8,720
edits
Changes
m
Unlike triads and some 7ths, extended chords typically have fewer desirable voicings, avoiding highly dissonant intervals such as m2 between notes. As mentioned above, notes are often omitted from the chord voicing to avoid such intervals. Additionally, voicings try to space out "tight" intervals. For example, rather than playing a A4 and a P5 in the same octave, the A4 is played an octave higher as the A11. Spacing out intervals is more important for the lower strings/frets than the higher ones. As pitch gets higher, our ears tolerate tighter intervals. The highest 3 strings may have stacked m2, M2, m3, and/or M3 intervals, while the lower strings have P5, m7, and M7 intervals, often skipping a string.
→Guitar Tone
Omitting notes makes fingering simpler and easier. Many of the shapes below that seem too difficult at first may be possible if 1 or 2 notes are omitted. I try to supply the fullest chords that I can, allowing you to omit notes at your discretion.
= Voicing =
Unlike triads and some 7ths, extended chords typically have fewer desirable voicings, avoiding highly dissonant intervals such as m2 between notes. As mentioned above, notes are often omitted from the chord voicing to avoid such intervals. Additionally, voicings try to space out "tight" intervals. For example, rather than playing a A4 and a P5 in the same octave (creating a m2 interval), the A4 is played an octave higher as the A11 (producing a M7). Spacing out intervals is more important for the lower strings/frets than the higher ones. As pitch gets higher, our ears tolerate tighter intervals. The highest 3 strings may have stacked m2, M2, m3, and/or M3 intervals, while the lower strings have P5, m7, and M7 intervals, often skipping a string.
= Guitar Tone =
Because extended chords contain more intervals and thus harmonic complexity than triads and 7ths, they are typically played with an undistorted guitar tone. When distorted guitar wants to play an extended chord, it must often be separated between multiple instruments, or arpeggiated. Otherwise, they can sound very dissonant.
Jazz musicians also typically roll down the tone knob on their guitar to reduce overtones for a darker sound, as well as finger-picking instead of using a plectrum. This allows the complex interactions between the fundamental pitches to be more clearly heard. Remember that guitar is rich in overtones following the harmonic series, which adds not only octaves but P5, M3, and m7 intervals ''to each note''. Since many of the notes in a complex chord form 3rds, 5ths, and 7ths with other notes in the chord and there is a guarantee that around half of them will have differing qualities than the harmonic series, this can lead to extremely dissonant-sounding chords, even with perfect technique, tuning, and intonation.