Guitar theory

lesson notes

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 Contents

foundations
4 the major scale
5 tonics and naming major scales
6 major scale theory
7 key signatures
9 the natural minor scale
10 relative minors

chord theory
12 major chord theory
13 minor chord theory
14 fifth chord theory
16 major seventh chord theory
16 minor seventh chord theory
17 dominant seventh chord theory
18 sus chords and add chords

more advanced theory

22 modes
28 time signatures
29 BPM

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 Major scales

Lower, one octave Upper, one octave 2 octave

1 1

2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2

3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3

4 4

Lower, one octave 2 octave

1 1
1 1 1 1 1 1
1 1
2 2 2 2 2 2
3 3 2 2 1
3 3 3

4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4
4 4 4 4 3

The tonic or root

relative to the scales. The major scale will always start on the note that

Octave
An octave is the name given to the gap between the two closest notes
with the same name. In the case of the major or minor scales there is an
eight note gap between the tonic notes, hence the name Octave (oct
being eight).

An octave major scale has eight notes in it and a two octave scale has
fifteen.

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positions and therefore play different major scales.
note names

F G A B C D E F G
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15
fret numbers
Examples

scale etc.

G major A major B major C major D major

The names of the notes in the gaps

each of the gaps can have 2 names. A sharp is up one fret and a flat is down one fret, so

# sharp = up 1 fret b flat = down 1 fret

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 Major scale theory
The major scale is really important to learn and can be considered as the DNA of western
music, virtually every scale you use and tune you play has either come directly from the
major scale or has been derived from the major scale.

Most people know the sound of the major scale from the doh

RAY ME FAH SOH LA TE

To help you understand what the major scale is and to understand the theory behind the
major scale it is useful to know that the scale is a pattern of intervals. A pattern of intervals is
a pattern of semitones or semitones and tones.

The pattern of intervals for the major scale in semitones is

2 . 2 . 1 . 2 . 2 . 2 . 1
The pattern in tones and semitones is

TONE TONE SEMITONE TONE TONE TONE SEMITONE

Try this . . .

Play the pattern above on one string (any string) so you can hear that it is the major scale.
(A semitone is a gap of one fret and a tone is a gap of two frets)

tone tone semitone tone tone tone semitone

open fret 2 fret 4 fret 5 fret 7 fret 9 fret 11 fret 12

Note.. This pattern is so important to the fundamentals of music that the layout of the keyboard
has been designed around it. If you play the above pattern from C to C on a keyboard you will
notice that a black note appears everywhere a tone is played or in other words when you play

middle C

    

C D E F G A B C

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 Key signatures
The key signature is shown in the score just after the clef. The key signature is represented by
the number of sharps or flats and notifies the reader what key the tune is written in. The key a
tune is written in is the major scale the tune is based around.

To understand this and translate it into a form that you can relate to on a guitar, when playing
the major scales in different positions on the neck the number of sharps and flats played in
the scale changes depending on where you play the major scale. Each major scale has a
unique number of sharps or flats in it and this is the key signature. When reading music one
of the first things on the staff is the sharps or flats used in that tune. The list of sharps or flats on
the staff notifies the reader what key the music is in, or what major scale was used when the
music was written.

List of key signatures

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 Examples, proving the theory of key signatures
The best way to demonstrate that key signatures work and to help understand them is to use a
keyboard. The reason a keyboard is being used here instead of a guitar neck is that the
layout of a keyboard shows sharps and flats clearly. The black notes are the sharps and flatss.

Use the major scale pattern of intervals 2 2 1 2 2 2 1

C major 2 2 1 2 2 2 1

C D E F G A B C

G major 2 2 1 2 2 2 1

G A B C D E F# G

D major 2 2 1 2 2 2 1

D E F# G A B C# D

A major 2 2 1 2 2 2 1

A B C# D E F# G# A

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 The natural minor scale

lower, one octave upper, one octave 2 octave

1 1 1 1

2 2 2 2 2 2 2

3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3

4 4

1 1 1 1 1
fret 5
1 1 1 2 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
fret 5
2 2 2 2 1 1 3 3 3 3

3 3 3 4 3 3 3 3 3 4 4 3

4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 3 3 4 4
fret 5
4 4 4

As with the major scale the name comes from the root note or the note the scale starts on. In

F G A B C D E F G
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15
fret numbers

The interval pattern for the natural minor scale

2 1 2 2 1 2 2
or
tone semitone tone tone semitone tone tone

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 Relative minor scales
Every major scale has a relative natural minor scale.

key signature and therefore can be used easily in the same tune.

The red notes in the illustrations below are the roots of the scales, or the notes that give the

1 1 1 2 1 1
5th fret
2

1 1 1 1 3 3 3 4

2 2 2 2 4 4 4
8th fret
3 3

4 4 4 4 4

All major scales have relative natural minor scales and the root of the minor scale is always 2
intervals down from the root of the major scale. So you can find the relative minor scale by
playing it 3 frets down from the root note of the major scale, and conversely the major scale
starts 3 steps up from the natural scale.

relative minor root

relative minor root

major root

relative minor root

major root

major root

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 A List of key signatures and their relative minors
Key signatures with sharps Key signatures with flats

major scales relative minor major scales relative minor

C Am F Dm
G Em Bb Gm
D Bm Eb Cm
A F#m Ab Fm
E C#m Db Bbm
B G#m Gb Ebm
F# D#m Cb Abm

notes
Note 1
Because the major and relative natural minor scales are in the same key you can use them
flawlessly together to improvise, or write your own solos. You can do this using backing

Note 2
So you can move the barred major scale shape around the neck of the guitar in order to
create new major scales you need to know the names of the root notes. The root notes of

F G A B C D E F G
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15
fret numbers

Note 3
The major and natural minor scales are an important part of the modal scales. When you
are ready to start learning the modes you will find knowing the major and minor scales well
will help your understanding of the modes and because they are both modal scales you will
have already learned 2 of the 7 scales. Knowing these scales will also help when you want
to learn guitar and chord theory.

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 Chord theory 1
the major chord

The triad of a chord is the FIRST, THIRD and FIFTH note of the major scale with the same name.

H e r e t h e n o t e n a me s a r e
mark ed on this chord map.
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 You can see that all the notes
in the chord are from the triad.

X G E
C
1st 3rd 5th chord
E
The triad is the FIRST, THIRD and FIFTH note. C

the triad = C E G
examples
D G B
G major

B
First, third and fifth note or triad = G B D
G G

X X D
D major

A F#
First, third and fifth note or triad = D F# A
D

X A E
A major

E A C#
First, third and fifth note or triad = A C# E

E B E
E major G#

B E
First, third and fifth note or triad = E G# B

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 Chord theory 2
the minor chord
The construction of the minor chord is the same as it is for the major chord, however for a
minor chord it is essential to use a minor scale. A major scale produces a major triad and
major chord, and a minor scale produces a minor triad and minor chord.

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
X A E
C

E A
1st 3rd 5th
The minor triad is still the FIRST, THIRD and FIFTH note.

the triad = A C E
examples

X X D
D minor F
Bb C D
A
First, third and fifth note or triad = D F A
D

E G B E
E minor

B E
First, third and fifth note or triad = E G B

X
B minor

B F#
First, third and fifth note or triad = B D F#
D

F# B

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 The fifth chord and power chords

have a diad or 2 notes. The fifth chord mostly used as a barre chord in rock, Grunge and

across as an open chord fifth chord.

With fifth chords their is no difference between major chords or minor chords, or in other
words there is no such chord as a minor fifth or major fifth, they are always just fifth chords.

The theory behind the fifth chord.

The two notes that make up a fifth chord are, the FIRST (root) note and the FIFTH note.

C major scale 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

1st 5th

Where you strum more that 2 strings, the notes are just repeated in octave positions.

The note that changes between a major chord and a minor chord is the third note of the
scale. The minor 3rd is a semitone lower than the major 3rd. When you play a fifth chord

major fifth chord and a minor fifth chord.

A major scale 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
You can see clearly that
the note that makes the
difference between the
major and minor chord
1st 5th is the thir d, so if we
r emov e the thi r d, the
A minor scale 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 two chor ds can no
longer be differentiated
between.

1st 5th

examples of open 5th chords

G5 A5 C5 D5 E5
X X XX X X 1
XX X XXX
1 2 1 1 2

2 3 4 3 4 3

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How to mute strings in the middle of chords..
Let a finger rest on or hang over the string you want to mute. This will take practice because
you need to maintain the pressure on the fingered notes at the same time as muting.

first position second position

(E rooted) (A rooted)
XXX X XX

1 1
G5 C5

3 3

The chords in the examples above are on the 3rd fret and are a G5 and a C5, however if
you play exactly the same shape chords in the 5th fret they would be A5 and D5. By

learning over 20 chords.

E
B
G
D
A B C D E F
E F G A B C

The gaps in this fret map are the sharps and flats. A sharp is a note moved up one fret and a
flat is when a note is moved down one fret. This means that most of the blank frets can have
2 names, a sharp and a flat.

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 Seventh chord theory
the major seventh chord
The major seventh chord like all major chords starts with the major triad, however this time we
find the seventh note of the same major scale we got the triad from and add it to the chord.

For example, to create a Cmaj7 we start with the

scale of C major, then we find the first, third and The note names are marked
fifth notes so we have the triad. Finally we find the on this chord map. You can
seventh note so we have a Cmaj7. see that all the notes in the
chord are from the triad.
The notes in Cmaj7 are C E G B.
X G B E
The

chord E

C
1st 3rd 5th 7th

Amaj7 Dmaj7 Emaj7 Fmaj7

X 1
XX 1
XX 1
examples
2 3 1 2 3 2 2

the minor seventh chord

The minor seventh chord follow exactly the same pattern of logic Am7
as the major seventh chord with the exception that you have to X A G E
use a minor scale rather than a major scale. C

For Example, to create an Am7 we start with the scale of A minor, E

then we find the first, third and fifth notes so we have the triad.
Finally we find the seventh note so we have an Am7.

The notes in Am7 are A C E G

Am7
X A
C

1st 3rd 5th 7th E A

This is why you can have several variations of one chord, but they G
will all contain the same notes.

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 Am7 Dm7 Em7 Em7
X XX
examples of 1 1

minor sevenths 2 2 1 2 1

the dominant seventh chord

The dominant seventh chord is without doubt the seventh chord we use the most, however it
has the most complex theory of all the seventh chords. So, for the sake of the first year of the
course we will use a simplified theory.

The dominant seventh can be created in the same way as the major and minor seventh,
however we use the mixolydian scale as its source.
G7
For Example, to create a G7 we star t with the scale of G
mixolydian, then we find the first, third and fifth notes so we have D G B
the triad. Finally we find the seventh note so we have a G7. F
B
The notes in G7 are G B D F
G

1st 3rd 5th 7th

example chords

A7 A7 B7 C7
X X X 1
X 1

1 2 1 2 3 4 2

2 3 4

D7 E7 F7 G7
XX 1 1
X 1 1

2 3 2 2 2

3 3

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 Sus chords and add chords
what are the numbers in chords ? the simple answer
The numbers in chord names refer to notes in the scale that make up the chord.

n u m b e r s f o r e a c h n o t u n d e r n e a t h .

scale C D E F G A B C
note number 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

number is higher than 8, which often happens with a 9 then you just start the
scale again.

scale C D E F G A B C D E F
note number 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11

sus chords vs add chords

The difference between a sus chord and an add chord

Sus chords, suspended.

Sus chords are when a note in the chord (the 3rd) is replaced with another note
from the scale, either the 2nd or the 4th.

Add chords, added.

Add chords are when a note from the scale is added to the chord so that the
complete triad is still played, but an extra note is added to it.

note

To fully understand these definitions and this lesson, you will need to know some basic chord
theory first and particularly about triads. A very quick definition of triads is this; Triads are the
3 notes that make up any major or minor chord and are the 1st, 3rd and 5th notes of the
scale with the same name as the chord.

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 examples of sus chords
D D sus 2 D sus 4
XX XX XX
1 2 1 1

3 3 3 4

scale D E F# G A B C# D
note number 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

The D sus 2 chord

The 2 is the 2nd note of the scale which is

now becomes a D sus 2.

D D sus 2
XX XX
1 2 1
F#
3 3

The D sus 4 chord

The 4 is the 4th note of the scale and is a

sus 4.
D D sus 4
XX XX
the F# is covered 1
1

3 4 3 4

notes

a complete triad.

you will need to go through the lesson on key signatures.

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 examples of add chords

C C add 9 C add 11
X 1 X X 1

2 2 2

3 3 4 3

scale C D E F G A B C D E F
note number 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11

The C add 9 chord

1st finger.
C add 9 C add 9 C add 9
X 1 X X
2 2 1
OR
3 4 3 4 2 3
D

The C add 11 chord

with one finger if you can.

C add 11 C add 11
X 1
X 1
F
2 2

3 3

notes

With all add chords you should still play the complete triad, so the chord is still a complete

triad is C, E, G which are played on the A, D and G strings and as demonstrated in the
examples above these three strings are unaffected by the additional notes.

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 some chords you might come across

A A sus 4 A sus 2 A add 6

X X X X
1 2 3 1 2 1 2 1

C C add 9 C add 11 C add 12

X 1 X X 1 X 1

2 2 2 2

3 3 4 3 3 4

D D sus 2 D sus 4
XX XX XX
1 2 1 1

3 3 3 4

E E sus 4 E sus 4 E add 9

1 1 1
OR
2 3 1 2 3 2 3 4 2 3 4

F F add 9 F sus 4
XX 1 XX 1 XX 1

2 2

3 3 4 3 4

G G add 4 G add 6
1

1 2 1

2 3 3 4 2

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 Modes
Modes are scales that start and finish on different root notes relative to the key signature.
Modes can be created by changing the start and end note of a scale, whilst maintaining
the key signature. Modes can be useful when improvising, and a great deal of theory can
be explained using modal scales.

keysignature.

Mode 1 - C D E F G A B C - C Ionian
Mode 2 - D E F G A B C D - D Dorian
Mode 3 - E F G A B C D E - E Phrygian
Mode 4 - F G A B C D E F - F Lydian
Mode 5 - G A B C D E F G - G Mixolydian
Mode 6 - A B C D E F G A - A Aeolian
Mode 7 - B C D E F G A B - B Locrian

During the course we have encountered three modal scales.

Ionian
n Mixolydian 1 Aeoliann
1 1 1 1
or 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 1 1
or
major. natural
2 2 2 2 2 2 2 1 1 2 minor.
3 3 3 3 3 3 4

4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 3 4 4 4

Try this . . .

play the following scales noting how the first notes of each scale can be string together to

diatonic major scale.

(Diatonic = 2 octave)
C D E F G A B C
Ionian Dorian Phrygian Lydian Mixolydian Aeolian Locrian Ionian

1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1

2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2

3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3

4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4

8th fret

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 Improvising using modes
In the same way as it is possible to improvise with the blues scale, it is possible to improvise
with the major scale. You must be sure to use the correct scale for the key signature however.

example
1 1 1 1

2 2 2 2
Fret 8
3 3

As with this example above, once you have identified the key signature 4 4 4 4 4
of the piece you would like to improvise with, simply use the major scale
withe the same name as the key signature.

Once you feel you can improvise with the major scale, you can advance your skills by
improvising with the modes. Start with the Aeolian scale or the relative minor and then use
more modes as you feel comfortable.

The modal scales joined

5th fret

8th fret

10th fret

12th fret
13th fret

15th fret

18th fret

Improvising is an important step towards writing your own tunes.

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 The individual modes of C major

C Ionian D Dorian E Phygian

1 1

1 1 1 1 1 1 2 2 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
10th fret 12th fret
2 2 2 2 2 2
8th fret
3 3 3 3 4 4 3 3 3 3

4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4

F Lydian
barre and open

1 1 1

1 1 1 1 1 2 2 2

2 2 2 3 3 3 3
13th fret
3 3 3

4 4 4 4

G Mixolydian A Aeolian B Locrian

1 1 1 1 1 1 2 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
5th fret 7th fret
2 2 2 1 1 2 2 2 2
3rd fret
3 3 3 3 4 3 3

4 4 4 4 3 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4

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 The modes of C major joined
The red notes are where the root occurs

Fret 5

Fret 8

Fret 10

Fret 12

Fret 15

Fret 17

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 Demonstrating modes using a keyboard
Again, the best way to demonstrate modes is to use a keyboard map, this is because it is
clear what key signature you are playing in as the sharps and flats are the black notes. For

flat note, and therefore you should never play a black note in the key of

middle C

C Ionian

C D E F G A B C

middle C

D Dorian

D E F G A B C D

middle C

E Phrygian

E F G A B C D E

middle C

F Lydian

F G A B C D E F

middle C

G Mixolydian

G A B C D E F G

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 middle C

A Aeolian

A B C D E F G A

middle C

B Locrian

B C D E F G A B

Notice how even though these scales start and end on different notes, they still maintain the
ie. none of these scales have any sharps or flats.

The modal interval patterns

In the same way we used the pattern for the major scale to explain key signatures, we can
see how the mode patterns relate to one another. This illustration shows the pattern for each
of the modes. The red numbers are semitones.
Mixolydian
Phrygian

Aeolian

Locrian
Dorian

Lydian
Ionian

Ionian 2 . 2 . 1 . 2 . 2 . 2 . 1

Dorian 2 . 1 . 2 . 2 . 2 . 1 . 2

Phrygian 1 . 2 . 2 . 2 . 1 . 2 . 2

Lydian 2 . 2 . 2 . 1 . 2 . 2 . 1

Mixolydian 2 . 2 . 1 . 2 . 2 . 1 . 2

Aeolian 2 . 1 . 2 . 2 . 1 . 2 . 2

Locrian 1 . 2 . 2 . 1 . 2 . 2 . 2

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 What does the time signature mean
A time signature is the numbers at the beginning of a score that looks like a fraction.
The time signature tells the musician how the rhythm should be counted (the beats per bar).

4
4

Interpreting time signatures

4 The TOP number is the number of beats in the bar.

4 The BOTTOM number represents the fraction of a semibreve.

For example we have used 4/4 time in many of the tunes you have learned, and 4/4 time is in
the example above because it is by far the most common time signature you will come
across. The top 4 means that their are 4 beats in the bar, and the bottom 4 is a fraction of a
semibreve and therefore 4 in the bottom is 1/4 of a semibreve which is a crotchet.

I think the bottom number is the hardest to understand because you need to know the values

semibreve = 1 minim = 2 crochet = 4 quaver = 8 etc.

A List of note values

1 semibreve

1/2 minim

1/4 crotchet

1/8 quaver

1/16 semiquaver

1/32 demisemiquaver

Where you might find time signatures useful..

played and how the rhythm sounds. If you want to play a tune fingerstyle, it is important to
know the time signature to know which finger picking pattern will work with the tune.

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 Some example of common time signatures

4 Four crotchets in a bar

6 Six quavers in a bar
4 8
3 Three crotchets in a bar
2 Two minims in a bar
4 2
2 Two crotchets in a bar 6 Six semiquavers in a bar
4 16

what is the BPM number

At the start of a piece of music, along with the key signature and the time signature it is not
unusual to find a BPM value especially with contemporary music. The BPM value is the speed
of the tune and BPM

Examples
60 BPM = 60 beats per minute = 1 beat per second

120 BPM = 120 beats per minute = 2 beats per second

You will find BPM values on metronomes and drum machines to set the speed. I recommend
you get hold of a metronome to practise with because you can easily find free ones
available in the form of apps for mobile devices and desktop computers.

Beware
The BPM value may be different for different time signatures and it will depend what type of
note is shown before the BPM value. For example you might get a crotchet equals 120 BPM
or a quaver equals 120 BPM.

Exampless
= 100 BPM is 100 crotchet beats per minute

= 100 BPM is 100 quaver beats per minute

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hiring, lending, redistribution and broadcast of this
e-book or any part of the contents is prohibited.
copyright G C Hargreaves 2021