How To Play Power Chords On A Guitar

Learning how to play power chords on a guitar is one of the easiest ways to look like you're better at the guitar than you actually are. Of course, you should actually practice the guitar, and get better at it, but it is always nice to be able to play songs easily. Not just that, many bands make whole songs based on power chords because they are easy to use, and the players can focus on other things like singing or just rocking out. Learning how to play power chords is definitely a good investment of any guitar player's time, and they're simple. Below you can earn how to play power chords using an A power chord as an example.

1. Place your index finger on the fifth fret of the sixth string. Power chords, for those with a bit of a music theory background, are usually just the root note, the fifth above, and the octave above. That means that really only two notes are being played, so technically power chords are not true chords (true chords require at least three notes). This is called a I-V-I pattern (those are roman numerals, not letters), and is a really simple chord.
2. Place your ring finger on the seventh fret of the fifth string. This is an E. E is the fifth note above the root A, and is also called the dominant. This is the second number in our I-V-I pattern. Though this is technically everything you need to make a power chord, it is typically customary to use your pinky to add one more note to the chord.
3. Place your pinky finger on the seventh fret of the fourth string. This completes the A power chord. You will notice that these three notes are A (the root note that names the power chord), E (the fifth above the root, also called the dominant), and another A an octave above the root. This is the same I-V-I pattern previously mentioned.
4. You can now use these finger positions anywhere. As long as you keep your ring and pinky fingers two frets away from your index finger, you can move the chord anywhere along the fretboard.
5. Placing your index finger on the seventh fret and following the same pattern is a B Power chord. Down to the third fret is a G power chord. You can also do the same thing on different strings. Move the pattern over so that your index finger is on the fifth string, ring finger is on the fourth string, and pinky finger is on the third string, and you've got a completely new power chord to experiment with.

If you play with these power chords, you can play different chord progressions much easier. The sound is a bit less complex, but if you have a band with multiple instruments, or you don't mind the simpler sound, playing power chords is a great way to play or make songs for the guitar.