Chord Req: D# Help Request

Subject: Chord Req: D# Help Request
From: GUEST,Penny
Date: 18 Aug 11 - 03:50 PM

I'm trying to chord through a song and up comes a D#. I can't find it in my chord guide. Thanks for helping.

Subject: RE: Chord Req: D# Help Request
From: Richard Bridge
Date: 18 Aug 11 - 03:59 PM

It's Eb. IE play a barre at teh 3rd fret and then a C shape over that. Or play a barre at the 6th fret and an A over that. Or an E barred at the 11th. Or, vastly preferably, transpose or capo.

Subject: RE: Chord Req: D# Help Request
From: GUEST,Johnmc
Date: 18 Aug 11 - 04:05 PM

You'll be inundated with advice, but here's my tuppenceworth:

D sharp maj and E flat maj are the same, just called either according to the key.


So you can: move a D maj up one fret or an E maj down a fret.

However, you can only play fretted strings as you move the basic shape ( no strings left open).

If you can play a D hape but add pinkie to string4 at fret above finger 3 and omit strings 5 and six, that is easiest.

Subject: RE: Chord Req: D# Help Request
From: GUEST
Date: 18 Aug 11 - 04:09 PM

Good grief. Easier to eliminate the song--no, I'll practice it. I've never played any barre chords. Thanks for quick response.

Subject: RE: Chord Req: D# Help Request
From: Mooh
Date: 18 Aug 11 - 04:21 PM

Low to high: 365343. Or any combination of those notes like xxx343, xx5343, etc.

Low to high: 668886. Or any combination of those notes like x6888x, xx8886, etc.

Low to high: 11/13/13/12/11/11 (slashes added for clarity with double digit fret numbers). Or any combination of those notes like x/x/13/12/11/11, x/13/13/12/11/x, etc.

The only open string that will help you is the open third string (G), so you may add that to your fingerings if it makes it easier, eg, x6504x, x6808x, x/13/13/0/11/11, etc.

Peace, Mooh.

Subject: RE: Chord Req: D# Help Request
From: RobbieWilson
Date: 18 Aug 11 - 04:42 PM

What other chords does the song use? This might make it easier to consider richards suggestion of using a capo.

Subject: RE: Chord Req: D# Help Request
From: Richard Bridge
Date: 18 Aug 11 - 05:02 PM

I like that last suggestion by Mooh - you might even be able to get thumb over for 11 on teh bottom E string if you have a cutaway guitar.

Subject: RE: Chord Req: D# Help Request
From: Smokey.
Date: 18 Aug 11 - 05:14 PM

66504X

or

X65046

can be useful, depending on context.

Subject: RE: Chord Req: D# Help Request
From: Stanron
Date: 18 Aug 11 - 05:45 PM

X65046 is very good indeed. It's one of the ways I play C moved up 3 frets.

Subject: RE: Chord Req: D# Help Request
From: GUEST,leeneia
Date: 18 Aug 11 - 05:50 PM

Um, is the D# a note in the melody? Because usually when I see a D# in a song, the chord that goes with it is a B.

There's a cheap and easy way to cope with a B chord, because you usually don't play a B chord for very long. Go to the 4th fret, and put fingers on the 3rd, 4th and 5th strings away from your chin. Pluck a little pattern on those three strings and then move on when the B chord is over.   

No doubt there are nice, rich barre chords for B, but I myself have never mastered barre chords.

Is your song in the key of E? Four sharps? B chords are common in E.   D# can also often be found in songs in Em (one sharp) to add a sexy touch. Here at the Mudcat we were just fooling with a song called 'Roslin Castle" which has that.

Subject: RE: Chord Req: D# Help Request
From: Roger in Baltimore
Date: 18 Aug 11 - 05:56 PM

Penny,

I am surprised no one has suggested the easiest way. As you approach the D#, grab your capo, place it on the first fret and then play a D chord. Remove the capo before the next chord is due. So simple!

Roger in Baltimore

Subject: RE: Chord Req: D# Help Request
From: Amos
Date: 18 Aug 11 - 06:29 PM

IF you don't mind an added odd note, do a full C7th formation on the fifth fret, which is an E chord, and slide it down one fret; play only the fingered strings, though.

Subject: RE: Chord Req: D# Help Request
From: GUEST,crazy little woman
Date: 18 Aug 11 - 11:29 PM

Penny, is the D# in the chords or in the melody?

Subject: RE: Chord Req: D# Help Request
From: DonMeixner
Date: 18 Aug 11 - 11:38 PM

http://sniff.numachi.com/~rickheit/pm/chord/chord

Go there and follow the instructions. This should give you several choices

D

Subject: RE: Chord Req: D# Help Request
From: GUEST,Penny
Date: 19 Aug 11 - 12:04 PM

Thanks for so many suggestions. Most of them don't make sense to me and I now realize how much I have to learn on my guitar.

The song I am trying to learn for my grandson is Three Little Fishies. The chords are A, D E7 (2X); A, D, D#; E7, A.

Thanks again and I am studying all your suggestions.

Penny

Subject: RE: Chord Req: D# Help Request
From: Crowhugger
Date: 19 Aug 11 - 12:29 PM

In that context I would either slide D up one fret and play only the 3 fingered strings then go to the basic E7, or use Amos' version ("C7" formation on the 4th fret=D#) then slide the formation back up to the 5th fret to make the E7. It's just a pass-by chord so you won't need every note to sound perfectly.

Subject: RE: Chord Req: D# Help Request
From: Crowhugger
Date: 19 Aug 11 - 12:42 PM

p.s. Along with Amos' solution I would use a "C" formation on the 3rd fret to play a pleasant and funky version of D, with or without the 7th depending how bluesy I felt at that moment, before moving on to the D# etc..
I enjoy that chord progression, it works very well whether strummed or plucked and the only new thing to learn is hand placement at higher frets than usual.

Subject: RE: Chord Req: D# Help Request
From: GUEST,leeneia
Date: 19 Aug 11 - 01:36 PM

Is it this song?

3

If so, I can see (I mean hear) how it would have some strange chords in it. It's very jazzy.

If you want to honor that D# chord, you could just play the note (not the chord) G, because the notes in a D# chord are D#-G-A#. If you pluck the lowest note of the typical G chord a couple times, it will get you past that point.

My own feeling is that the song has too many incidentals in it for a children's song. I believe it was written that way to impress adults, not to please children. If I were doing it, I'd get rid of that funky note. Why not try it both ways and see what works best for your grandson?

Subject: RE: Chord Req: D# Help Request
From: GUEST,crazy little woman
Date: 19 Aug 11 - 02:40 PM

There's another way to do it. First,play a D chord. Then, slide all your fingers up one fret. Now you are playing a D# chord but only on the strings you are fretting. But who cares? It's only for a little while.

Subject: RE: Chord Req: D# Help Request
From: GUEST,Penny
Date: 19 Aug 11 - 04:07 PM

That was my first thought--to slide the D up, but it sounds weird.

Yes, it's the song Leeneia referred me to. Boop, boop, dittem, dittem, whattem Chu!

Subject: RE: Chord Req: D# Help Request
From: Will Fly
Date: 19 Aug 11 - 04:14 PM

Simple way - play a D#7 on the inside 4 strings as follows:

x6564x

Subject: RE: Chord Req: D# Help Request
From: Stanron
Date: 19 Aug 11 - 06:17 PM

"X65046 is very good indeed. It's one of the ways I play C moved up 3 frets."

The numbers above tell you which frets to play on which strings.
The X refers to the low E string and tells you not to play it.
The 6 tells you to play the 6th fret of the A string.
The 5 tells you to play the 5th fret on the D string.
You play the G string open and from this you should be able to work out the rest yourself.

However now you've said the song the suggestion that you move the three fretted notes of the D chord up one place is your best bet.

Using the above method that would be
XXX343

cheers.

Subject: RE: Chord Req: D# Help Request
From: GUEST,Penny
Date: 19 Aug 11 - 06:38 PM

Thanks, Stanron, for the explanation of the "number" system. I have a lot more to learn, for sure.

Subject: RE: Chord Req: D# Help Request
From: Crowhugger
Date: 19 Aug 11 - 06:58 PM

In the version at that link (thank you leeneia) they didn't even use D#.** So that's a very good option. Later, once you have the song learned and smooth, it could be fun to to noodle around and see if you want to insert one or more strings from a D# at that spot.

** if you play along with the youtube version, it's a C# because that recording is a whole tone lower than Penny is doing. Which C#BTW calls for the same C or C7 chord formation to slide from home fret 2nd to 3rd.