Stop Press - rethinking. I believe I am wrong and it can be done. 
Move the same notes on their different strings, simples. 
Thank you Richard.
Will now explore this on a vertical plane. I see I can go from A to F#m to D going down 1 string and moving one note, using 3rd, 4th and 5th string roots. Lets see where we can go from there.
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Hey,
Is anybody else in the strange situation I am? I have played guitar (not very well) for a while- so Iām now returning to the guitar to learn what I didnāt do in the first place. Thatās why Iām doing the theory course. Anyhow, I have found it fine to learn the positions and grips for the the triads . . . but, when Justin says āhave some fun, find some songs with Triads in themā. does he just mean, find a song with some chords and play the triad versions of them?
I have found over the last couple of months I am not really interested in learning songs . . . itās strange I canāt quite work out why. Iāve learned a few different little picking patterns, various licks etc, but i feel as if I now started learning a song on my own, iād be back to being just an average strummer, even if I was using triads.
Am I overthinking this? Any comments gratefully received. Cheers
Hey Paul,
I suppose it comes down to why youāte playing the guitar. For many its learning songs, for some its composing and singing, for others its doing their own thing, improvising over some backing tracks etc. Often its a combination of all of these things.
Having said that, you have to ask yourself why are you learning, in this instance triads, if not to utilise them in songs, whether it be othersā songs, or your own. Otherwise its just an intellectual exercise.
Triads are absolutely everywhere in songs, and not just the strummy strummy variety. They are also a big part if lead playing as well. Enormousy useful, and versatile little gems.
A couple of songs that come to mind that use triads extensively, and are really fun to play, are Jack and Dianne, and Listen To The Music. Thousands of others. Plus as you said, you can play triads against another guitar part, which can sound pretty awesome.
And I think with triads as with anything, its in the musical application where the real learning, development, and fun happens.
All the best.
Cheers Shane
I wouldnāt stress about it Paul. Iāve never been interested in learning whole songs. Thereās quite a few songs Iāve learned the intro to, but rarely the whole song. I have no ambition to play the guitar around a campfire for my friends, so I donāt see the point in learning a whole song. I like improvising and thatās where Iām focussing my energy.
Focus on what interests you.
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Hi Paul,
Itās up to you to decide how to use triads, whether to play legit songs with them, to use them for comping or to play them randomly and then realize you have something like a song coming together. They are really versatile. You may want to check this out:
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Basically, yes. Triads make for a great 2nd guitar part, adding harmonic layers and textures.
Say what?
My mantra: learn songs, learn songs, learn songs.
Why do you not want to learn and play songs? If your interest in in writing songs then learning songs will make you a better writer. If your interest is in playing lead guitar and improvisation then learning songs will help you better understand harmonic movement, rhythmic groove and melodic feel.
Can I point you to this topic also: Triads & Soloing & Targeting Chord Tones Part 1 - getting started
Thanks Richard, and all who have replied.
I hear yāall. I guess Iām in a bit of a confused state, becuase whenever I pick up my guitar I want to work on what Iām learning, I guess the trick is make the songs I learn relevant to what Iām actually working on in the course.
I went to see a great Zydeco band yesterday and from my 2 row seat could really see how the guitarist was using triads, not just for chords but for his mini lead licks.
Iāll just have to try to stop learning everything at once I guess. cheers
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Thanks Shane, I appreciate your input. As you may see from my answer to @Richard_close2u Richard_close2u below, I am starting to get my head around it.
I seem to be working on this theory course as Iām simultaneously learning some fingerstyle tunes and trying to improve my Travis picking, as well as going through extensive ālearn the entire fretboardā exercises. So maybe Iām trying to do too much. I will re focus. Meanwhile, thanks so much for your advice, much appreciated.
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Thanks @jacksprat good to hear. As Iām not really a singer, I would rather learn tunes that mean something without words, so Iām doing a lot of fingerstyle stuff as well as learning various solos and licks. I do see the relevance of triads, and therefore spend a lot of time with random note generators finding the various triads. Hell, maybe I should learn to sing. Thanks again mate.
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I reckon we all should. But that would open up another can of worms!
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The 3 major triad grips for strings one, two and three are (logically enough) labeled 1, 2 and 3. But that logic doesnāt work on the other 3-string sets. Is there another correlation between the root notes and the grips for these other string groups? (Or I should just not over-think and just learn them?)
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The labels are completely irrelevant. You just need to know which is the root note for each shape on each string set.
Oh, and I found some of the shapes nearly impossible to play, so I donāt play them. There are SO many options that learning them all doesnāt seem necessary to me. In fact, there is one guitar training method which advocates learning only three triad shapes- those with the root on the middle string. I think thatās the direction Iām heading.
Dana ā¦
The triads are all fragments of CAGED chords (think barre chords). More specifically, they are fragments of E-shape, A-shape and D-shape or C-shape CAGED chords.
Look at these triads on the G, B & E strings.
They derive from D-shape, E-shape and A-shape respectively.
Look at these triads on D, G & B strings.
They derive from A-shape, E-shape and C-shape respectively.
Numbering the triad shapes might be helpful but does not add to understanding. Plus, there is no āfirstā triad as they simply follow along from one another all the way along the fretboard and the first available triad shape is wholly determined by the string sets and the key.
Cheers
Richard
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