{"id":2613,"date":"2015-09-18T09:02:45","date_gmt":"2015-09-18T07:02:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.jazzguitar.be\/blog\/?p=2613"},"modified":"2024-11-26T14:09:50","modified_gmt":"2024-11-26T13:09:50","slug":"how-to-play-6-chords-on-guitar","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.jazzguitar.be\/blog\/how-to-play-6-chords-on-guitar\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Play 6 Chords on Guitar"},"content":{"rendered":"

One of the first things you\u2019ll notice when playing jazz guitar chords, is that there are a lot of variations for each chord type to get under your fingers. When playing over major family chords, for example, you can play C6, Cmaj7, Cmaj9, C6\/9, etc., and they all have a similar function but sound different on the guitar. To help you become more confident with major family chords, this lesson will delve into 6 chords on the guitar.<\/p>\n

6 chords are used to bring a soft sound to your major-based chords<\/a>, and are used in place of maj7 chords when comping over a jazz standard.<\/p>\n

In the material below, you\u2019ll learn how to build 6 chords, how to apply them to a jazz situation, how they relate to relative minor chords, and study four examples of these chords in action over chord progressions.<\/p>\n<\/span><\/span>\n

What Are 6 Chords?<\/h2>\n

6 chords are from the major family of chords, and are built with the interval pattern 1-3-5-6:<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n\n\n\n\n
C6<\/th>\nC<\/td>\nE<\/td>\nG<\/td>\nA<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\n1<\/td>\n3<\/td>\n5<\/td>\n6<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

 <\/p>\n

They can be written as C6, Cmaj6, or CM6, depending on the style of leadsheet you\u2019re playing.<\/p>\n

One thing to notice when writing and reading these chords, is that they\u2019re not called or written as maj13th chords.<\/p>\n

Though the 6th<\/sup> and 13th<\/sup> are the same interval, just one octave apart, the term 13th<\/sup> is used for dominant chords<\/a>, and 6 is used for major family chords to help differentiate them on a leadsheet.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s an example of a C6 chord from both an interval and note perspective to check out on the fretboard, and to play through to hear how C6 chords sound on the guitar.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"C6<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Minor 7 and 6 Chord Relationships<\/h2>\n

As you become more familiar with 6 chords, you\u2019ll realize that they share the same notes as the relative minor chord in the key you\u2019re playing in.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s an example of this relationship between and Am7 and C6 chord. Notice that Am7 and C6 share the same notes:<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n\n\n\n\n
Am7<\/th>\nA<\/td>\nC<\/td>\nE<\/td>\nG<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
C6<\/td>\nC<\/td>\nE<\/td>\nG<\/td>\nA<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

 <\/p>\n

Here are those two chords on the guitar. Play through each shape to hear that they share the same notes, but have a unique sound, one minor and one major.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"C6<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

This can be helpful when playing 6 chords on guitar, as if you know m7 chord shapes, you can use those same shapes over any 6 chord.<\/p>\n

When doing so, you just play a m7 chord from the 6 of any 6 chord you\u2019re on, Am7 over C6 for example, and they\u2019ll share the same notes.<\/p>\n

C6 Chord Shapes<\/h2>\n

To help you get started with taking 6 chords to the fretboard, here are four common C6 chord shapes on different string sets to practice.<\/p>\n

After you can play any of these shapes for a C6 chord, take them to other keys around the fretboard. As well, practice applying them to any tune you\u2019re working on.<\/p>\n

Refer to the next section of the lesson to find out where to apply 6 chords to your jazz guitar playing.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"C6<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

How to Use 6 Chords in Jazz<\/h2>\n

6 chords are used in place of maj7 chords in jazz.<\/p>\n

Whether you\u2019re comping, playing a chord melody<\/a>, or playing solo jazz guitar, you can replace most maj7 chords with a 6-chord shape.<\/p>\n

Because both chords, 6 and maj7, are found in the major-family of chords, both being built from the major scale, they can be used interchangeably in your playing.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s an example that uses a G6 chord in place of a Gmaj7 chord in the fourth bar of a ii V I in G major.<\/p>\n

Notice the softer sound that the G6 chord produces as compared to Gmaj7.<\/p>\n

Knowing the difference in sound between these two chords will help you know where and when you want to use either in your playing.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Listen & Play Along<\/i>
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\n\"6<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The only place you would really want to avoid using a 6 chord is when you have the major 7th<\/sup> note in the melody line. In that case, a maj7 shape would be more appropriate as it\u2019s more closely related to the melody line.<\/p>\n

Use your ears as a guide when bringing 6 chords into your playing. You can use them in place of maj7 chords, but only when they sound good. So let your ears tell you if it\u2019s a good time to use 6 chords or maj7 chords.<\/p>\n

6 Chord Practice Progressions<\/h2>\n

To help you take 6 chords into your playing, here are three chord progressions<\/a> that use 6 chords in their construction.<\/p>\n

Because you\u2019ve already done a long\u00a02 5 1 chord progression<\/a>, here\u2019s a short\u00a02 5 1\u00a0in the key of C Major that you can work out.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Listen & Play Along<\/i>
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\n\"6<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The next chord progression is the first four bars of a Bb Rhythm Changes<\/a> progression.<\/p>\n

Here, you\u2019ll be using 6 chords over both Bbmaj7 changes in the progression.<\/p>\n

Notice the inversion being used in the 3rd<\/sup> bar (Bb6\/D). If you\u2019re new to inversions, this is a Bb6 chord with the note D (the 3rd) as the bass note. Inversions are a great way to create smooth movement in your basslines, especially in an ascending-descending progression such as this bass line.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Listen & Play Along<\/i>
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\n\"6<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The final 6 chord progression is the first 8 bars to the Girl From Ipanema<\/a>.<\/p>\n

6 chords are very commonly used in Brazilian jazz guitar<\/a>, especially Bossa Nova. 6 chords have a softer quality to them as compared to maj7 chords, which suits the laid-back Bossa style perfectly.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Listen & Play Along<\/i>
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\n\"6<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

One of the first things you\u2019ll notice when playing jazz guitar chords, is that there are a lot of variations for each chord type to get under your fingers. When playing over major family chords, for example, you can play C6, Cmaj7, Cmaj9, C6\/9, etc., and they all have a similar function but sound different […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2622,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"default","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"set","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[16],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2613","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-jazz-guitar-chords"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jazzguitar.be\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2613","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jazzguitar.be\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jazzguitar.be\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jazzguitar.be\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jazzguitar.be\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2613"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.jazzguitar.be\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2613\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jazzguitar.be\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2622"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jazzguitar.be\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2613"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jazzguitar.be\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2613"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jazzguitar.be\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2613"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}