So—you got a job as the new worship leader at the church down the street. You show up to rehearsal with a brand new book of contemporary praise songs, but lo-and-behold, when your group starts to run through them, they all sound the same! The songs, even if in different keys, are all based on the same easy chords, like G, D, A, C, or E, A, B, C#m, all in open position!
Of course, it makes sense that these pieces would be relatively simple, your band members guitarists (probably just members of the church who happen to own guitars most likely aren't going to tour with the next G3 anytime soon. But wouldn't you have a more enjoyable time if the parts were a little different?
There are a few reasons I try to "change" up the standard open- chord style of worship music:
- I have always been a rhythm guitarist, and simple open chords don't really tickle my fancy!
- The ensemble sound is thicker, more colorful, and more interesting when each guitar player is playing something a little differently than the other.
- If you are in fact a worship leader, chances are your employers (pastors, priests, etc.) want you to be a teacher for the band/ensemble, and not just stand in front of them and show the world how loudly you can praise...
First, let's look at some of my favorite chord alterations/ alternatives for adding that little extra color to those boring open chords.
Surely you've played around with these before? They work well in the keys of D and G (two #'s, and one #, respectively), but sometimes are neat snuck in the middle of another progression.
Try to find other ways like this to alter some different chords—here are a few:
D Major/Suspended Chords: xx0232 xx0233 xx0230
G Major/Suspended Chords: 320003 320033 320035
Once you have found some neat chord alterations, start using them whenever you have the standard D, G, A, C chords, etc. in a song. Figure out where they fit and where they don't.
Another way to add color to your songs is by finding a key where you can exploit the open strings to work for you. What do I mean by this? Well, a standard-tuned guitar has four strings that ring notes native to the key of E major: E, A, B, and E. For those theory whizzes out there, that's I, IV, V, and I-- the standard rock progression! You can use these open strings to your advantage by playing the chords somewhere else on the guitar, yet leaving a few of these strings open! Let's try it:
E Major/Suspended Chords: 022100 079900 422400
A Major/Suspended Chords: x02220 x02200 x02230 x09900
B Major/Suspended Chords: x24400 7x9800 xx4400
So far, we've discussed some basic chord alterations and alternatives to open-position chords, and we've discussed the possibilities of open- string advantages. Before we move on, though, I'll discuss the other popular chord in the key of E. Some more advanced shapes exist for the six chord (C#m) in E major. Here are a few:
C# Minor: x46600 x46800 9x99x7
What's next? Well, of course you should try as many different keys and chords as possible, as using the same key (E major) might get redundant after three or four songs, but it does work quite nicely for most praise songs, as well as John Mayer-esque acoustic noodling styles, among others.
If you're feeling a bit more inventive (and maybe have some extra guitars/strings lying around, unlike me), experiment with alternate tunings. Find out how to play the basic I IV V I and I IV vi V I progressions in some different tunings. For the sake of this lesson, try using those tunings that allow you to use your open strings, like for the key of D Major, open D tuning (D A D F# A D) or the infamous DADGAD (D A D G A D-duh!) tuning; for E Major, E A E G# B E, etc. Always, see what works and try it out on your own. If you are in a worship leader/ band leader position, maybe play the new chords/tunings yourself while the other guitarist(s) play the regular open chords underneath. It will do wonders to the balance, sound, and overall musicality of the group!
Try using a capo/half capo as well. The difference between a song in the key of E and a song in the key of F# could very well be a capo on fret 2! The audience won't know you're playing the exact same chord shapes, with maybe even the exact same progression(s), but it will sound colorful and different. And besides, who wants to play a song in the key of F# Major without a capo anyway?
I hope you enjoyed this lesson/tutorial, and let me know what you think! You can find me at Higher Calling Music.net or nick@highercallingmusic.net. Happy strumming!
Nick Thacker
View this tutorial with picture chords and sound at WholeNote.com
