How do notes on the piano relate to notes on guitar when using a capo?

Question

I'm trying to play a song on guitar with the capo on the second fret with the chords F, Am, G, and E. I don't fluently play piano so I don't know much about it. If I was trying to play those chords on the piano to match the ones played with a capo, what should I do differently? It just doesn't sound right.

Answer 1

When you use the capo, you raise the chords by a half step for each fret. That means that the F chord you're fingering actually is G on a piano..or even the guitar for that matter. If you move each of your chords up two frets, they become:

F → G

Am → Bm

G → A

E → F#



Do you understand what the capo does? It allows you to change key without changing the fingering of the chords. For convenience, we often refer to the capoed chords as "shapes" rather than chords. The F "shape" that you're playing with the capo on the second fret is really no longer an F. The capo converted it to a G. If you moved the capo up one fret, the same F shape would become a G#. I don't know if I made this any clearer or not.....it's always a bit difficult to explain.



Anyway, your piano chords should be G, Bm, A and F#

Answer 2

As Tommy said,each capo fret raises the chords/notes by a half step.

So capo on 2nd fret raises chords by a full step.

What you do is simply converting the chords /notes then.

To do this you should be familiar with all notes theoretically and on the guitar fretboard.

I suppose you already know them,but here a reminder :

C, C#(Db), D, D#(Eb), E, F, F#(Gb), G, G#(Ab), A , A#(Bb),B

They are 12 total.So your first chord is F:we raise it two half steps when putting a capo on 2nd fret so it becomes a G.

Am =B minor

G=A

E=F#(Gb)

Hope I helped.