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12 easy ways to modify the A-major chord

Lesson #267 • Nov 23, 2019

Video lesson

Instructional PDF 2 pages

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It includes all of my notes for this lesson, allowing you to follow along at your own pace. You're free to download, print, and share the PDF across your devices.

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Editor’s notes

Hey friends! In this lesson I’ll show you 12 very common ways the A-major chord can be modified to slightly change up the sound. I’ll break down common variations such as Asus2, Asus4, A7, Amaj7, and A/C#… in addition to showing some ways to change up your finger positions to make other variations possible as well (e.g., playing it with a single finger barred on the 2nd fret). Overall, my hope is to demystify many of these common voicings – so that the next time you run into them, you’ll be ready.

Video timestamps:

  • 0:00 Greeting
  • 0:38 The “triangle” voicing for crammed fingers
  • 1:18 Asus2 and Asus4
  • 2:55 A7 (two different voicings)
  • 4:24 Aadd6
  • 5:33 Amaj7
  • 6:46 Barring the 2nd fret
  • 8:47 A/C#
  • 9:29 A power chord
  • 10:28 Farewell

Playing A-major with one finger (barred index)

Lesson #46

A-major for big fingers: using the triangle shape

Lesson #194

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