Chords for Sound Advice: KT Tunstall - The Open Guitar Chord Technique
Tempo:
87.2 bpm
Chords used:
E
B
Bm
Em
A
Tuning:Standard Tuning (EADGBE)Capo:+0fret
Start Jamming...
[E]
[B] Hi, I'm Katie Tunstall and welcome to [C] Sound Advice.
[Bm] So I'm going to talk to [Em] you about technique.
I have always considered myself a really scrappy player.
I never had guitar lessons.
I did have piano lessons, so I had classical training in music
and learned theory and learned pieces by classical composers
and obviously the technique of piano playing, but I never really felt I mastered it.
And when I was about 15 in my school, [N] there was a great guitar teacher
who never offered me a lesson, but he always let me borrow a guitar
and go to a room and just work it out for myself.
And so I was in a very free place where I wasn't being taught technique
and wasn't being told what was wrong and what was right.
And that was a completely different experience than I'd had with piano playing,
where there was a really definite line between what was right and what was wrong.
And so guitar playing for me was a very free experience.
It was very expressive and I think it kind of is an illustration of everything that I use.
My blue pedal stuff that's here in the background,
which is that I basically learn how to use what I need and it's pretty efficient.
I don't really
I'm not one of these people who kind of
goes in and noodles and tries to learn everything.
I kind of just learn what I need to do what I want to do.
And so I started teaching myself guitar and I started with just a busker book
that had the tablature, which is like a little square.
It shows you the six strings of the guitar
and it shows you which strings to put your fingers on.
And I learned three or four chords.
80% of songs right there.
And then the other thing that was really interesting when I was learning guitar
was a very popular technique of guitar playing is bar chords,
which is basically, if you can see on the guitar, this [E] here [N] is that.
I can't remember what it's called.
It's like the nut or something.
No, maybe that's the nut.
I don't know.
It's that thing that makes the strings
gives the strings tension to give them their note.
So when you play a bar chord, your finger is basically behaving like this.
So you're moving the length of the strings up the neck.
And what you do is you apply a ton of pressure with that one finger.
[E] And so that's your E [F#] chord.
[G#] That's F sharp.
That's G [A] sharp.
That's [B] A.
That's B.
[E] Now you [B] can play that chord here, [N] but it sounds different.
It's different voicing.
So this bar chord basically gives you the ability
to go anywhere on the guitar and play any chord.
However, I have really bony fingers, and so my knuckles kind of get in the way.
And I can't seem to ever play really clean bar chords.
I was never able to do it.
It's maybe a bit easier on an electric guitar, but not on an acoustic.
So I just decided I'm not going to do that because it never sounded good to me.
So instead, I just started playing around with voicings on the guitar where I played open strings.
So this [E] is E using open strings.
I then use [A] an A using [Em] open strings.
[E] And just all [C#m] my [E]
chords
I never have all the [N] notes closed.
And the other thing that I've learned how to do is to mute strings as well.
So like [F] an F bar chord, [C] I can't play.
So I use my thumb over the bottom instead, but that means [F] I can't really dampen that top E string.
So you get this really nice jazzy nature to your chord.
[G] [F]
[A] And that open sound has [E] actually become a really signature part of my sound.
That the chords aren't totally conventional.
And so I suppose the point of all of that is
Try not to see your failings at playing conventionally as a problem.
And see if you can't use them a bit [Em] more creatively to your [Bm] benefit.
[E] Because the one thing that you really want is to sound different from other people.
[B] [Am]
[Bm] [E]
[B] Hi, I'm Katie Tunstall and welcome to [C] Sound Advice.
[Bm] So I'm going to talk to [Em] you about technique.
I have always considered myself a really scrappy player.
I never had guitar lessons.
I did have piano lessons, so I had classical training in music
and learned theory and learned pieces by classical composers
and obviously the technique of piano playing, but I never really felt I mastered it.
And when I was about 15 in my school, [N] there was a great guitar teacher
who never offered me a lesson, but he always let me borrow a guitar
and go to a room and just work it out for myself.
And so I was in a very free place where I wasn't being taught technique
and wasn't being told what was wrong and what was right.
And that was a completely different experience than I'd had with piano playing,
where there was a really definite line between what was right and what was wrong.
And so guitar playing for me was a very free experience.
It was very expressive and I think it kind of is an illustration of everything that I use.
My blue pedal stuff that's here in the background,
which is that I basically learn how to use what I need and it's pretty efficient.
I don't really
I'm not one of these people who kind of
goes in and noodles and tries to learn everything.
I kind of just learn what I need to do what I want to do.
And so I started teaching myself guitar and I started with just a busker book
that had the tablature, which is like a little square.
It shows you the six strings of the guitar
and it shows you which strings to put your fingers on.
And I learned three or four chords.
80% of songs right there.
And then the other thing that was really interesting when I was learning guitar
was a very popular technique of guitar playing is bar chords,
which is basically, if you can see on the guitar, this [E] here [N] is that.
I can't remember what it's called.
It's like the nut or something.
No, maybe that's the nut.
I don't know.
It's that thing that makes the strings
gives the strings tension to give them their note.
So when you play a bar chord, your finger is basically behaving like this.
So you're moving the length of the strings up the neck.
And what you do is you apply a ton of pressure with that one finger.
[E] And so that's your E [F#] chord.
[G#] That's F sharp.
That's G [A] sharp.
That's [B] A.
That's B.
[E] Now you [B] can play that chord here, [N] but it sounds different.
It's different voicing.
So this bar chord basically gives you the ability
to go anywhere on the guitar and play any chord.
However, I have really bony fingers, and so my knuckles kind of get in the way.
And I can't seem to ever play really clean bar chords.
I was never able to do it.
It's maybe a bit easier on an electric guitar, but not on an acoustic.
So I just decided I'm not going to do that because it never sounded good to me.
So instead, I just started playing around with voicings on the guitar where I played open strings.
So this [E] is E using open strings.
I then use [A] an A using [Em] open strings.
[E] And just all [C#m] my [E]
chords
I never have all the [N] notes closed.
And the other thing that I've learned how to do is to mute strings as well.
So like [F] an F bar chord, [C] I can't play.
So I use my thumb over the bottom instead, but that means [F] I can't really dampen that top E string.
So you get this really nice jazzy nature to your chord.
[G] [F]
[A] And that open sound has [E] actually become a really signature part of my sound.
That the chords aren't totally conventional.
And so I suppose the point of all of that is
Try not to see your failings at playing conventionally as a problem.
And see if you can't use them a bit [Em] more creatively to your [Bm] benefit.
[E] Because the one thing that you really want is to sound different from other people.
[B] [Am]
[Bm] [E]
Key:
E
B
Bm
Em
A
E
B
Bm
[E] _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
[B] Hi, I'm Katie Tunstall and welcome to [C] Sound Advice.
[Bm] So I'm going to talk to [Em] you about technique.
I have always considered myself a really scrappy player.
I never had guitar lessons.
I did have piano lessons, so I had classical training in music
and learned theory and learned pieces by classical composers
and obviously the technique of piano playing, but I never really felt I mastered it.
And when I was about 15 in my school, [N] there was a great guitar teacher
who never offered me a lesson, but he always let me borrow a guitar
and go to a room and just work it out for myself.
And so I was in a very free place where I wasn't being _ taught technique
and wasn't being told what was wrong and what was right.
And that was a completely different experience than I'd had with piano playing,
where there was a really definite line between what was right and what was wrong.
And so guitar playing for me was a very free experience.
It was very expressive and I think it kind of is an illustration of everything that I use.
My blue pedal stuff that's here in the background,
which is that I basically learn how to use what I need and it's pretty efficient.
I don't really_
I'm not one of these people who kind of
goes in and noodles and tries to learn everything.
I kind of just learn what I need to do what I want to do.
And so I started teaching myself guitar and I started with just a busker book
that had the tablature, which is like a little square.
It shows you the six strings of the guitar
and it shows you which strings to put your fingers on.
And I learned three or four chords.
_ 80% of songs right there.
_ And then the other thing that was really interesting when I was learning guitar
was a very popular technique of guitar playing is bar chords,
which is basically, if you can see on the guitar, this [E] here _ [N] is that.
I can't remember what it's called.
It's like the nut or something.
No, maybe that's the nut.
I don't know.
It's that thing that makes the strings_
gives the strings tension to give them their note.
So when you play a bar chord, your finger is basically behaving like this.
So you're moving the length of the strings up the neck.
And what you do is you apply a ton of pressure with that one finger.
[E] And so that's your E [F#] chord.
_ [G#] That's F sharp.
_ That's G [A] sharp.
That's [B] A.
That's B.
[E] Now you [B] can play that chord here, [N] but it sounds different.
It's different voicing.
So this bar chord basically gives you the ability
_ to go anywhere on the guitar and play any chord.
However, I have really bony fingers, and so my knuckles kind of get in the way.
And I can't seem to ever play really clean bar chords.
I was never able to do it.
It's maybe a bit easier on an electric guitar, but not on an acoustic. _
So I just decided I'm not going to do that because it never sounded good to me.
So instead, I just started playing around with voicings on the guitar where I played open strings.
So this [E] is E using open strings.
I then use [A] an A using [Em] open strings.
_ _ [E] _ And just all [C#m] my [E] _
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
_ chords_
I never have all the [N] notes closed.
And the other thing _ that I've learned how to do is to mute strings as well.
So like [F] an F bar chord, [C] I can't play.
So I use my thumb over the bottom instead, but that means [F] I can't really dampen that top E string.
_ _ So you get this really nice jazzy nature to your chord.
_ _ [G] _ _ _ _ [F] _
[A] And that open sound has [E] actually become a really signature part of my sound.
That the chords aren't totally conventional.
And so I suppose the point of all of that is_
Try not to see your failings at playing conventionally as a problem.
And see if you can't use them a bit [Em] more creatively to your [Bm] benefit.
[E] Because the one thing that you really want is to sound different from other people.
_ _ _ [B] _ _ _ _ [Am] _
_ [Bm] _ _ _ [E] _ _ _ _
[B] Hi, I'm Katie Tunstall and welcome to [C] Sound Advice.
[Bm] So I'm going to talk to [Em] you about technique.
I have always considered myself a really scrappy player.
I never had guitar lessons.
I did have piano lessons, so I had classical training in music
and learned theory and learned pieces by classical composers
and obviously the technique of piano playing, but I never really felt I mastered it.
And when I was about 15 in my school, [N] there was a great guitar teacher
who never offered me a lesson, but he always let me borrow a guitar
and go to a room and just work it out for myself.
And so I was in a very free place where I wasn't being _ taught technique
and wasn't being told what was wrong and what was right.
And that was a completely different experience than I'd had with piano playing,
where there was a really definite line between what was right and what was wrong.
And so guitar playing for me was a very free experience.
It was very expressive and I think it kind of is an illustration of everything that I use.
My blue pedal stuff that's here in the background,
which is that I basically learn how to use what I need and it's pretty efficient.
I don't really_
I'm not one of these people who kind of
goes in and noodles and tries to learn everything.
I kind of just learn what I need to do what I want to do.
And so I started teaching myself guitar and I started with just a busker book
that had the tablature, which is like a little square.
It shows you the six strings of the guitar
and it shows you which strings to put your fingers on.
And I learned three or four chords.
_ 80% of songs right there.
_ And then the other thing that was really interesting when I was learning guitar
was a very popular technique of guitar playing is bar chords,
which is basically, if you can see on the guitar, this [E] here _ [N] is that.
I can't remember what it's called.
It's like the nut or something.
No, maybe that's the nut.
I don't know.
It's that thing that makes the strings_
gives the strings tension to give them their note.
So when you play a bar chord, your finger is basically behaving like this.
So you're moving the length of the strings up the neck.
And what you do is you apply a ton of pressure with that one finger.
[E] And so that's your E [F#] chord.
_ [G#] That's F sharp.
_ That's G [A] sharp.
That's [B] A.
That's B.
[E] Now you [B] can play that chord here, [N] but it sounds different.
It's different voicing.
So this bar chord basically gives you the ability
_ to go anywhere on the guitar and play any chord.
However, I have really bony fingers, and so my knuckles kind of get in the way.
And I can't seem to ever play really clean bar chords.
I was never able to do it.
It's maybe a bit easier on an electric guitar, but not on an acoustic. _
So I just decided I'm not going to do that because it never sounded good to me.
So instead, I just started playing around with voicings on the guitar where I played open strings.
So this [E] is E using open strings.
I then use [A] an A using [Em] open strings.
_ _ [E] _ And just all [C#m] my [E] _
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
_ chords_
I never have all the [N] notes closed.
And the other thing _ that I've learned how to do is to mute strings as well.
So like [F] an F bar chord, [C] I can't play.
So I use my thumb over the bottom instead, but that means [F] I can't really dampen that top E string.
_ _ So you get this really nice jazzy nature to your chord.
_ _ [G] _ _ _ _ [F] _
[A] And that open sound has [E] actually become a really signature part of my sound.
That the chords aren't totally conventional.
And so I suppose the point of all of that is_
Try not to see your failings at playing conventionally as a problem.
And see if you can't use them a bit [Em] more creatively to your [Bm] benefit.
[E] Because the one thing that you really want is to sound different from other people.
_ _ _ [B] _ _ _ _ [Am] _
_ [Bm] _ _ _ [E] _ _ _ _