Chord Inversion Positions Across the Entire Fretboard
In the first guitar
chord inversions lesson, we learned what inversions
are and how they can provide you with several different voicings of
to play) the same chord.
This lesson will expand on what we
learned and get you playing inversions right across the fretboard by
Think of this part as a more practical way to apply the theory in part
1. The end result will be that you're no longer restricted to those
same old open position and barre chord forms you learn as a beginner.
In other words, this is about giving you more creative freedom with
your chord playing.
Chord inversion positions string by string
won't believe how many voicings and positions of the same chord we can
play, simply by breaking it down in the way I'm about to show you.
Major chord inversions across the low E string
with major triads, which we should know by now consist of the root (1),
major 3rd (3) and 5th (5), we can play different combinations of these
three notes in different positions on the neck.
I'm going to
start with E major as an example, with its root
on the open E string.
The most familiar root position of E major is the open chord form we
all know, as
Now, if we just focus on that low E bass string, we can form a 1 3 5
major arpeggio on that string as follows...
Essentially what we have here is an E
major arpeggio across the E string.
These will become the bass
notes for our first set of E major inversions.
the open E string was the bass in our root
position E major chord.
Moving to the next position, at the 4th fret, we have a major 3rd bass
On this major 3rd bass we can build our 1st inversion shape as
However, for easier fingering, players tend to cut this down to the
Mute the A string by collapsing your 2nd finger back to touch
Next, we move up to the 5th bass note (7th fret) on that same bass
string for our 2nd inversion E major shapes...
Finally, to the octave root
fret E note)
where we can build
higher voiced root position shapes as follows (note the barred index
finger in the first form if you want to include the G and B strings as
Once you have these chord shapes commited to memory, the
next task is for you to be able to visualise their positions
for any chord.
We used E major in our example there, but here's how it
would look for F#
major, for example. See if you can spot the above chord shapes (some
positions will overlap)...
exactly the same process applies - build the chord's arpeggio (1 3 5 in
this case) on the bass string and then build the related inversion
shapes on those positions. This is only for testing your knowledge!
Once it's fully internalised, by seeing how the above forms are
interrelated, you won't need to go through the entire process.
lot of the stuff covered in this lesson is ten times easier to grasp
with a comprehensive knowledge of the fretboard. I recommend this
interactive software to make learning chords, scales and
arpeggios more fun and engaging.
We can also visualise inversion positions
using other bass strings and open up even more of the fretboard for our
Major chord inversions on the A string
Starting with the open A major form we should all be familiar with...
That's our root position. Just like with the E string, let's build the
major arpeggio on that bass A string.
So, to the major 3rd position (1st inversion, 4th fret). Again, out
with the barre for the fullest voicing...
5th position (2nd inversion, 7th fret)...
And the octave root position (12th fret). This is the standard C
shape barre chord you might recognise...
You don't have to play the full shape. For example, in the above shape
you could just play the top three strings.
Major chord inversions on the D string
Finally, starting with the open D major shape, we can build 3 more
inversion shapes on D string bass positions.
1st inversion shape on the major 3rd position (4th fret). Note that you
don't need to include that high e string 5th but it fills out
the chord a bit...
2nd inversion on the 5th position (7th fret)...
And finally the octave root position (12th fret)...
Stringing it all together
the examples above, we've been playing a different chord for each
string (E major, A major and D major). But to really test your
knowledge of these inversion positions, we need to pick one chord and
be confident with finding its inversions across all three bass strings.
This will really help you dominate the fretboard with any chord thrown
at you. This also opens the door to chord improvisation and can help
with "getting into position" for a solo.
The easiest way to do this is to first visualise these triad
intervals in relation to their root (1) notes on different strings.
Observe and internalise!
E string root
Example: if we wanted to play inversions of C major, we'd find the root
note of C
in the 1
position and be able to see its relative 3rd and 5th bass positions for
building the shapes we've looked at.
(sort of): if you've studied major arpeggios or the major
scale, you'll already know these patterns!
Don't just look at the positions above
the root, look at how they appear below it. For example, if you find
the root of the chord on the A string, you could play a 5th position
shape on the low E string directly below it.
whatever chord you're playing, first find the root note for that chord
(you'll know by now that the root of the chord is always the letter in
the chord symbol), either on the E, A or D string, and then visualise
its related inversion shapes based on those positions.
Some examples (test your knowledge of the inversion shapes/fingerings
we learned in this lesson).
Spend a little time a day on this stuff if you can. It really is
beneficial to learn, even though it might not seem that way right now.
It's all part of the bigger picture that you're piecing together as you
connect your knowledge of scales, chords and other theory into a
roadmap for navigating the fretboard.