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Chords are an essential skill for jazz guitar, and they can be a lot of fun to work on. If you’re playing in any kind of group (jazz band, combos, with another guitar player, etc) your main job will probably be playing chords, so it's a good idea to get familiar with them early on. To get the most out of this lesson, you’ll need to know the note names on the 6th and 5th strings. If you’re not familiar with the note names up and down each string, click here to get started. Don’t worry - I’ll include fretboard maps in this lesson with the notes on the 6th and 5th strings if you’re in a hurry to get going. Instead of trying to memorize a bunch of different chord shapes for every situation, I’m going to show you 2 fundamental chord shapes that you can modify to create the basic chords you need for almost any situation in jazz guitar. Simple Jazz Chords That Sound GoodThese chords have served me well for years - playing guitar in both college groups and in professional situations. In many cases, these are still my go-to jazz guitar chords. The great thing about these chords is that they are easy to get under your fingers, easy to play, and they sound good! The 3 note jazz guitar chords in this lesson form the foundation of a series of chords that will serve you well in different musical situations - we’ll expand on these in a future lesson. Practicing Jazz Guitar ChordsYou can practice these chords as an exercise by following them around the cycle of 4ths: C F Bb Eb Ab Db Gb B E A D G I’ve also found it helpful to apply these chords directly to songs you are playing. Whether you’re playing jazz standards out of the Real Book, or you’re playing through jazz band or combo charts - if you make an effort to use these chord shapes in context you’ll get them under control pretty quickly. Fretboard MapIf you spend much time playing jazz guitar, you're going to need to know the note names along each string on the guitar neck. The good news is that you will start to remember where notes are pretty quickly if you're using these chords, and the fretboard map below. Don't be shy about using the map - the more you look up the notes, the sooner you'll start to remember where they are.  2 Fundamental Finger PatternsThere are two basic finger patterns you need to learn - one chord with the root on the 6th string, and one chord with the root on the 5th string. With a little theory and fretboard knowledge, these two shapes could be all you need in order to play jazz guitar in a variety of situations. These are both movable chord shapes - when you move the finger pattern to a different fret, you change the key of your chord. For the 6th string form, the note your finger is pressing on the 6th string will give you the letter name of your chord. For the 5th string form, the note your finger is pressing on the 5th string will give you the letter name of your chord. Don’t think too hard about it - with a little practice you’ll be playing these chords all over the neck without a second thought! The “Big 3” Chord QualitiesSometimes it can seem like there are thousands of chords to learn in jazz guitar. Looking at a high school jazz band guitar part, or opening The Real Book would reinforce this idea. Luckily, it’s not that bad! Some of the old time jazz guitar players would tell you that there are only 3 types of chords. Those are the chords will be learning today, and most fo the other jazz guitar chords you see can be seen as a variation of one of these fundamental chord shapes. While there are certainly some other chord types worth learning, we’re going to focus on the “Big 3” chord types:
Major 7th ChordsMajor 7th chords serve as a starting point for understanding chord construction. All of the chord tones or interval labels you will see in the future are named in reference to the intervals of the major 7th chord. The intervals used in the major 7th chord are the root (1), the major third (3), and the major 7th (7). Technically there is an interval I’m skipping - the perfect 5th (5). This is on purpose - these chord shapes aren’t going to use that note for now. This is going to give you more flexibility with your chord choice, and prevent you from clashing with a piano player or the horn arrangement if you’re playing in a jazz band. The order of intervals will be slightly different between the 6th string and 5th string forms, but the root (1) will always be on the bottom of the chord. (The root will always be on the 6th or 5th string, depending on what chord shape you are playing) 6th String FormThe chord is build Root (1), seventh (7) and third (3) - in that order. For the 6th string form, we are always going to skip the 5th string altogether. You can let your index finger (or whatever finger you’re playing the 6th string with) be a little lazy so that it mutes the 5th string for you. I recommend using your index finger for the root, your middle finger for the 7th, and your ring finger for the third.
5th String FormThe chord is built Root (1), third (3), and seventh (7) - in that order. For this chord shape you’ll want to be careful to not play the 6th string. As you get more comfortable, you may be able to mute the 6th string with the middle finger as you play the root not he 5th string. I recommend using your middle finger for the root, your index finger for the third, and your ring finger for the 7th of this chord.
Note On Recommended Finger Patterns:The recommended fingerings are the ones I’ve found to be the most useful both for myself and for my students. Feel free to experiment if the suggested fingers don’t work for you. The important thing is the coordinates - the string and fret combinations. As long as your ”picture” looks right, you’re good to go! Dominant 7th ChordsThe dominant 7th chord is common to a variety of musical styles, not just jazz. Dominant 7th chords are likely something you are already familiar with, even if you don’t recognize the term dominant. G7 is the chord symbol for a G dominant 7th chord. So if you hear someone talking about dominant 7th chords, they’re just talking about what most guitar players already know as 7th chords. Using the full title is a way to make sure everyone is talking about the same kind of chord, since every chord we're looking at today has some kind of 7th in it. The intervals used in the dominant 7th chord are the root (1), the major third (3), and the flat 7th (b7). (The technical name for this interval is a minor 7th - however this is commonly called a flat 7th in jazz chord construction to avoid confusion with actual minor 7th chords) The order of intervals will be slightly different between the 6th string and 5th string forms, but the root (1) will always be on the bottom of the chord. (The root will always be on the 6th or 5th string, depending on what chord shape you are playing) 6th String FormThe chord is build Root (1), flat 7th (b7) and third (3) - in that order. Remember to mute the 5th string if you can. I recommend using your index finger for the root, your middle finger for the flat seventh, and your ring finger for the third.
5th String FormThe chord is built Root (1), third (3), and flat seventh (b7) - in that order. Remember that we’re not using the 6th string for this chord. Whether you mute it or just avoid hitting it with your picking hand, you want to be sure that your lowest sound is the note on your 5th string. I recommend using your middle finger for the root, your index finger for the third, and your ring finger for the flat seventh of this chord.
Minor 7th ChordsThe minor 7th chord is the last of our “big 3” chord qualities. Just like you only had to change one note to turn your major 7th into a dominant 7th, here you just need to change one note to turn dominant 7th into minor 7th. The intervals used in the minor 7th chord are the root (1), the flat third (3), and the flat 7th (b7). (The flat third is technically called a minor third in case you need the interval name for theory class) The order of intervals will be slightly different between the 6th string and 5th string forms, but the root (1) will always be on the bottom of the chord. (The root will always be on the 6th or 5th string, depending on what chord shape you are playing) 6th String FormThe chord is build Root (1), flat 7th (b7) and flat third (b3) - in that order. Remember to mute the 5th string if you can. I recommend using your index finger for the root, your middle finger for the flat seventh, and your ring finger for the flat third.
5th String FormThe chord is built Root (1), flat third (b3), and flat seventh (b7) - in that order. Remember that we’re still not using the 6th string for this chord. Whether you mute it or avoid it, do what you need to do. I recommend using your middle finger for the root, your index finger for the flat third, and your ring finger for the flat seventh of this chord. This is going to feel stretchy or uncomfortable at first, and that’s ok. Your hand will adapt pretty quickly. Just don't push yourself too hard at first. I recommend that you make an effort to get used to this - you’ll need that stretchiness later on when you start to add color tones to your basic chords.
Practice Makes It BetterThe more you use these chords, the better you’ll get at playing them and the easier they will become. You’ll find that these simple chord shapes give you a nice clean jazz guitar chord sound, and make it easy to hear the basic harmony of the songs you play, whether you are playing jazz standards out of the Real book or playing guitar parts in a jazz ensemble. Keep playing, and let me know how it's going!
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