Chords derive their names from the root note; so a C chord has C for its root note and a G7 chord will have G . The interval relationship between the root note and the third determines whether a chord is a major or minor. Augmented and diminished chords are two other types of chords and have a slightly different construction. Chords may be strummed or the notes picked individually though beginners
find strumming much easier. Power chords are intervals because they consist of only two notes but they are usually treated as chords when described in books. While chords are primarily used for rhythm guitar, basic chord knowledge can be important for lead playing as well. Knowing how chords are constructed can help when learning the lead parts of many songs since there is always a relationship between a chord and the lead part. For example, if you have to play a lead part over a C major chord (C-E-G) and you use the notes of a D flat major chord (Db-F-Ab) then the result will be very dissonant. Additionally, many lead patterns revolve around arpeggios. These are chords with their notes played in sequence (the word "arpeggio" actually means "broken chord") rather than together. For more information on arpeggios, see the Arpeggio and Sweep Picking chapter. Chords are easy to play though understanding the theory behind chord construction (harmony) will require some understanding of scales. While it is not essential to have a knowledge of scales to be able to use this section; understanding scales will definitely improve your general musicianship. With that in mind, go ahead and learn and use these chords without worrying too much about the theory and when you have the time take a look at the page on general music theory and the page on scales. Always remember that we "play" the guitar and "work" at the theory. Beginners are advised to start with open chords, which are often the easiest chords to form. Learning open chords is important because it sets the stage for learning how to form barre chords. Barre Chords are chords you form by pressing all (or some) of the strings down with the first finger. This finger acts as the barre (the same job that the nut of the guitar does when you are playing open chords). Because of this barre chords don't usuallly include open strings and can be moved freely up and down the neck. As you move your barre chord, the shape of the chord remains the same although all the notes change. Barring is an important technique and greatly opens up the neck of the instrument.
