this is by using two strings. Here is a sample power chord:

E|----------------|
B|----------------|
G|----------------|
D|--------5-------|
A|--------3-------|
E|----------------|

The root note, played on the A string, is the C. And the fifth of C, which is a G, is played on the D string. The beauty of power chords, is that you can make a root-fifth chord almost anywhere by simply moving the same shape around the fretboard. However, note that the shape changes when you play the root on the G-string, since the interval between the G-string and the B-string is different from the interval between other strings. Now lets look at some variations on the power chord:

E|---------------|---------------|---------------|
B|---------------|---------------|---------------|
G|-------5-------|-------5-------|---------------|
D|-------5-------|-------5-------|---------------|
A|-------3-------|-------3-------|-------3-------|
E|---------------|-------3-------|-------3-------|

In the first example, we have added another root above the fifth. This is another very common shape. The added high note makes the chord a little brighter. In the second example, we still have the root above the fifth, and now we have added a fifth below the root.

The third example shows just the two lowest notes of the previous example. Here the root is actually the higher of the two notes, and the fifth is the lower note. This is another important shape to learn. Technically, this chord is called an "inverted" power chord. "Inversion" simply refers to the fact that the root is higher than the fifth... you can think of this as turning the chord upside-down. Now lets combine our understanding of power chords with the minor scale that we learned in the last lesson. Lets write all the power chords for the E minor key.

       I    II  iii   IV   V    vi  vii   I
E|-------------------------------------------------|
B|-------------------------------------------------|
G|-----------------------------------2----4--------|
D|--------------------2----4----5----0----2--------|
A|-----2----4----5----0----2----3------------------|
E|-----0----2----3---------------------------------|

Notice several things: The root notes of the chords simply follow the pattern we learned last time, the ascending E minor scale. I numbered the chords using roman numerals. This is the convention for chords. In this and future lessons from me, it will be understood that we are talking about root-fifth power chords when I use a roman numeral. Note that this is not always the case in other kinds of music.

Finally, if you are wondering why I used lowercase letters for the 3rd, 6th and 7th chords, it is because we are using the minor scale, and these three minor intervals are flatted with respect to the major scale. Notice how the first chord and the last chord are both I-chords. In fact, any chord whose root note is an E would be an I-chord in the E minor key. Similarly, there are many of each chord all over the fretboard.

Class Assignment: Try finding some more I-chords, II-chords, etc. in the E minor key. Also, try finding all the chords for another minor key of your choice. In the next lesson, we will learn about the tonic, which is an extremely important concept. See you then!

Comments

[Oswald]

Hello Michael! There are better lessons about powerchords! Check the Metal lessons!!!
It is under Music Styles.

[sherry]

nice stuff man!!! but if u mentioned that the 5th note is the one, when a scale is played on the E A D stings things would be more easier for bigginers...but a good attempt!!!

[RawkerChick]

OK I'm totally lost.

[kryptonite22]

aaaaaahhhhh....confused!!
!!!!!

[rockwillrule]

im really confused by this make it easier to understand!!

[pwnxxors]

arg

[ohdarn323]

Very, very, very, VERY simple language.

I suppose thats what you were going for, though.

[Spyke 602]

Not bad

[KrazyKingsFreak]

PRETTY GOOD

[L3iGh_]

you've lost me...

[skaterx_z]

Hey you guys,can we make our own chords

[marubenny]

is there such thing as a power chord for c?

[warren_hui]

this is ok but SIMPLE PLAN RULES

[hillbilly13496]

great

[hillbilly13496]

I need to know all the power chords, not just examples and how to use them, so please tell me all of the power chords, and how godsmack uses them please!

[Keryan]

good for the absolute newbies, you could've wrote all the power chords for the chromatic scale. Thats the most basic thing you can learn(and the most valuable, me thinks).

[fire_red_guitar]

for the newbies: a good song to start with is scotty dosent know, by Lustra. Its mostly power chords with a short picking intro. Should be easy, and sounds good too. peace out

[Tarzan_man]

I still have trouble with finger and powerchords. When I'm sitting I use my 1st 2nd and 3rd fingers but when standing I use 1st 3rd and 4th. Which do you use?

[Feel_Good_Inc.]

i always use 1st 3rd and 4th coz my 2nd has no nerves in it lol...
another good song to use to learn powercords is 'I Believe In A Thing Called Love' by The Darkness and 'Venus' by The Feelers.
anyway good lesson

[saurabh]

good worK man
THNKS

[hashleafgoth]

i still cant do teen spirit cos i cant do ***in power chords!

Power chords are neither major nor minor in their tonality.

[Chairoi]

i thought the root was one the E string

|--x--|
|--x--|
|--x--|
|--4--|
|--4
--|
|--2--|

Ghettoh chord

[Chairoi]

or is the root on any string, as long as it is followed by the fifth note in the key,,,

[jamesk69]

what the hell was that!!!?!?!?!

[Punk as atticus]

Simple! Guns N' Roses Rules, Simple Plan is gay

[Punk as atticus]

U Dick!

[Punk as atticus]

SIKe!
Just kidding about the dick thing

[Punk as atticus]

Iron Maiden Rules, Judas Priest!

[Punk as atticus]

I taught teen spirit to myself using power chords I know the whole song now

[p3trifi3d]

i need more help, does anyone know where it teaches what EVERYTHING means, like # signs and stuff, i really need it

[alex-aka-tezza]

errrrrmmm you wot???.....

[bandgeek10]

He made it much more complicated than it has to be. You don't even need to know much about theory to be able to play power chords. They are VERY VERY SIMPLE: To play a G power chord, put your first finger on the 3rd fret of the low E string and put your third finger on the 5th fret of the A string. Move it down a whole step, you have an F power chord, up a whole step will get you an A. Oh and to whoever asked if you can play a C power chord, YES! 1st finger goes on 3rd fret of A string, 3rd finger goes on 5th fret of D string. Get the pattern? You can play pretty much any chord with power chords, except not every minor chord.

[bandgeek10]

Oh,and in response to "p3trifi3d," you should probably read something on how to read and understand tab. With power chords, it's very simple. Below is a C- power chord in tab:
e-x
B-x
G-x
D-5
A-3
E-x
On the 3rd fret on the A string you are playing a C, and on the 5th fret on the D string you are playing a G, and G is the 5th of C. The X's mean simply to NOT strum those strings. So to play this above power chord, you only strum the A and D string.
Does this help?

[fender strat37]

band geek, could u plz make a lesson or a tabthat has all the power chords?

[bandgeek10]

Ok Fender strat...
I'll show you a few power chords...Ready

e-----
B-----
G-----
D-----
A--3-----4-----5-----6---
--7-----8-----9
E--1-----2-----3-----4---
--5-----6-----7
F F# G Ab A Bb B
So here are power chords that you can play on the low E string and A string. Usually, I just play as high as the 7th and 9th fret, which gets you a B. You can also play power chords on the A string and D string, shown below.
e-----
B-----
G-----
D--3-----4-----5-----6---
--7-----8-----9-----10---
--11--
A--1-----2-----3-----4---
--5-----6-----7-----8----
-9----
E-----
Bb B C Db D Eb E F ii F#ii
So here you have up to high F#. The "ii" simply means the higher octave of the chord.
Remember, when playing power chords, you only strum the 2 strings that you have your fingers on. When playing acoustic, this doesn't sound especially good, in fact it sounds kind of like a bass. But when playing with distortion, power chords sound great, and are much easier than open chords or bar chords.
So the only thing I havn't shown you is minor power chords. There really arn't very many....
You can play E minor or A minor like open chords, and just strum the 2 or 3 strings your fingers are on.
I hope this helps.

[bandgeek10]

That didn't turn out so well....
So I'll try again

e---
B---
G---
D----
A-3- 4 5 7 9
E-1--- 2 3 5 7
F F# G A B

[bandgeek10]

So basically, 3rd fret on A string and 1st fret on E string=F
4th on A and 2nd on E=F#.....5th on A and 3rd on E=G.....7th on A and 5th on E=A, and so on..

[bandgeek10]

I'l try it again...

e-----
B-----
G----
-
D-----
A-3-----4-----
5-----6-----7-
E-1-----2
-----3-----4-----5-
F F# G Ab A

[me_myself_and_i]

simple plan does not rule

[the.iron.maiden]

just stick with the subject, alright? yeah, i am sorta confused though... a little less wordy of an explanation would help (short attention span)

[14GreenDay]

me_myself_and_i
wrote:

simple plan does not rule

true dat. dumbest piece of ****ing shit band who sing the gay, retarded songs and the leadd singer has a gay tv show that no1 likes, and the people on the show dont even know who the guy pranking them is because he's a dumb mofo with a faggoty ass boyband.

...sorry if i offended any1 who likes simple plan.
Truth hurts.

[\m/(-_-)\m/]

warren_hui wrote:

this is ok but SIMPLE PLAN RULES

listen to some really music dont listen to these dumbass posers listen to greenday or metallica or some band thats better and not a poser btw THIS IS NOT NEW NEWS

[Adam.Freeman]

power chords are tricky. not the finger movement but the strings that are played. example

--
--
--
-5

-5
-3
i can do that one perfectly

--
--
-5

-5
-3
--

but i can't do these ones. i always strike a string by accident, its not too bad using down strokes but up strokes its fu**in hard, need help badly

[Joey20]

I can't play the power chords right... and i am they don't sound right to me....:-/

[Schecter_tabber]

skaterx_z wrote:

Hey you guys,can we make our own chords

ya you can make you own chords you just have to learn the formula, about intervals, octaves, and modes. but im sure if you want a good sounding chord its allready out there. thousands of

[yorkmann]

ok u lost me on this m8. peace out

[yorkmann]

[JacobReyes]

holyshit! that was easy.....

[Mattga]

I have the exact same problem as you Adam Freeman, everytime i play a power chord on the string A,D,G, i always hit the string above it, especially when im upstroking.Does anyone have a solution? I usually try to mute it with another finger,but thats kinda hard.I need serious help with this.

Also, i'd like more easy power chord songs."I believe in a thing called love" by the Darkness,"Venus" by the feeler,"Scotty dosent know", by Lustra. Keep adding on plz.

[The Uproar]

right that lesson was shit and confusing and AC/DC,Guns 'N' Roses ,Velvet Revolver and all old skool rock rules

[The Uproar]

is somebody can teach me power chords in a quick way plaeez email me at [e-mail]

[MINI_METAL_MAN]

Mattga, try muting the strings with the fingers on your left hand (unless you're left-handed) so if you strike the other strings, you won't hear it.

[Acoustisoul]

Thanks a lot man, I learned something I actually have been wanting to know .

[zep_hed449]

this lesson is crap how about some of the names of the chords and some alternate ways to play them, for beginners learn how to identify every note on the fretboard and barre chords and power chords will come much easier.

[guizard]

hi i'm really new to guitar and its notations...so what does the |-x-| stand for in the notations?? i know the numbers ,i.e., |-2-| etc represent the fret no.... but what does the 'x' mean?

[benjo01]

that was cool-thanx

[12Jim34]

lkjhgilhguhgigkjgyhfclkjhkhg

klhb

[12Jim34]

hello

[simonzwaan]

this lesson shouldnt be in "Chords" because a power chord is actually not a chord
geez
undereducated people...

[Van Halen 076]

hi

[joeyramoney]

heres' a fitting lesson for anyone somehow not familiar with playing power chords:

d--2--
a--2--
e--0-- move this around the e and a strings and you have a power chord. go start a punk band.

that's all you needed to type. however, you took such a simple concept that is being read by such novice guitarists and you somehow made it hard to understand. about 99%of the content in this lesson on unnecessary. no offense, but i think this is doing more bad than good.

[joeyramoney]

listen to some really music dont listen to these dumbass posers listen to greenday or metallica or some band thats better and not a poser btw THIS IS NOT NEW NEWS

i don't know if you have noticed this, but greenday and simple plan are on the exact same level. you can't condemn dull music when you listen to it yourself.

[Brandon_leigh]

whose that guy with that red m? -.-'
anyway he's right ,lol, good too

[Brandon_leigh]

good lesson**

[rockmachine666]

woops i musta got here by accident... PUHULEAZE!!! your all n00bs!

Ky? am i supposed to know who you are?!

[gamejokerr]

TAPULAN KO MOBASA
LOL

=D

[Scarlet Fever]

I wrote a power chords lesson. I just posted it the other day. I haven't seen it yet, but I think it's easy to unterstand. Check it out if its there. It's under chords

[natneate13]

how the hell du u get confused with this i didnt even have 2 read this and i knew wot 2 du!!! in fact i fink its easyer if u dont read it(realy!!!) if u fink dats confuzin u shudnt even play the guitar

[natneate13]

and hu the hell is ky any wey?

[anezay2004]

lol haha g-string. Anyways good lesson 7-8 prolly

[hawkaa]

NEWSFLASH!

Both greenday and simple plan are fags.
Their fans are 14 yrs old girls with their firs pair of allstar shoes and black eye-makeup. when they get 16 years old they have two choices. 50 % goes for the emostyle and cut each other on a emoparty, and the other 50 % develop music understanding and listen to ramones, backyard babies or other quality bands.

[Mick Jagger]

hey man this a an awesome lesson, and you've helped me, thanks.

[keywork2389]

This is a good lesson, could have gone a little into more into detail with chord voicing, overall a good starting point for someone starting out.

[dariou]

ppl would some one plz tell me how 2 download this lessonon the guitar pro plz

[rocknrolldogs]

power chords are easy enough, at least compare to barre chords. if anybody got any tips for barre chords send me a email [e-mail]

[rocknrolldogs]

power chords are simple short lesson. Just make a simple power chord shape. usin your fingers 1 2 and 3 and on strings E A D on frets 1 3 3 and you can just move right and left but always keep the same distance between the notes. but i found a power chord riff that is F UP. its this

e] 8 8 9 9 7 7 3 3
a] 7 7 10 10 9 9 3 3 5 5 5 5
d] 5 5 7 7

[rocknrolldogs]

^ that didnt come out right . let me try one more time

[rocknrolldogs]

E] 8 8 9 10 7 7
A] 7 7 9 10 7 7

[rocknrolldogs]

^ do that lil riff then slide down and do this

[rocknrolldogs]

e] 3 5
a] 3 3 5 5 5 5
d] 5 5 7 7

[rocknrolldogs]

it F up again. it its only two notes at once so ya just have to figure out by yourself sorry

[lukeekul]

Mattga wrote:

I have the exact same problem as you Adam Freeman, everytime i play a power chord on the string A,D,G, i always hit the string above it, especially when im upstroking.Does anyone have a solution? I usually try to mute it with another finger,but thats kinda hard.I need serious help with this.

Also, i'd like more easy power chord songs."I believe in a thing called love" by the Darkness,"Venus" by the feeler,"Scotty dosent know", by Lustra. Keep adding on plz.

Pratice!!!

[lukeekul]

*practice

[escentZ]

hey ! hnd co po tlga mgets kung paanu ung power chords n un .. pro gs2 co po tlga xa matutunan .. hope ! you understand me ..