The open position on the guitar includes all the notes so far studied (see diagram). You will need to be familiar with all of them, as they will be used in future examples. Starting from the bass note E, play up to the top G and back down again, naming each note aloud as you play it. Keep a slow, steady beat.
By playing through the notes you will notice that B to C and E to F are only one fret apart (called a semitone), whereas all other notes are two frets apart (called a tone). The distance between notes of the musical alphabet can be set out as such:
It is essential for you to remember this pattern of notes.