E.g. if you play a Bb-7 with the root on the 6^th string, and want to play a Eb7/b13 after it (Eb is a 4^th higher than Bb) you will probably place the root of this chord on the 5^th (A) string. So you don't have to move your hand to another fret - if you would have placed it on the 6^th string you had to move your hand from the 6^th to the 11^th fret!

Ok sometimes you can't avoid a thing like this.

So, what tones do we need for a chord that has to be "invented"? The root, the 3^rd (minor or major), the 5^th (can be diminished or augmented) the 7^th (minor or major), the 9^th (b9, 9, #9), the 11^th (or #11^th) and the (b)13^th. Sure, if your highest option is a 7^th, you don't need a 9^th or everything higher, if your highest option is a #11^th, you don't need a 13^th and so on. But that are still a lot of notes, probably more than we have strings on our guitar.

But there are simple rules for the notes, we can leave out. I don't know, if they are written down in any textbook, but I do it this way (in the same sequence).

• the 5th (if _not_ diminished or augmented) is included in nearly all chords - both in major and minor chords, so it doesn't contain much information about the feeling of the chords. This is the first choice to be left out.
• the options between the 7^th and the highest options can be left out, too. If I play a XY13^th chord, I leave out the 9^th and the 11^th in many cases
• the root is played very often by the bass. It`s not so important... only minor chords start sounding majorish without the root note.

Never leave out the 3^rd, the 7^th (if it is part of the "original" chord) [and the highest option]. The 3^rd contains the information, whether it is a minor or a major chord, the 7^th is needed for distinguishing between a major7^th or a dominant7^th chord. The higest option should be played, but can be substituted by another option in many cases If you always play a piece in the way, it is written down, that gets boring pretty soon. It’s always good to find different ways to play achord progression, that spices up your playing a lot.

In may cases it is not possible to place the notes of the chords on the strings in the sequence of the piled up 3^rds. It doesn`t matter, though. If a note can`t be played at it`s original position, just transpose it up one octave. It even sounds better!

That means if you replace e.g. the 3rd by a note that is an octave higher it still sounds like the 3^rd. In case you have a string left, just repeat a note one octave higher, that doesn`t change the feeling of the chord.

Now some patterns, that will help you to locate the notes:

This is less complicated than it looks...
You just need to know a few tones on a vertical line through the root. The other notes can be figured out easily by counting up (to the right) or down (to the left) from the note on the certain string.

You'll find e.g. the major 3rd one fret right of the minor 3^rd (it is one semitone higher). The 13^th is a 6^th plus an octave (please refer to the "Intervals" chapter), so you'll place it 2 frets left of the 5^th.

If you know just some basic chords by heart (with the funktion of each not in those chords), it`s pretty simple to derive new chords from those basic chords.

You can extend both pattern a bit to figure out some "extra long finger chords".