The Capo
The capo is a device which is placed across the neck of the guitar (acting as a moveable nut). It has 2 uses:
- To enable the use of easier chord shapes, without changing the key of a song.
- To change the key of a song, without changing the chord shapes.
Capos come in various shapes and sizes.
E.g.: 1. If a song is in a key which is within your singing range, but involves playing difficult chord shapes (e.g.: in the key of Eb), a capo may be used. The capo allows you to play the song in the same key, yet at the same time use easier chord shapes. Consider a Turnaround in Eb:
If you place the capo on the third fret, the following easier chord shapes can be played without changing the song’s key.
(C chord shape with capo)
(Am chord shape with capo)
(F chord shape with capo)
(G chord shape with capo)
If you have studied bar chords, you will notice that the capo is acting as a bar. To work out which fret the capo must be placed on, simply count the number of semitones between the "capo key" right you have selected to change to (e.g.: C, the second part of the previous example) and the original key (i.e., Eb, the first part of the previous example). Hence C to Eb = 3 semitones, and therefore the capo must be placed on the third fret.
If the song is in a key that already has easy chord shapes but is out of range to sing, you can change the key by placing the capo on a particular fret and still use the easy chord shapes. E.g.: if you start with the previous Turnaround in the key of C but wish to change it to the key of Eb, place the capo at the third fret and play the same C Am F G chord shapes. When you play these chord shapes with the capo at the third fret they become Eb Cm Ab Eb.
