Guitar skills: Expand your mind and playing with these ingenious prog chords

By Total Guitar
published

Rush and Opeth-style chords for your vocabulary

(Image credit: Fin Costello / Getty)

Guitar skills (opens in new tab): Stretch fingers and tonal textures with these progressive rock chords...

Three of the chords use open strings to add size and space to the chords. This is a trick often used by players like Alex Lifeson of Rush and John Petrucci of Dream Theater.

The F#add9#11 chord has a bright Lydian mode flavour and instantly brings Steve Vai or Joe Satriani to mind.

The Mikael Åkerfeldt-style F#m add9 is somber, but also very colourful - perfect for an Opeth song.

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(Image credit: Future)

Check out more guitar lessons (opens in new tab)

Total Guitar
Total Guitar

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