Wednesday, July 28, 2010

Guitar 101: CAGED, A Method Or A Label?

By Christy Smith

The Caged method is a really interesting concept. It has been labeled this way to recognize its relationship to the guitar (it's more of just a label than being a method). It also demonstrates the connection and the combination of the five letters (C-A-G-E-D ) used on the guitar. These are the guitar's five open major chords (the C, A, G, E, and D chords).

Now these are all major chords (the only open major chords) that are playable in an open position. Besides that, there are three other minor chords that can be played like the E minor, A minor, and the D minor. But the Caged label has more to do with the shapes and patterns (up and down the neck) that come out of these chords. Aside from that, you can also use other shapes as you progress further up the neck. Each of these letters, C-A-G-E and D, represent a shape of a chord. It also represents a shape of a pattern, or a scale that you can play in different places.

When it comes to the CAGED label, it'll also work to your advantage (especially when it comes to any key in the guitar) if you knew all the shapes and patterns involved with all five chords. To put these all to your memory will work wonders. You'll be able to play just about any key if you really familiarize yourself with all the shapes and patterns used under the CAGED label. Not only will you learn a lot of patterns from the guitar, you can also shift these patterns around without having to worry about what key/s you're actually on.

The CAGED label can be used in a lot of ways, but let's just start with a simple example. Let's use the F key for this one, and then choose a chord for it. You see, the F key can be combined with all five chords, each used in a different approach. You can play and bring together the F key by using any of the five chords mentioned, like a C shape (on the fifth fret), an A shape (on the eight fret), a G shape (on the tenth fret), an E shape (on the first fret), and a D shape (on the third fret). Aside from this example, you can also use the F key in making out other patterns from these combinations (like for guitar leads).

As complicated as this concept may be, and given that this is just a short rundown on the idea, CAGED shouldn't be mistaken for being a method. It's a CAGED label (along with its other minor categories), since it's more of a labeling pattern, and an approach for remembering certain guitar combinations.

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