How to Play a Thirteenth Chord on the Guitar

Thirteenth chords are beautiful airy chords that are generally associated with jazz music. The most basic thirteenth is a dominant seventh chord with the addition of the thirteenth scale degree of a major scale. Thirteenth chords do not need to contain the ninth or eleventh scale degrees. Follow these steps to learning how to build and play a thirteenth chord on the guitar.

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Guitar

1. Bar the eighth fret of the guitar with your forefinger. You form a bar by laying your finger over all 6 of the strings and applying pressure. The lowest note is C. This will be the root of the thirteenth chord.

2. Fret the tenth fret of the A string (fifth string) with your ring finger. This is the note G, the fifth scale degree of C major.

3. Place your middle finger on the ninth fret of the G string (third string). This is the note E, the third scale degree of C major.

4. Fret the tenth fret of the B string (second string) with your pinkie. This is the note A. This is the thirteenth scale degree of C major. This note gives the chord the special quality associated with thirteenth chords.

5. Strum the chord. Play all 6 strings to produce the thirteenth chord.

Tips & Warnings

• This chord is movable. That means you can take this chord shape and play it anywhere on the guitar. With this chord you can now play a thirteenth note beginning on any scale degree!