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r/Guitar_Theory

Knowing triads is not the same as being able to use them
▲ 7 r/Guitar_Theory+2 crossposts

Knowing triads is not the same as being able to use them

I understood triads on paper before I could actually use them.

Root, third, fifth. Different inversions. Different string sets. Fine.

But when you’re playing, the problem is not “do I understand this?” The problem is “can my hand find it before the next chord?”

That’s what Guitar triads is built around.

Pick a chord and string set, hear it, see it on the fretboard, and drill the inversions up and down the neck in time. Or choose a key and practice the chords/progressions inside that key.

The point is to make triads usable, not just recognizable in a diagram.

No ads. No account needed.

iPhone:

Guitar Triads App

Would love feedback from intermediate players who are trying to make triads show up in their actual playing.

u/wizardmiaah — 4 days ago
▲ 11 r/Guitar_Theory

Guitar Anatomy for Piano Players #1 - Why the Fretboard Feels Like a Maze

I’ve played guitar for over 30 years, mostly classical, and recently I picked up piano (i know, I know, this is a guitar forum and this post is about guitar, honestly).

One of the first things that hit me was how logical the piano feels visually. Every note has one clear home. Pitch moves left to right. Intervals are right there in front of you. Even as a beginner reading very simple piano music, I found myself thinking, “Oh, this makes sense. The instrument is basically showing me the music.”

Guitar is not like that.

Guitar is not a piano turned sideways. It is more like a pitch maze with strings.

On piano, if you want a specific note, there is one key for it. On guitar, the same note can often be played in several different places. For example, the same pitch might exist on different strings, in different positions, with different fingerings, different tones, and very different consequences for what comes next.

That is one of the first big shocks for piano players learning guitar: you are not only asking, “What note is this?” You are also asking:

“Where should I play it?”, and that question matters more than it first seems.

The same phrase can feel easy, awkward, beautiful, muddy, impossible, or suddenly genius depending on where you choose to play it on the neck. A note on an open string does not feel or sound the same as the same note fretted higher up. A melody played in first position can have a completely different color and fingering logic from the same melody played further up the fretboard.

This is why guitar sight-reading can feel weirdly difficult compared with piano. It is not only note recognition. It is route planning.

You are reading the music, choosing a position, predicting where the phrase is going, deciding whether you need open strings, avoiding finger traps, and trying not to put yourself into a corner two beats later.

Piano gives you a map.

Guitar gives you multiple maps, then asks you to choose one while the music is already moving, or more like "I'm easy, you can play this in a variety of ways, but be careful, most will lead you to dead ends, and only one can carry you safely to the next bar".

That does not make guitar better or worse than piano. Piano has its own monsters: hand independence, pedaling, voicing, huge range, and the terrifying ability to expose every bad decision in high definition.

But for piano players starting guitar, I think this is the first mental shift:

On piano, pitch is mostly linear.

On guitar, pitch is positional.

The sooner you understand that, the less personal the confusion feels. You are not stupid. The fretboard is just pretending to be simple.

I’m thinking of making this a small series: “Guitar Anatomy for Piano Players” — things that may help pianists understand what they are getting into when they start guitar.

For pianists who started guitar: what confused you most at first? The fretboard layout, chord shapes, right-hand technique, reading, or the fact that the same note keeps turning up in suspiciously many places?

reddit.com
u/Dependent_Hippo_8742 — 7 days ago
▲ 19 r/Guitar_Theory

Am I the only one who feels completely lost trying to learn guitar scales?

**Edit:** Wow… I genuinely didn’t expect so many thoughtful replies. I’ve been reading every single one, and you’ve all given me a lot to think about. Thank you for the recommendations, the encouragement, and for sharing your own experiences. It’s reassuring to know I’m not the only one who’s felt this way, and I’m feeling much more optimistic about tackling this again.

——

I’ve been playing guitar for a while, but every time I decide to finally learn scales properly, I end up feeling more confused than when I started.
The biggest problem is that almost every video, course, or article seems to assume I already know something that I don’t. Someone will say, *“Just move this interval,”* or *“This is just the third mode,”* or *“You already know the major scale, so…”*… except I don’t.
It feels like there’s a missing chapter somewhere that everyone else has read.
I don’t even know where I’m going wrong. Am I trying to learn scales too early? Am I actually supposed to learn a lot more music theory first? Or am I overcomplicating something that’s actually much simpler than I think?
Sometimes I wonder if I’m almost *mythologizing* scales, like they’re this huge mysterious subject when maybe they aren’t. But then I try to study them, and five minutes later I’m drowning in diagrams, modes, intervals, CAGED, pentatonics, three-notes-per-string patterns… and I’m completely overwhelmed.
It’s honestly discouraging, and a little lonely. It feels like everyone else “gets it” while I’m still trying to figure out what the first step is.
So I have two questions:
Is there an online course (free or paid) that teaches scales from absolute zero, without assuming any prior music theory?
Has anyone else gone through this stage, or is it just me?
I’d really appreciate hearing from people who struggled with this and eventually had that *“everything finally clicked”* moment.

reddit.com
u/gogolem — 8 days ago
▲ 1 r/Guitar_Theory

how to create guitar tabs and generate drums ?

so i come up with guitar riffs pretty often but i don’t know quite how to write them down, i wanna use an app to write the tabs down so i can go back later and listen to them or re learn how to play them, i read somewhere about an app or something that you can do that on and also generate drums for the track too, any tips ?

reddit.com
u/AcanthisittaAlert485 — 5 days ago
▲ 0 r/Guitar_Theory+1 crossposts

ChordIt, a free guitar chord library, identifier and organizer.

After 2 months, I released ChordIt – a guitar chord library with an interactive chord identifier and custom setlists.

Hi everyone!

I'm a solo developer, and over the past few weeks I've been building ChordIt, a mobile app for guitarists who need a fast way to find, identify, and organize guitar chords.

The idea came from a simple frustration: whenever I saw someone playing a chord in a video or during a rehearsal, I often knew the shape but not its name. I know there are already plenty of great apps, tools, and websites for guitar chords, but many of the ones I tried either locked advanced features behind subscriptions or were websites that weren't particularly convenient to use on a phone. I wanted something lightweight, mobile-first, and completely offline that I could open in seconds whenever I needed it.

So I built ChordIt.

Some of its features include:

  1. A comprehensive guitar chord library with multiple and fingerings.
  2. An interactive fretboard where you tap the notes of a chord shape to identify matching chords,
  3. Fast search by root note or chord type.
  4. Custom setlists to organize chords for practice, songwriting, or live performances.
  5. Works completely offline with no account required.

Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.vordev.chordit

App Store: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/chordit-finder-identifier/id6779724776

Thanks for taking a look and if you download it I hope you like it!

u/InsuranceWestern8824 — 8 days ago
▲ 6 r/Guitar_Theory+10 crossposts

5thsFlow - An Interactive Circle of Fifths

Here is an interactive Circle of Fifths that lets you tap any key and hear its chords, explore modes, build and save chord progressions, and identify a key by humming or playing into your mic. No ads, no account. Hope this helps someone else!

apps.apple.com
u/vaporguitar — 9 days ago
▲ 7 r/Guitar_Theory

Live song to scales - hit those target notes

Before reddit became a haven for "I built an app that actually helps you learn guitar" posts, I shared a project I was working on and got great feedback on a site that has been shaped by this community. I'm not shooting for the moon, but about 25 people use the tools per day and stay on for an average of 5 minutes, I'm happy with that. Anyway, what I want you to play with is called JamSense, which is my favorite and most used feature. A quick video of it in action: JamSense Songs to Scales. I have 21 backing tracks loaded up to choose from. Pick a track and then watch the fretboard. You'll see what key you're in, target notes, and passing notes. You can choose to have the fretboard change with each chord, or choose a single scale (it'll still highlight the target notes for you). Under the View drop down, change to Arpeggios to see all the triad shapes. I have a blast playing along to these tracks and will add more in the future. I've been playing guitar for more than 30 years, not an expert but always looking to have fun with it. The site can be found at https://fretsense.app/app

u/Mkaz527 — 9 days ago
▲ 74 r/Guitar_Theory+2 crossposts

Berklee alum and teacher here! I'm doing a free 8-week music theory for guitarists Zoom class starting up next week and I'd love to fill my classroom! Hit me up if you'd like a free live class pass! Let's chat. -Josh

Hey guitarists,

Josh Siegel here. I'm a session guitarist and Berklee alum. I also used to front the band Bailiff. I teach music theory and improvisation for guitarists through a deep dive on a song of the week. Showing how I use the music theory to reinterpret and arrange my favorite songs, in hopes that you can apply the same ways of exploring songs to your own personal favorites.

I call it Broadcast Guitar and we are a group of serious guitar students. I have some open seats too! My live class is 2x a week and we use the final class of each month to review member self-tapes of something you're working on and get feedback. It's a good way to stay motivated during your solo practice times and add some structure to the month.

I've also been fortunate to have special guests drop in to chat about how they write, rehearse, and practice. We've had band members of Beck, Iggy Pop, Phoebe Bridgers, Harvey Danger, Richard Thompson, Slash, Feist, and more stop by.

Broadcast Guitar is fairly new so I'm just happy to have a dedicated group of like-minded guitarists to work with and would be happy to chat more with you about trying a free round of 8-weeks of live classes to see if it boosts your playing!

Youtube examples: https://www.youtube.com/@broadcastguitar

My website: https://www.patreon.com/broadcastguitar/collections

Don't hesitate to shoot me an email at: josh@broadcastguitar.com

I do a 5-min intro Zoom with all new members to chat about where you're at on the guitar and your goals before jumping into the live program!

Thanks!

Josh

u/JoshSiegelGuitar — 13 days ago
▲ 1 r/Guitar_Theory+3 crossposts

Guitar app for arps, scales, chords and more… Overlay multiple arps and see shared notes

Hey all,

I know, I know… there’s a lot of sites and apps these days, but I decided to make my own because of one feature in particular that I always wanted but never found in an app (the ability to overlay multiple arpeggios at once and see shared notes and highlight target notes - my app calls this “multi arp”). This app is targeted towards the intermediate guitarist that wants a nice resource for scales, arp, chords and be able to quiz and play over backing tracks. I’m a software engineer by trade these days, but before that I was an aspiring jazz guitarists and always wished there was an easy way to pick multiple arpeggios and overlay them like this.
I’d love some feedback for whoever has time. My goal was to really keep the app simple and not overly noisy. There’s web, iOS and android coming soon once google approves it.

Anyways, the app is called KnowYourNeck

https://apps.apple.com/us/app/knowyourneck/id6780935661

https://www.knowyourneck.app

(the website does have responsive design, but really if you’re trying to use this on mobile the mobile app is going to be way better)

u/admrhds — 9 days ago
▲ 4 r/Guitar_Theory+4 crossposts

After building this app on Android, I finally released it for iPhone.

A while ago, I started building a guitar tuner because I wanted something that was fast, accurate, and easy to use.

After plenty of late nights, debugging microphone input, fine-tuning pitch detection, and learning the iOS ecosystem, it's finally available on the App Store.

It includes:

• Guitar Tuner (Standard & Custom Tunings)
• Chromatic Mode
• Chord Library
• Ear Training
• Chord Quiz

My goal was to keep the experience clean and distraction-free while providing accurate tuning and a few tools to help guitarists learn along the way.

Since this is my first iPhone release, I'd genuinely love to hear what fellow iPhone users think. Whether it's about the UI, tuning accuracy, performance, or features you'd like to see, I'd really appreciate your feedback.

Thanks for taking a look!

App - Guitar Tuner

u/HYDRUSH — 9 days ago
▲ 34 r/Guitar_Theory+3 crossposts

Major, Harmonic Minor, Melodic Minor scales and all their modes and chords to play them over!

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1O5a2S6Vek20bWZeOrFXCyNWfwAn0plVvN6MrAST5ld0/edit?usp=sharing

Hi everyone, my name is Robert Moon, and I have spent the last 5 years studying scales. The Google Doc above lists all the Major, Harmonic Minor, and Melodic Minor scales and all their modes and matches them with common chords to play over. I am very proud of this, and if you ever just wanted to learn about intervals this really helped me to get from crawling to running on the guitar! Thank you and I hope you enjoy this document!

u/Jaded_Concentrate592 — 12 days ago
▲ 2 r/Guitar_Theory

IV bIII I bVII progression, is it a thing ?

so I was noodling around on the guitar when i came across a progression smt like D C A G, it sounds really upbeat and joyful and I thought maybe I should write something with it, I sat for awhile tried to figure out the theory behind it and I think its IV bIII I bVII in A major, i really like voice leading of the 3rd though. Then I gg up to find anything similar but I cant find any song or theory concept like it. Please help, Thank you !

reddit.com
u/TheRandomOnelol — 13 days ago