The five open shapes

Five chord shapes — C, A, G, E, and D — are the alphabet this whole course is written in. Later you’ll move them up the neck and bend them into minors and sevenths, but first each one needs to ring out clean, and you need to switch between them without stopping to think.

How to read the diagrams

All diagrams in this school use the same convention: columns are strings, low E on the left, high e on the right. Rows are frets. A digit shows which finger presses that fret (1 = index, 2 = middle, 3 = ring, 4 = pinky). Above the line, o means strum that string open, x means don’t play it.

The C shape

C major
  E A D G B e
  x . . o . o
  -----------
1 . . . . 1 .
2 . . 2 . . .
3 . 3 . . . .

Pitfalls: the low E string is skipped — start your strum from the A string. The index finger tends to lean over and mute the open high e; keep fingers on their tips, arched.

The A shape

A major
  E A D G B e
  x o . . . o
  -----------
1 . . . . . .
2 . . 1 2 3 .

Pitfalls: three fingers share one fret, so crowd them in a diagonal line rather than fighting for the same spot. The ring finger often brushes the open high e dead — pluck that string alone to check.

The G shape

G major
  E A D G B e
  . . o o o .
  -----------
1 . . . . . .
2 2 1 . . . .
3 . . . . . 3

Pitfalls: this is the widest stretch so far. The middle finger on the low E must arch enough to let the open A ring. All six strings are played.

The E shape

E major
  E A D G B e
  o . . . o o
  -----------
1 . . . 1 . .
2 . 2 3 . . .

Pitfalls: the friendliest shape — all six strings, big sound. The index finger on the G string is the one that buzzes; press right behind the first fret, not on top of it or far from it.

The D shape

D major
  E A D G B e
  x x o . . .
  -----------
1 . . . . . .
2 . . . 1 . 2
3 . . . . 3 .

Pitfalls: only four strings — aim your strum at the thinnest four and let the low E and A stay silent. The shape is a small triangle; if the high e dies, the ring finger is leaning on it.

The switching drill

Set a metronome to 50-60 BPM. On each click, strum the next chord once: C, A, G, E, D, then back to C, around and around. The rule is don’t stop the clicks — a quiet or half-formed chord that lands on time beats a perfect chord that arrives late. When a particular change keeps breaking the loop, drill just that pair: move your fingers between the two shapes twenty times without strumming at all.

When the loop survives at 60 BPM with every chord ringing, you’re done. These five shapes are about to become a map of the entire neck.