How to Play Power Chords
Often used in Rock, power chords sound strong and hold up under heavy distortion. Because distortion makes it harder to hear different notes played together, complex chords will not sound as clear. Much of heavy rock uses power chords.
The chord symbol for an A power chord is A5. This means that the chord consists of a root and the note five steps above the root. (These steps would come from the major scale of the root.)
Below is a common power chord progression. Practice it slowly, taking care to mute all of the strings that are not played. The first finger will rest on the top strings, preventing them from ringing. It will also mute the low E string for the second two chords by gently touching the side of the string.
Power chords are often played with all downstrokes and often used with palm muting. This further eliminates unwanted noise from unfretted strings.
Power chords can be played in place of any major or minor chord because they don’t have the note that defines whether the chord will be major or minor. They are like a hollow shell. The chord progression below can serve as a backing track for an A or an A- chord progression.
Key Tasks
- Play these chords until you can make the notes ring cleanly.
- If you are having trouble, it’s a good idea to have your guitar set up to make sure it’s easy to play.
- See if you can figure out how to use these chords to substitute for the chords in the progression: C, A-, D7, G7.
