• Registered: 2013-03-03
  • Posts: 36

Topic: How do you play chords like a Gadd9?

Hey everybody, how do you strum a chord like Gadd9, G11, G7#9 etc... where you are supposed to play the E string, but not the A string, then all the others?

"Milk is best drank out of a blue plastic cup."
"The LORD is my strength and my sheild, my heart trusted in him, and I am helped: therefore my heart greatly rejoices; and with my song will I praise him." Psalm 28:7
  • Astronomikal
  • Astronomikal
  • Illudium Q-36 Explosive Space Moderator
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Re: How do you play chords like a Gadd9?

Hi and welcome to the forum.

You CAN play the Gadd9 using the A string.  Like every other chord, there are multiple ways to play it.  Here are some examples:  http://jguitar.com/chordsearch/Gadd9

But to answer your "how to avoid the A string" question, the simple answer is to mute it and then strum through it.  If it is muted (like with the side of one of your fingers), then it won't ring out when you strum over it.  For example, a lot of people (myself included) use the thumb to mute the low E string when playing an open C or A chord.  Same principle, just a different string.

"Just because you've always done it that way doesn't mean it's not incredibly stupid." - Despair, Inc.
  • Registered: 2013-03-03
  • Posts: 36

Re: How do you play chords like a Gadd9?

Okay, thank you so much! That really helps.

"Milk is best drank out of a blue plastic cup."
"The LORD is my strength and my sheild, my heart trusted in him, and I am helped: therefore my heart greatly rejoices; and with my song will I praise him." Psalm 28:7
  • From: A black hole in deep space
  • Registered: 2007-10-28
  • Posts: 7,865

Re: How do you play chords like a Gadd9?

another way to understand it is to concider the constrution of a major scale it is built on 8 tones these can also be called steps or intervals
In the key of G there is one #sharp (F#) so it would be G A B C D E F# G notice the 2nd interval is A a 9th is just an extenension thats where the A comes in so A is the 2nd and the 9th G add 9 is 13579 or G B D F# A these notes can be shuffled around in any order depending on the voicing you wish it is stll a G add 9 smile

"Growing old is not for sissies"

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5 Reply by Astronomikal (edited by Astronomikal 2013-03-04 01:36:58)

  • Astronomikal
  • Astronomikal
  • Illudium Q-36 Explosive Space Moderator
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Re: How do you play chords like a Gadd9?

Russell_Harding wrote:

... these notes can be shuffled around in any order depending on the voicing you wish it is stll a G add 9 smile

LOL!  OK Russell, technically you are right, but there are some who would argue that if the A is in the same octave as the root (a whole tone up from the root G) then it's an "add2", and not an add9.

I'm not saying I'm one of those people.  smile  I'm sure you've forgotten more music theory than I'll ever know.

"Just because you've always done it that way doesn't mean it's not incredibly stupid." - Despair, Inc.

6 Reply by Russell_Harding (edited by Russell_Harding 2013-03-04 16:25:36)

  • From: A black hole in deep space
  • Registered: 2007-10-28
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Re: How do you play chords like a Gadd9?

techniclly I could be wrong with regards to inverting the notes but I wont lay awake worring over a 9th lol
It occured to me that G B D A would be the notes in a G add 9 (1 3 5 9) but normally I think it woulld progress as 1 3 5 7 9 and this could also be called a 9th chord sort of a dicotomy like tomato tomaato smile

"Growing old is not for sissies"

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