Capo is one of the advanced guitar accessories. As a beginner, knowing what a capo is and how it is used is more than sufficient. But as you move to higher levels and advanced lessons, capo might just be the most important accessory that you would need. Capos are generally used to increase the default tone of the guitar so that the guitarist might not have to endure the struggle with the barre chords. But the best use of capos is to produce melodious and harmonizing sounds that are incredibly hard to play in the default standard E tuning without a capo. Once you know to use a capo, you can play the same chords in different scales (keys).
Electric Trigger® Capos
Capo- What It Is
Capo is actually a device which can be clamped around the neck of the guitar. It shortens the length of the strings all at once and thus the strings play at higher pitch as compared to the original open sound. Capo can be just a simple clamp device to be fixed around the neck or it can be a conventional glass rod and lace based device to be tied around the neck.
Need for Capo
Capo can be used for various purposes, some of the most important being-
- Changing the key or scale of the song
The singer might find it difficult to sing in the given scale which is why there is a need to turn down the key of the song. You can’t go on finding chords for that everytime nor can you change the tuning so fast. Capo to the rescue, just clamp it on the fret board and you’re ready to begin with!
- Giving the Barre chords a miss
Even though I strongly advise against this, the fact can’t be neglected that the use of capo can eliminate the use of many barre chords which the beginners find extremely high to play. However, you need to consult a chord chart every time
- Produce beautiful sounds like never before
Great guitarists and the most sensational of bands have used capos to enhance the feel of their song by generating extremely beautiful sounds and chord deviations. Needless to say, if used right, capo can be the pivotal winning point of your future composition.
Using a capo is fairly easy. If you have a clamp capo, just clamp it on the neck of the guitar on to the fret you would like to make the new base key. Gently release the clamp and fasten the nuts (if provided). One thing about using capo on acoustic guitar- this doesn’t do any good in making it any close to an electric. However, it does brighten up the tone of the guitar to a great extent. If you have the glass rod and lace based capo, just put the glass rod over the fret you would like as the new key and fasten the lace around the neck of the guitar. Lighter than the clamp one, it allows more room for your fingers to work their magic on the newly made keys.
Capo as it is commonly misunderstood, is not a beginner’s accessory. It might look cool and trendy, very technical in experience but trust me when i tell you this- a capo makes playing the guitar hard. More melodious, much better sounding but really hard to comply with. As you go ahead learning and reach an advanced level, you would yourself learn a lot on how to use a capo and the different things that can be made possible by using a capo.
