You might already be able to transcribe melodies, riffs and solos. But for many guitar players, figuring out multiple notes at the same time is much more challenging.

It makes sense. Figuring out a single note is simply easier than hearing and recognising a collection of notes. It can be a bit overwhelming to learn chords by ear, but learning really isn't as 'impossible' as some guitar players feel it is.

Just like figuring out riffs or melodies by ear, learning chords by ear is not some innate ability that you either have or don't have. Recognising chords by ear is a skill you'll learn with practice. All you need to do is stay calm, don’t panic, and go at this one step at a time.

This section will give you a step-by-step guide that shows you exactly what to do. I'll also show you how you can use music theory to make the process of learning chords and harmonies by ear easier. Lastly, I'll list some suggestions for different songs you can learn by ear, grouped by difficulty level.

Why learn chords and harmonies by ear?

When you figure out songs by ear, your relationship to sound changes. You’re not trying to match a bunch of symbols (whether tab or notes) to sound. You’re listening to the sound first, processing it, and figuring out a way to reproduce it. And that skill of reproducing a sound that you hear in your head forms the core of your musicianship.

Figuring out a song by ear ingrains the sound in your ‘musical system’ in a way that’s much deeper than when you’re just copying a tab. You'll deepen your understanding of what’s going on in the music. Having more insight into harmony is the key to writing more compelling songs and playing more meaningful solos. Harmony is the emotional tapestry of music that can make or break a song.

What you need to know

To learn a melody by ear, you don’t need any theoretical knowledge. After all, you really just need to match a pitch you hear to a fret on your guitar neck. Of course, knowing theory can make playing by ear easier at some point, but you definitely don’t need it to get started.

For transcribing chords and chord progressions, this is a bit different. You need to know how to play the chords that you're trying to figure out. So, obviously, the more chords you can play, the better. But to make this guide simple and actionable for everyone, I'll provide a list of songs you can get started with in three 'levels':

Level 1 : You know all the open chords

: You know all the open chords Level 2 : You also know how to play major and minor chords in all keys

: You also know how to play major and minor chords in all keys Level 3 : You also know how to play various seventh chords in all keys

Side note: if you want to be able to play all the songs in level 2 and level 3, check out my course guitar chord bootcamp. You'll cement the 96 most used chords into your brain, from major and minor chords to dominant, major seven, minor seven, diminished and half-diminished chords.

You're probably also wondering: do I need to know music theory to learn chords by ear? If you know hardly any theory but know your chords, you can still get started using the guide to learning harmonies by ear below. However, theory really does make learning chords by ear much easier, because you'll roughly know what to expect. You'll know which chords are 'normal'. I'll show you which theory is helpful, right after this step-by-step approach to learning chords by ear.

Step-by-step approach to learning chord progressions by ear

What you need to know:

Practically no theory

How to play all open chords or more (level 1-3)

1. Tune into the bass The lowest note in music determines how all the other notes above it will sound. Harmony always starts with the bass note. So, the first thing you want to do, is listen closely and tune into the bass line. This may take some practice, because we're used to listening to melodies that are easy to hear. Bonus tip: use an equalizer If you're using a program like iTunes or VLC media player you can try boosting the bass frequencies using the equaliser. This can make it a bit easier to tune into the sound. It really depends on the recording, but generally speaking it should help to boost anywhere from 60 up to 400 hertz. So look around that area until you find a setting that makes the bass easier to hear. Also, keep in mind that earbuds or laptop speakers often don't have the most powerful low end. So trying a different pair of headphones or speakers might also make it easier to tune into the bass. 2. Figure out the bass part Next, figure out what the bass is playing, note for note. It might be a single note that is repeated or it might be a more melodic line. This process is pretty similar to learning riffs and melodies by ear. Most importantly: make sure you've got the bass line in your head and that you can sing or hum it first. Next, figure it out one note at a time, until you've found the first five to ten seconds of the song. 3. Figure out the root note The root note is the 'letter' we use to name a chord. So the root note for a B minor chord is B. Think of it as the foundation of a chord. The next step is to listen to the bass line and figure out which note is the root. The bass line won't usually play the root note all the time, but it will emphasise it. For example, listen to which note the bass plays on 'the 1' (i.e. the start of a new measure). Listen to which note the bass plays the longest. On which note does the bass sound the most 'at rest'? Whenever the harmony seems to change, you'll notice that the bass is emphasising a different note. 4. Check if the chord on the root note is major or minor (or neither) Say you found the first root note is G. Try playing a G major chord and a G minor. Listen to which one sounds correct. Roughly speaking, you can say that major chords sound happy, and minor chords sound sad. In time, you won't have to try both, because you'll hear immediately if a chord is major or minor. But figuring out chords like this is the best way I know to learn to recognise these sounds. If these 'standard' major and minor chords sound wrong, you might’ve run into a chord that’s constructed a bit differently. If you know how chords are constructed, I highly recommend using the detective approach I've laid out below. You can also check if one these chord types sounds better:

a. half diminished chord

b. diminished chord

c. augmented chord

d. sus chord (sus2, sus4, or both)

e. a slash chord (i.e. a chord where the bass isn't playing the root note, but probably the third or fifth) 5. Check if you need to add an extra note to make it into a seventh chord If you found a major or minor chord in step 4 (i.e. not one of the exceptions I mentioned), the sound might still be a bit different. This is most likely because the chord has one or more additional notes that give it a richer sound. The first options to check:

a. dominant chord

b. major seven chord

c. minor seven chord

d. major minor seven chord

Keep repeating these five steps and you’ll be able to figure out the most common chord progressions. You’re basically ‘trying out’ the most common possibilities. Of course, after a while you’ll come to know these sounds better and better, making your ‘guesses’ more and more educated. You'll start to recognise common progressions.

The detective approach

What you need to know:

How chords are constructed

How to play as many chords as possible (see levels)

Think of yourself as a detective. You look for the smallest details that might help solve the case. Every single note you find is clue bringing you closer to the right answer. After finding the root note, listen for another note. Any note that you hear... Whether it’s played by the guitar, piano, violin or in the vocals. They’re all creating the harmony and give you valuable information on which chord is being played. To give an example:

The bass guitar is playing an E. And you hear a violin playing a B, sliding down to a G. This tells you the root note will probably be an E. The violin is first playing a B, i.e. the fifth. Then it slides down to a G, which is the minor third. That tells you that this chord will be some sort of E minor chord. Next, let’s say you then notice the piano alternating between an F# and a D. Those notes are the minor seventh and the ninth. Putting all this knowledge together, tells you that you're hearing an E minor nine chord.

This approach is especially effective when you just can't seem to find a chord that sounds 'right'. That often means you're not dealing with a 'standard' major or minor chord, but one of the exceptions mentioned in step 4 above.

The Architect Approach

What you need to know:

The major scale and natural minor scale

How to play major and minor chords in all keys (level 2)

Preferably also how to play seventh chords in all keys (level 3)

Some chords sound better together than others. There's a logic to it that you can use to 'predict' which chords are most likely to be used. The general rule: chords sound good together when they're constructed out of notes from the same scale. It makes them sound like they belong together. To keep this lesson focused, I won't explain the inner workings of this, but I’ll show you how to use it.

1. Find the key of the song

You can find the key of the song, by looking for the chord where the song sounds 'at rest'. Which chord doesn't sound like it needs to 'go somewhere else' to resolve? The first things to check: what's the first chord and what's the last chord of the song?

2. Write down the scale of the song's key

If the chord you found in step 1 is major, write down the notes in the major scale. If it’s a minor chord, write down the notes of the (natural) minor scale (i.e. aeolian).

3. Build a chord on each note of the scale and write the name down.

There’s a set formula for which chord to construct on every 'scale degree' (i.e. each note of the scale). Here it is:



Using this chart, write down the chord for every note in the scale.

Firstly, this tells you which notes you can 'expect' the bass to play. This list also gives you the chords you're most likely to run into. For example, when you're in the key of C and the bass plays a D, you can guess it will probably be a D minor.

Be sure to play around with these chords a bit and listen to them. Hear how all the chords seem to 'belong' together? That sound is called 'diatonic'. It means that the chords are all built from the same scale. But you'll also run into chord progressions that break these rules. So, listen to what happens when you use chords that are ‘wrong’ in the sense that they don’t fit within this theory. For example, try playing an F minor chord or an A flat chord when you’re in C major. Or when playing in C minor, play an F chord or a Db chord. The chords are called non-diatonic because they don't 'fit' within the key (which is why they sound more dramatic and awesome).

How to start learning chords and chord progressions by ear

Here are some suggestions for songs you can get started with, depending on your chord knowledge. Songs with clear bass lines that are (relatively) easy to hear.

Level 1: I know how to play all open chords

Nick Cave - Death is Not the End

Outkast - Hey Ya!

REM - Everybody Hurts (except the bridge)

Level 2: I know how to play major and minor chords in all keys

Bob Marley - Jammin’

Radiohead - Creep

Arctic Monkeys - Cornerstone

Level 3: I know how to play major, minor and seventh chords in all keys

Otis Redding - Sittin’ on the Dock of the Bay

Queen - Don’t Stop Me Now

Jack Johnson - Sitting, Waiting, Wishing

Let's continue to something a bit more hands on than these suggestions. We'll figure out a song by Nick Cave right now!