Chord a Day, February 24th - A+

A+ is a Core Chord

A core chord is a basic chord that other chords can be derived from - creating new chords from your known chords. Your ever expanding set of core chords creates a solid foundation for playing music on ukulele or any instrument capable of playing chords. There are just far too many chord shapes to memorize all the possibilities. Some chords you can simply create on the fly as needed based on known information and how chords work.

Open Position chords typically do not show the location of the root or letter name of the chord as these chords are the first chords a ukulele player learns and are almost entirely learned by shape and sound – hopefully, the chords' name. Later on, one develops the ability to determine the location of the chord root(s) or letter name within the chord.

Standard Music Notation and TAB

Standard music notation and TAB for C Tuning, Low and High G variations

The same numbering notation of TAB can be used to describe the open strings and frets to be played when using text only notation or verbal communications. Using an open position C as an example, we can describe it as 0003 indicating open strings four, three, and two with fret (3) being fingered on string one. An open position D7 indicated as 2020.

As you can see that are numerous ways to describe a chord, either verbally, Standard Music Notation , TAB , in text, graphically using a Chord Grid , etc.

Chord Spelling

Chord Spelling is simply knowing what the notes, the chord tones of a chord are.

The notes of all chords can be determined from its corresponding major scale based on the root of the chord and numeric formula.

The notes for A+ are:

A C# E#

The chord tones are the 1 3 #5 scale degrees of the parent A Major Scale .

A+, an augmented chord (aug or +) is a neutral chord with all the notes of the chord being an equal distance apart, a major third. Any note of the chord can be the root or letter name of the chord.

If you “REALLY” know the notes of the ukulele fingerboard you only need an open position augmented chord and it's movable form.

Today's chords augmented chords in addition to Aaug could also have been called C#aug, E#aug or Faug. All depends on what the root is.

Recommended Fingering

Alternate Fingering(s)

Here are a few alternate fingerings for today’s A+ chord depending on the context the chord is being used.

Alternate fingering(s) for A+:

Fingering Notation

Fingering notation for a chord using text only, without using a chord grid, is typically done using the finger numbers from left to right, string four to string one (nose to toes). Here is the text notation for January 1st C chord.

A Typical text representation of a chord fingering without using a chord grid.

Note: A Zero (0) fingering notation represents an open string that doesn't require using a finger.