The Magic 6th Interval
By Gary Heimbauer for Guitar Tricks and 30 Day Singer
One of the most popular and tasty intervals to play on guitar is the 6th! The way it works best is to play a melody note or a chord’s root note on the B string or the high E string, and then play that note’s “third” two strings lower. In this beginner guitar lesson we’ll go over how to utilize the 6th interval on the guitar.
For instance, if you look at this C major chord, I can just play the root note (C) on the first fret of the B string, and the major third of the chord (E) that’s on the 2nd fret of the D string. The distance between these two notes is a minor sixth.
As another example, if we look at this G major chord, I can just play the root note (G) on the third fret of the E string, and the major third of the chord (B) that’s on the 4th fret of the G string. The distance between these two notes is also a minor sixth.
Thus far we’ve only looked at a major third played as a sixth. To play a minor third below from a note on the high E string, or the B string, it ends up being on the same fret! For instance, if we are in the key of C, the note D would need to be harmonized with a minor third, because in the key of C, we have a D minor chord, which has a minor third. The distance now between the lower note and the higher note is a major sixth.
You can learn all of your 6th chords using a guitar chord chart.
Here’s another example. In the key of C, the chord built from A is also minor, so we need to harmonize the A with a minor third below. Again, now it is on the same fret.
While this interval might be slightly advanced if you are still only taking some online guitar lessons, it’s great to know where you can go. In order to really have the freedom to create and improvise with thirds within a key, you need to be able to play the scale of the key across the fretboard in sixths, knowing that the first, fourth and fifth notes of the key need a major third, and the second, third, sixth and seventh notes of the key need a minor third.
Here we can see the entire key of C laid out across the fretboard. In this first graphic, the notes on the high E string and G string are isolated so you can see how you would play them across the fretboard in sixths!
And here is all the notes in the key of C, but with the B string and D string highlighted. Now try to play the sixths through the guitar scale on these two strings!
Regarding technique, you can either use your fingers to only pick the strings being played, or if you want to use a pick and strum through them, you just have to mute the middle string and adjacent strings with the flesh of your fingers on your fretting hand. Using these tips you can utilize the 6th interval in all kinds of tasty ways.
