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→Intervals Above vs. Intervals Below and Inversions
Playing on a single string is a complete pain. You are constantly changing positions, restricted to simple melodies, and cannot create any harmony. Let's add another string: the '''2nd string''' or '''B string'''. Below you can see both the notes of the 1st and 2nd strings together.
E||F|-|G|-|A|-|B|C|-|D|-|E| B||C|-|D|-|E|F|-|G|-|A|-|B| 0 3 5 7 9 12
E--0--1--3--5--7--8--10-12--
Notice in the table of all the intervals I've included columns for Just Intonation Ratio, Just Intonation Cents, and 12-Tone Equal Temperament Cents. If you don't know what the hell I'm talking about, don't feel bad. The J.I. Ratio merely indicates roughly how harmonic each interval sounds, with the smaller ratios more harmonic than the larger - this follow the experience of playing the tab above.
[[Equal Temperament and Alternate Tunings#Cents|Cents]] are a strict measure of relative pitch that are covered way later on. Each semitone covers 100 cents - each octave spans 1,200 cents. This measure is often used for tuning strings, but applies well for understanding intervals and harmony. I merely want to pique your interest now - guitar is a fun instrument in allowing us to play with pitch and harmony in ways other instruments cannot. Mastering the instrument goes beyond simply knowing the strict intervals listed above but knowing the math and core concepts of harmony as well as how to achieve this in your playing.
For now you should be mainly concerned with the sound and names of the intervals, not the pairs of notes involved in the tab. For example, you should know what a perfect 4th interval sounds like in comparison to a minor 3rd, but not worry about knowing that E-A is a perfect 4th and E-G is a minor 3rd. ''That will come with time. Don't stress!''
Let's look at the intervals from two different perspectives inside the key of C Major:
{||
{| class="wikitable"
|+ Intervals with Root Note of C
|-
! Root<br>Note !! Other<br>Note !! Semitones<br>from<br>Root to<br>Other !! Interval<br>Short<br>Name !! Interval<br>Full<br>Name
| C || B || 11 || {{M7|M7}} || Major 7th
|}
|
{| class="wikitable"
|+ Intervals with Root Note of A
|-
! Root<br>Note !! Other<br>Note !! Semitones<br>from<br>Root to<br>Other !! Interval<br>Short<br>Name !! Interval<br>Full<br>Name
| A || G || 10 || {{Mn7|m7}} || Minor 7th
|}
|}
Inside any particular major scale, every note has a different set of intervals for all the other notes in the same key. In C Major, C and A both have major 2nd, perfect 4th, perfect 5th intervals but have different 3rd, 6th, and 7ths. If we added a harmony line a 3rd above the melody, we'd have a major 3rd when the melody played C (C-E), but a minor third when the melody played A (A-C).
B-5--7--9--10-12-14-16-17-
{{U|U}} {{M2|M2}} {{M3|M3}} {{P4|P4}} {{P5|P5}} {{M6|M6}} {{M7|M7}} {{U|Oct}}
E-0--0--0--0--0--0--0--0--
B-5--7--8--10-12-13-15-17-
|1st and 2nd Strings - Intervals#Intervals Above vs. Intervals Below and Inversions|Inversions}}
One last thing about intervals - intervals refer to distance between two pitches. However, we regard the octave of notes as harmonically equivalent. If you increase or reduce both the notes of an interval by one octave, it does not change distance at all. However, if you increase the lower note by one octave such that it now the higher note, or lower the higher note one octave, you still have the same notes but a different amount of distance and thus a different interval. This is called an '''inversion'''.
For example, G is 7 semitones above C, making it a Perfect 5th ''above'' C. However, it is only 5 semitones below C, making it a perfect 4th ''below'' C. Similarly, a G is a perfect 5th above C, but a C is only a perfect 4th above G.