music theory | Guitar World

You don’t need to bury your head in books to decipher the secrets of the fretboard – you can learn the CAGED guitar system in just 10 minutes

By Molly Miller published 5 April 24

If the CAGED system is your roadmap to fretboard freedom, then this lesson is a GPS-guided tour – and it will blow your mind how easy it is

Why diminished phrases can be your secret weapon in a blues chord progression

By Josh Smith published 8 August 23

Josh Smith offers a road map for harmonically interesting blues guitar playing, offering fresh ideas for connecting notes between chords

How to create melodies that connect relative major and minor chords

By Andy Aledort published 28 July 23

Pull solo ideas from both sides of the happy/sad spectrum of tonality

Joe Satriani, a master of the Lydian mode, onstage in London, circa 2012

Learn 5 Lydian chords that can add mood and atmosphere to your playing

By Richard Barrett published 9 February 23

Joe Satriani is a fan. Danny Elfman, too. And by learning these chord shapes, you can drop some Lydian magic into your songwriting for dramatic effect

How to apply consecutive scale tones in your playing with cluster chords

By Richard Barrett published 25 July 22

Five inspirational ideas to take cluster chords out of the realm of fretboard theory and into something you can put into practice

Shake up your progressions with 5 chords that are neither major nor minor

By Richard Barrett published 18 January 22

How using the Hendrix chord and the sus chords favoured by Andy Summers can add intrigue and options for your songwriting

How to play the major scale on guitar

By Total Guitar editors published 21 December 21

Beginner guitar: This scale is the foundation for basically everything, so it's essential learning for all aspiring players

How to go beyond pentatonics in a blues guitar solo

By Richard Barrett published 8 October 21

Thanks to John Mayer, Journeyman-era Eric Clapton is having a moment, and this lesson lets you climb into that '80s vocal blues guitar style

Learn how to target chord tones when soloing over a chord progression

By Andy Timmons published 25 June 21

Andy Timmons teaches you horizontal single-string ideas to make your lead playing melodically compelling

How omitting the 5th in chords can open doors to a much wider musical vocabulary

By Richard Barrett published 11 June 21

A little chord theory can go a long way with new voicings freshening your approach to rhythm guitar

Shake up your leads with these one-string bend techniques

By Andy Aledort published 22 February 21

Mastering precise bends on the B string can offer new ideas for pentatonic solos

Refresh your lead playing with Vinnie Moore's guide to superimposing triads within soloing sequences

By Vinnie Moore published 10 February 21

This lesson will help you cast aside your go-to licks and think deeper about tonality

How to use alternating four- and five-note patterns to add intrigue to your solos

By Vinnie Moore published 22 January 21

Vinnie Moore shares his approach to adding a taste of the unexpected when playing lead guitar

How creating chains of dotted-eighth syncopations can revolutionize your rhythm playing

By Jimmy Brown published 15 January 21

It's time to go against the grain with some tricky rhythmic phrasing

Vinnie Moore shows you how combining 5th intervals with open strings can provide fresh phrasing ideas

By Vinnie Moore published 5 January 21

The UFO guitarist takes a closer look at the E Mixolydian mode and finds new approaches for rhythm and lead playing

Close-up of hands playing electric guitar

How to master arpeggios built from 7th chords

By Andy Aledort published 20 November 20

A little bit of theory goes a long way and can add tension and intrigue to your lead playing

How to craft chord progressions using 10th intervals

By Joel Hoekstra published 6 November 20

Joel Hoekstra walks us through the acoustic section of Whitesnake's After All for a fingerstyle lesson in music theory

How to use the major hexatonic scale of a I-IV progression

By Andy Aledort published 2 October 20

Learn to implement the scale beloved of Dickey Betts, Duane Allman and Eric Clapton into your playing

Give your solos a sinister edge with the diminished scale

By Charlie Griffiths published 8 July 20

Explore the scale beloved of Fredrik Thordendal and Allan Holdsworth with symmetrical fretboard shapes, Dim7 chords and a fresh perspective on major triads

Beginner guitar: how to play minor chords

By Total Guitar editors published 7 July 20

Improve your playing and get to grips with the theory behind minor chords