26.1 · The Neck

Six strings

A guitar has six strings. Played open, low to high, they sound E A D G B E: the lowest and highest are both E, two octaves apart. Every chord and scale on the instrument starts from these six notes.

The six open strings

Low E at the bottom of the neck, high E at the top. Tap a string's dot, or play them in order.

EBGDAE357912EBGDAE

Out of tune? The tuner listens while you turn the peg.

Four gaps the same, one smaller

Count semitones between neighboring strings: 5, 5, 5, 4, 5. Only the G to B gap is smaller, and it bends every shape that crosses it.

E A5 semitones
A D5 semitones
D G5 semitones
G B4 semitones: the odd gap
B E5 semitones

Quiz

1 / 3

The open strings, low to high?

Score 100% on every quiz and game to complete this lesson.Every note, everywhere →