The notes making up the chord of C major are C, E, G.
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C?
Tab for C major:
(032010)
---0---
---1---
---0---
---2---
---3---
---0---
When you see a 0 on a chord chart it indicates that the string is to be played open.? When you see a X it indicates that the string is not to be played at all.
Referring back to your fret board chart in lesson 1 you can see that the 6th string open is E.? The 5th string, 3rd fret is C.? The 4th string, 2nd fret is E.? The 3rd string open is G.? The 2nd string, 1st fret is C.? The 1st string open is E.? So we have a string of notes being ECEGCE.? You can therefore play all 6 strings in your chord.? However you do not have to play them all.? You may choose to play 5 or 4 strings depending on the piece you are playing.? Play around with this chord.? Try it with the 6th string omitted then try it with the 1st string omitted then try with both the 6th and 1st omitted.? Try strumming the whole chord, all notes at once, and try playing the notes individually in quick succession.
Play note C, 5th string with finger 3 and E, string 4 with finger 2.? Finger 1 plays note C on string 2. ?
Try and commit these notes to memory.? Remember the first note is called the Tonic note and is the note with the same name as the chord, in this case C.?
As you are playing 6 notes remember that the major chord only has 3 notes which is why it is called a triad but as the guitar is very much a chord playing instrument you use what is known as Repeat Notes.? You are not adding additional notes but simply repeating the notes of the chord.? Look again at your string of notes ECEGCE.? there is nothing there other than the 3 notes which make up the chord of C being CEG.
C Major as it appears in written music.?
??????????????????????????????? Treble
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Bass
I have indicated the Bass notes here not so that you can play them but so that you will recognize the chord when you see it in printed music.? When you see this you will know it is the chord of C major and your friends will be most impressed.? You could play this simply by moving the bottom C one octave up
Obviously the above examples do not include Repeat Notes which you can include but simply indicates the triad that makes up the basic chord.
