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How To Play THE GUITAR

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in order—tonic, subdominant and dominant seventh. Before
each chord is written the note on which it is based. The notes
and chords are arranged as they are commonly played on the
guitar when it is being used to accompany a song. The num-
bers beside the notes tell which fingers to use.

In music written for the guitar the chords to be used are
indicated by letters printed above the staff and by chord dia-
grams. The symbol for a dominant seventh chord is the letter
name of the chord (the fifth in the scale) followed by 7.

Figures 37 to 40 show the chords for the keys of G, D, F
and B flat.

To illustrate how the bass notes and chords are used in
accompanying a song, Fig. 41 shows the opening measures
of "Old Black Joe," written in the key of C.

First you play the bass note E, then strum the three C chords.
In the third measure you change to the F chord, then go back
to C.

As you play the accompaniments to different tunes (which
are printed in music specially written for the guitar), you will
soon learn when to use the different chords. You can go a long
way with the simple chords illustrated in this section.