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Lesson 06

Lesson 6: Notes on the A String

The A string is the second big highway for finding chord roots.

Once you know the A string, many chord shapes become easier to name and move. It is especially useful for barre chords and root-note hunting.

String order: E B G D A E
Open strings shown in gold

Focus notes

ABCDE

Open-string notes are highlighted differently from fretted notes, and this lesson highlights its key notes in green.

Main ideas

  • Open = A.
  • Fret 2 = B, fret 3 = C, fret 5 = D.
  • Fret 7 = E, fret 8 = F, fret 10 = G.
  • Fret 12 = A again.
  • The A and low E strings cover a lot of practical territory together.

Visual fretboard

open string note
regular fretted note
focus/octave note

Examples

Landmarks: 3rd fret = C, 5th = D, 7th = E.
Root use: If a chord root is on A-string fret 3, the root is C.

Quick self-test

Q1. What note is at the 3rd fret of A?
C.
Q2. What note is at the 7th fret of A?
E.