Chords for DADGAD in a nutshell

Tempo:
114.8 bpm
Chords used:

D

G

A

Ab

E

Tuning:Standard Tuning (EADGBE)Capo:+0fret
Show Tuner
DADGAD in a nutshell chords
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Hi, it's Raleigh Brown here, and I thought I'd give you a short little lesson on dadgad
this morning, since I've been playing a little in that tuning.
There's a real easy way to think about this tuning.
First of all, the tuning itself is your standard tuning, and the low E gets [E] tuned down two
[D] frets, and the high E gets tuned down two frets, [D] and the B string [Bbm] gets [A] tuned down two
frets, and [Ab] the name of the tuning comes from the [D] notes, D-A-D-G-A-D.
And you can hear, unlike standard tuning, it already has a beautiful tonality [D] when you
just have it there.
So for you guitar pickers, I'm going to give you a way of thinking about dadgad.
First of all, the bottom four strings are the same as they would be in drop D tuning.
So if you're used to playing in drop D tuning, where you have these two bass notes, [Ab] and the
top two strings are exactly the same [G] way they'd be in standard tuning in the key of
E.
So here's your E note, [E]
[Abm] [A] and [Dm] if it was blues, so the blues patterns that [D] you'd use in E,
[F]
[D] at least on the [Db] top two [G] strings, [Dm]
are the same.
[D]
So you could do [G] kind of bluesy stuff.
But the real strength of dadgad lies in this interval that we create where you have this,
instead of having a open [Gb] D tuning, which would [A] go D-A-F-sharp, or D-A-D-F-sharp-A-D, and would
sound like this, we have this fourth left in [G] there, this open [D] G, a suspended fourth.
There's Suki the dog.
And so it gives you this sound, which gives you this very cool relationship that if you
play the fourth fret of your D string, and then play D-G-B, what would normally be that,
you get a scale passage.
And then you have the top string.
So [G] these notes are sequential in the major scale.
And these notes are [D] this open D, and then the fourth [Ab] fret and fourth fret.
[A] If you couple these two things together, you get this.
Here's the first one.
[G]
Here's the second one.
[D] So I'm playing-4 [Ab]-4, [Ab] and then I'm playing [G]-0-4. And if you kind of get so you can kind of roll through those, [D] you [Ab] can add a couple more [Gb] major scale notes. [B] [D] And if you want to go a little [E] farther, you can [A] [A] [G] reach [Em] up here to the seventh fret on the A string, [D] and then have the open D. So now you have a whole octave or more. [E] [A] [D] [A] And up here, you have your [D] E major scale type fingering. And from here, you go to the open D string, and you have this D bass underneath it. Now, you also have some really [Am] easy kind of chord fragments that work wonderfully. And one of them [Ab] is you can just do the second [G] fret of your [Eb] two A [D] strings here now. [G] And that's your four [D] chord. So a D, that's a G chord. [A] And back to your D. If you want a five chord, [E] and these chords are kind of fragments. I'm not going to go into [D] the details of whether it's an added nine or [Ab] whatever. But you just hear the sound. So here's our one chord, our four [G] chord, our [E] five chord, and then [D] our one chord again. You can [A] also play a four chord or G chord by moving [G] your bass up to here and playing this. So it's fifth fret, and then open. [D] You leave the A string out [G] there, I think. [D] And then you can have bass movement. [G] [D] [E] Here is like a two chord. So it's an E minor [A] in the key of D. [G] [A] There's your A chord, your five, [D] and then your one. There's also some cool fingerings like a B minor, where you can [Bm] get the second fret here and then the fourth fret [Ab] of the A, D, [B] and G strings. [Bm] And then you have these. So now you have a B minor, [G] G, [E] E minor, A. [D] [Em] [B] [D]
And [E] there's also a great F [F] chord, [C] where I just [A] get these three [F] strings on the [G] third fret, and [F] you roll across the rest. You can go from your F [G] to your G to your [A] A to your [D] D. [D] And if you want [F] to play minor key stuff, [Gb] instead of this, instead of think of [Ab] these notes, you think [C] of, [F] so I [D] go 0, [A] 3, 4, open, open, [Dm] 3. [A] [D]
And you have more of a bluesy or minor sound. So that's a little [Ab] quick primer on DADGAD. [G] [D]
[G]
[A] [D]
Key:  
D
1321
G
2131
A
1231
Ab
134211114
E
2311
D
1321
G
2131
A
1231
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Hi, it's Raleigh Brown here, and I thought I'd give you a short little lesson on dadgad
this morning, since I've been playing a little in that tuning.
There's a real easy way to think about this tuning.
First of all, the tuning itself is your standard tuning, and the low E gets [E] tuned down two
[D] frets, and the high E gets tuned down two frets, [D] and the B string _ [Bbm] gets [A] tuned down two
frets, and [Ab] the name of the tuning comes from the [D] notes, D-A-D-G-A-D.
And you can hear, unlike standard tuning, it already has a beautiful tonality [D] when you
just have it there.
So for you guitar pickers, I'm going to give you a way of thinking about dadgad.
First of all, the bottom four strings are the same as they would be in drop D tuning.
So if you're used to playing in drop D tuning, _ where you have these two bass notes, _ _ _ _ _ [Ab] and the
top two strings are exactly the same [G] way they'd be in standard tuning in the key of
E.
So here's your E note, [E] _ _ _ _ _ _
_ _ [Abm] _ _ [A] _ _ and [Dm] if it was blues, _ _ _ so the blues patterns that [D] you'd use in E,
[F] _ _
[D] at least on the [Db] top two [G] strings, _ [Dm] _
_ are the same.
[D] _ _ _
_ _ So you could do [G] kind of bluesy stuff.
But the real strength of dadgad lies in this interval that we create where you have this,
instead of having a _ open [Gb] D tuning, which would [A] go D-A-F-sharp, or D-A-D-F-sharp-A-D, and would
sound like this, _ _ _ _ we have this fourth left in [G] there, this open [D] G, _ _ a suspended fourth.
There's Suki the dog.
And so it gives you this sound, which gives you this very cool relationship that if you
play the fourth fret of your D string, and then play D-G-B, what would normally be that,
_ you get a scale passage.
_ _ _ _ And then you have the top string.
_ _ _ So [G] these notes _ are sequential in the major scale.
And these notes are [D] this open D, and then the fourth [Ab] fret and fourth fret. _ _
_ _ _ [A] If you couple these two things together, you get this.
Here's the first one.
[G]
Here's the second one.
_ [D] _ _ So I'm playing-4 [Ab]-4, [Ab] and then I'm playing [G]-0-4. And if you kind of get so you can kind of roll through those, _ [D] _ you [Ab] can add a couple more [Gb] major scale notes. _ _ [B] _ _ [D] _ _ And if you want to go a little [E] farther, you can _ [A] _ _ [A] _ _ [G] _ reach [Em] up here to the seventh fret on the A string, [D] and then have the open D. So now you have a whole octave or more. [E] _ _ [A] _ _ _ _ [D] _ _ [A] And up here, you have your [D] E major scale type fingering. _ And from here, you go to the open D string, _ _ _ _ _ _ _ and you have this _ D bass underneath it. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Now, you also have some really [Am] easy kind of chord fragments that work wonderfully. And one of them [Ab] is you can just do the second [G] fret of your [Eb] two A [D] strings here now. [G] And that's your four [D] chord. So a D, that's a G chord. _ _ [A] And back to your D. If you want a five chord, [E] _ _ and these chords are kind of fragments. I'm not going to go into [D] the details of whether it's an added nine or [Ab] whatever. But you just hear the sound. So here's our one chord, our four [G] chord, our [E] five chord, _ _ _ _ _ _ and then [D] our one chord again. You can [A] also play a four chord or G chord by moving [G] your bass up to here and playing this. _ _ So it's fifth fret, and then open. _ _ _ [D] _ You leave the A string out [G] there, I think. _ _ [D] _ And then you can have bass movement. [G] _ _ [D] _ _ _ [E] _ Here is like a two chord. So it's an E minor [A] in the key of D. _ _ [G] _ _ [A] _ _ _ There's your A chord, your five, [D] and then your one. There's also some cool fingerings like a B minor, where you can [Bm] get the second fret here and then the fourth fret [Ab] of the A, D, [B] and G strings. [Bm] And then you have these. _ _ _ So now you have a B minor, _ [G] G, _ [E] E minor, _ A. _ [D] _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ [Em] _ _ [B] _ _ [D] _
_ And [E] there's also a great F [F] chord, _ [C] where I just [A] get these three [F] strings on the [G] third fret, and [F] you roll across the rest. _ _ _ _ You can go from your F _ [G] to your G to your [A] A to your [D] D. _ _ _ [D] _ _ _ And if you want [F] to play minor key stuff, [Gb] instead of this, _ _ _ _ _ instead of think of [Ab] these notes, you think [C] of, _ [F] _ so I [D] go 0, [A] 3, _ 4, open, open, [Dm] 3. [A] _ _ _ _ _ _ _ [D] _ _ _
_ And you have more of a bluesy or minor sound. So that's a little [Ab] quick primer on DADGAD. _ _ [G] _ _ _ _ _ _ [D] _ _
_ _ _ _ _ [G] _ _ _
_ [A] _ _ [D] _ _ _ _ _
_ _ _ _ _ _ _

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