This week's Guitar Chord Of The Week is a 7sharp9 shape.
At its heart is a simple dominant 7th chord, but with the added sharp 9 it sounds instantly 'hip'. It's a very jazzy-sounding chord, and one you can use to give standard chord progressions a jazz sound.
Let's learn more about this cool chord...
How To Play The 7sharp9 Chord
Yikes! Is the barre on the top strings actually being played with the little finger?
Yes, it is — and it's actually not too hard to play!
As well as this scary-looking barre, the other likely problem area with this chord is the 4th string; or rather, how to dampen it so that it doesn't sound.
To do this, simply lean your 3rd (ring) finger over the 4th string. Your 3rd finger is playing the note on the 5th string, so just angle it slightly over so that it is touching the 4th string too.
Don't press so hard that you're fingering a note on the 4th string: just rest your finger on the string to prevent it from ringing.
Now play the barre. It's just a case of strengthening your fingers so that they are able to hold down both notes at the same time. Chords like this are much easier to play on an electric guitar with a low action rather than on an acoustic.
7sharp9 Example Chord Progression
Once you've got the hang of playing this 7sharp9 shape, try playing it in this cool jazz progression.
Keep the tempo slow, and make sure that all of the notes in every chord are ringing out clearly.
Don't give up if you can't get it straight away. These are advanced chords, and may take some time to master.
Stick with it, then try making up your own Joe Pass style progressions!
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