Guitar Chords Inversions

Are you always stuck in a rut while playing rhythm guitar? Perhaps the open chords or standard major/minor barre chords are all that you know in rhythm guitar. During my first 2 years of playing the guitar, the standard guitar chords (found in most chord books) are all that I knew. It was until I started to listen more widely to Japanese rock music that I came across inverted chords. Famous J-Rock bands such as L’arc en Ciel often incorporate guitar chords inversion into their playing. This has helped them added depth and avoid sounding monotonous during rhythm and lead guitar playing.

Guitar Chords Inversions

Basically, guitar chords inversions refer to chords whereby the lowest note (bass note) is NOT the root note of the chord. The most common chord inversions are often referred to as the first inversion, second inversion and third inversion. Let me use a Cmaj7 example to illustrate this. In the Cmaj7 chord, we have the following notes: C E G B

Inversions of Cmaj7

Guitar Chords Inversions of Cmaj7

The first inversion of the Cmaj7 chord is played using the third as the bass note. (i.e. Using E for the bass note)

The second inversion of the Cmaj7 chord is played using the fifth as the bass note. (i.e. using G for the bass note)

The third inversion of the Cmaj7 chord is played using the seventh as the bass note. (i.e. using B for the bass note)

In a nutshell, you can create your own inversions by jumbling up the order of the notes in the chords while keeping in mind the lowest note of the chord.

How to use chord inversions

Chord inversions is a powerful tool to add to your arsenal and here are some tips to help you out in applying it to your playing.

Tips to Use Chord Inversions

- For a start, if some one is playing a C G Am F progression, an example of using simple inverted chords could be the following:

Chord Inversions In C Major

Try different notes and combinations too. : p

- If you are the only rhythm guitar player around, it is not advisable to start playing inverted chords at the 14th frets of the guitar. In such circumstances, you would probably be better off playing open/barre chords to achieve a fuller sound.

- In music phrases, you might find it easier to inject chord inversions in the middle portions. The more stable standard chords are used typically in the beginning and end of phrases to maintain the stability of the music.

It is important that you play and listen to the different inversions. The different inversions have unique sounds and moods even though they are made up of the same notes. The next time you get you need to inject some freshness into your rhythm playing, you can simply substitute inverted chords with the standard chords that you are playing.