(Guitar Teacher Guest Post by Ian Frazer)

Trying to memorize where all the different major chords are on the neck can be quite a challenge. Think back to when you first learned all your open chords. There were a lot of em, plus all the minors, sustained and diminished chords. It’s a lot to keep in your head. Anything that can make it easier is worth while learning I figure, and that’s why I’m a fan of the CAGED guitar system.

The CAGED system basically gives you a short cut way to remember the different locations and forms of all the major chords at different locations on the neck.

The name CAGED is based on the chord shapes that are used to form the other major chords on the neck. So think about the shapes you make for a C major, A major, G major, E major and D major chord. Using these same shapes in barre chords reveals an easy to memorize pattern for locating 5 versions of all major chords A through G.

The video below is a quick walk through with an example showing you how you can make an E major chord using not just the E open shape but also on the 2nd fret with a D shape, 4th Fret with a C shape, 7th fret with an A shape and 9th fret with a G shape.

A great exercise after watching this video is for you to go grab your guitar and practice finding the variations of other chords on the neck using the CAGED system.

Eventually you’re going to want to try and memorize the locations and shapes for each of these chords but for now this is a just a great exercise to learn where else on the neck you can find for example an F major chord besides a Barre chord using an E shape at the first fret.

So watch the below video and take some time over the next week to play around with the CAGED system. It’s a fun and fast way to learn major chords in different positions on your guitar.

Here’s the video by Ian (thank you!):

If you’re interested in learning more great techniques like the CAGED system why not try a guitar lessons dvd you can learn from at your own pace.