power chords?

Hi,

As far as I know, a "power chord" isn't really a proper chord it's just two of the notes of a full chord. True chords have three or more notes.

I believe that in a power chord the root note is usually used with the 5th note, whereas with full chords it's more, such as 1, 3 and 5.

A regular C chord uses the notes C, E and G, so I guess a "power C" would be just a C and a G. Not sure where the "power" tag came from. :?

Correctomundo - the power chord is neither major nor minor because it only uses the open 5th interval and what makes a chord major or minor is the interval from the root to the 3rd.

From Tab, you'll probably see something like 355XXX or 35XXXX (for the G power chord), and if you're in drop D tuning then it'll be a one-finger-no-brainer - 555XXX for the same chord.

In conventional scores, buskers books, and sometimes in Tab you'll see it written as G5, D5, C5 and so on.

Best,

A :-)

also, do they sound much different from the origional chord and would it be ok to use them to replace the origional chords in a song if it makes it easier to play? thanks again!

Yes - it's a qualified yes - you can use them to replace other chords because they're neither major nor minor, but they will sound off key so go careful.

Best,

A :-)

it depends on what your playing, power chords don't sound as good on acoustic songs, but on electric that's pretty much all green day plays with and bands such as them, so if your not into that type of music there isn't much use in them but you still could learn them.

You'll find power chords on acoustic songs as well. The example that immediately comes to my mind is the acoustic version of "Revolution" on The White Album. And acoustic blues shuffles would use them as well. I think the reason people associate them with electric so often is that the power chord (the root and the 5th) often sounds better distorted on the electric than a full chord with the third.

I think the reason people associate them with electric so often is that the power chord (the root and the 5th) often sounds better distorted on the electric than a full chord with the third.

Yes - and the reason for that is when you stamp on the distortion all those other harmonics and overtones come with it to muddy up the sound, so you don't want to be feeding too much into the input side of the pedal.

Best,

A :-)

I'm a little confused. 350000, to me, suggests an open chord, whereas I'd have thought a power chord would be 35XXXX. Or is it a convention which takes into account that a power chord would be played with only two or three strings?

And does a "chord" specifically require three different notes? So that 0XXX50 (all E's) wouldn't be a chord even though three strings were strummed?

And FINALLY, if I see E5, how do I work out WHICH voicing to use? I see that G5 could be XXX033 or 355XXX, of which the one sounds much higher pitched. If I play E5 G5 with 022XXX and XXX033, it doesn't sound right.

(I guess that could have to do with the fact that most of my playing doesn't sound right yet :D )

Yeah - you're right. I used O's instead of X's. I'll fix the earlier post.

When you see G5 as the chord, then 35XXXX or 355XXX is what it wants - so all on the bottom strings not the top strings. E5 at 022XXX is correct, though.

Best,

A :-)

And does a "chord" specifically require three different notes? So that 0XXX50 (all E's) wouldn't be a chord even though three strings were strummed?

Yes. If you have fewer than three notes, it's technically an interval, not a chord. In your example, you've got all Es - two of them are exactly the same note (which is called a unison), and one more E two octaves below that.

That gives you a perfect 15th interval - two octaves. If you are analyzing harmonies, intervals greater than a tenth, and often all those greater than an octave, get reduced by an octave to make things easier - a two-octave E interval has a practically identical effect as a one-octave E interval in music.

It doesn't matter how often a single note appears. You still need 3 different notes for it to be a chord.