Capo at 2nd Fret Rules!

[ljguitar]

Originally Posted by anthonyc007

I have been recently been messing around with the capo at the 2nd fret. Is it just me, or does it sound awesome? Anyone else fond of this? Any song recommendations for this?

Hi Anthony...
I find capos at any fret intriguing. Sometimes I use two together at different frets (full capo at 3rd fret and cut at 5th).

Larry J

[ljguitar]

Originally Posted by Sky Blue Army

I've got a qu? on this theme .If i have my capo on the 2nd fret and play say a D shape chord ? How do I know what chord that really is ?

Hi Sky...
By understanding scales and knowing the notes/chords higher than the third fret you will be able to figure out what key you are playing in and what chord(s) you are actually sounding.

You can count how many 1/2 steps (frets) you've raised the key and walk up a Chromatic scale that many 1/2 steps from the chord shape you are playing.

For instance...if you place the capo at the third fret, and then play in the key of D, you are three 1/2 steps (frets) up from key of D. So we count up three half steps...D#, E, F...we are playing in key of F.

• The D chord is Eb, E, F...''F''
• The G chord is Ab, A, Bb...''Bb''
• The A chord is Bb, B, C...''C''
• The Em chord is F, F#, G...''Gm''
• The Bm chord is B#/C, C#, D...''Dm''

etc...
Capo at the 5th fret playing in key of E
Count up 5 half steps...F, F#, G, G#, A...playing in key of A...the E chord is really an ''A''

Make it last...
After you go to all the trouble to figure out that key of D capoed up three frets is (Eb, E, F) the key of F...just memorize it. It was good news to me when I discovered that after I went to sleep at night, and woke up the next morning, it hadn't changed. Capoed at the third and playing in D I was still the key of ''F''.

Hope this helps...

[Andromeda]

I saw the video of Gordon Lightfoot "Live In Reno" a few years back. His capo was at the second fret for nearly every song. Most of his songs were in A D E & B. I myself love the capo at the second fret. My favorite JD song "Rocky Mountain High" is played at the second fret. Although this past year, at age 41, I find my voice lossing some of the top end so I have been adjusting keys, and I now play it capoed at the first fret.

[Tom S.]

The last song I learned was St. Louis Tickle. It is brutal for me when played at the 1st position due to finger stretches. My instructor recommended Capo 2, but using the same chord forms. It was much easeir, essentially creating a shortened scale guitar. But I also noticed that it had a brightness that was noticeably different than 1st position.

[anthonyc007]

Sorry for the bad link. Try this:

logue.net/xp/chordchart.htm

However, the best expalantion is from ljguitar.

[roadking]

Originally Posted by Sky Blue Army

I've got a qu? on this theme .If i have my capo on the 2nd fret and play say a D shape chord ? How do I know what chord that really is ? I guess its "transposing" the chord , but is there an idiots guide/rule to work out what chord it is ?

It's a matter of knowing what the root is. If you are playing a D shape, then the D string (standard tuning) will tell you the chord it actually is by finding the note that is being fretted by the root (D string). A "D" shape with no capo produces a D chord because the root D (4th string) is a D note. So, if you play a D shape capoed at the second fret, the D string is fretted (capoed) at E, so it is an E chord. Likewise, if you capo at the third fret and play a D shape, the root is at F so it is an F chord. The same analogy can be applied to any chord at any capo position as long as you are able to determine the root. More simply, an E chord shape with no capo is an E chord because the root on the 6th string is an E. If you capo at the first fret and play an E chord, the root is now at F, so you have an F chord. With this chord shape you can march right up the fret board to F#, G, G#, A, etc. Hope this long winded explanation helps.

[Sky Blue Army]

you know that makes sense cheers

[ParleyDee]

Like ITarchitect, I sometimes use a capo to make a piece a bit more comfortable (though I then have to be careful not to over-reach) or because the piece sounds better higher / on shortened strings.

Interesting capo discovery over the last few days - I have a solo job this afternoon which includes a request for Schubert's "Ave Maria", which in the past I sang solo with an organist or played on organ while someone else sang, or played as an organ solo. I've never accompanied myself/played it on guitar before - so if you're that way inclined, pray for me at around 6pm AEST I've worked out ways of playing most of the inversions and substituting something inoffensive where I can't, but this classical piece on my new steel string sounds much tidier capo 1 or 2 because it reduces the contrast between open and stopped strings. Normally of course this contrast is a good thing but with some of the inversions you end up with an open low E followed by high-ish stoppings on the A, D an G strings and the tonal difference sounds a bit odd and doesn't add anything to the piece. Wouldn't have been an issue on my old guitar which doesn't sound as big and rich as this new one.