Six Strings
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Course

Beginner · step 4 · Not started

The capo

A capo is a clamp that shortens all the strings at once. With one, your open chords are all you need to play in any key. Goal: know where to put it and which chord you’re hearing.

Time
15 minutes
Before you start
Playing your first full song
You’ll be able to
Use a capo

What it’s for

A capo works like a nut you can move: it presses down all six strings at the same fret, and they ring from there. Everything you play behind it sounds higher, by one half step per fret.

It’s useful for two reasons:

  • fitting a song to your voice: if a song is too low for you, move the capo up a fret or two;
  • keeping easy chords in a hard key: a song in A♭ major can be played with G shapes, capo at the 1st fret.

Putting it on right

  1. Right behind the fret wire, like a finger: not in the middle of the fret.
  2. Nice and straight, parallel to the fret wire, so every string is pressed down the same.
  3. Just tight enough: too loose and strings buzz; too tight and they go out of tune. Retune if you need to, with the capo on.
1234EADGBeab

A capo at the 2nd fret

  1. The capo clamps all six strings just behind the 2nd fret, like a flat index finger.
  2. The frets below the capo are out of play: the 2nd fret is now your “fret 0.”

Drawn like tab: high E at the top, low E at the bottom.

Which chord are you hearing?

With a capo, we talk about shapes: you play the G shape, but you hear a different chord. Each fret adds a half step. With the capo at the 2nd fret, the G shape sounds like A, and the C shape sounds like D.

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D shape, capo at the 2nd fret: you hear E

  1. You play the usual D shape, just two frets higher, counting from the capo.
  2. The “open” D string actually sounds the 2nd fret: E.

Drawn like tab: high E at the top, low E at the bottom.

Shape playedCapo 1Capo 2Capo 3Capo 4Capo 5Capo 7
C major (C)D♭DE♭EFG
G major (G)A♭AB♭BCD
D major (D)E♭EFF♯GA
A major (A)B♭BCD♭DE
E major (E)FF♯GA♭AB
A minor (Am)B♭mBmCmC♯mDmEm
E minor (Em)FmF♯mGmG♯mAmBm

Chord charts written for capo usually show the shapes to play, with a note like “capo 2.”

Exercise: same progression, three keys

Play G, C, D without a capo. Then put the capo on the 2nd fret and play the same shapes: you hear A, D, E. The exercise below makes the shapes sound as if the capo were on the 2nd fret.

G
G

Then try the capo at the 4th fret: the same progression sounds like B, E, F♯.

You’ve got it when…