How To Play C5 Guitar Chord

In today's lesson, we'll go over 3 distinct ways to play the C5 guitar chord. The technical term for this chord is a "5th chord," but its slang term is a "power chord" because it has a powerful sound to our ears!

These guitar chords are built using the root note and the fifth note of the scale (hence the number 5) and not only sound great but they are also very easy to learn for beginners. 

Power chords are used in all genres but are specifically important for rock and heavy metal music. 

C5 Chord Third Position

c5 chord 3rd position

The first C5 chord we'll learn is played as follows:

  • Index finger on the fifth string, third fret
  • Ring finger on the fourth string, fifth fret

If your fingers don't stretch and you feel you need to use your pinky, it's because your thumb is in the wrong place, which is causing your hand to not stretch or work properly. (see video) If you use your pinky, it will paint you into a corner for things to come later. 

You can also add your pinky finger to the third string, fifth fret to add some top end to the chord. Personally I prefer adding in the second root note!

Note: You can barre strings 3 and 4 with your third finger, but I find playing this guitar chord with the fingering provided helps players’ hands for things to come later. 

c5 chord 3rd fret pinky

C5 Chord 8th Position

c5 chord 8th fret position

To play the B power chord on the sixth string, place your:

  • First finger on sixth string, 8th fret 
  • Third finger on the fifth string, 10th fret

As you can see, this is the same chord shape and same chord notes as the previous example. This would be considered a moveable chord. Meaning, you can move the chord shape around the fretboard, and the finger positions stay the same. 

Just like the other chord shapes, you can add in your pinky to add a bit more top end and range to the chord on the third string 10th fret.

As indicated by the chord diagram, don't strum all six strings. 

c power chord guitar 8th position with pinky

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C5 Guitar Chord Theory

Now, let’s break down the theory of the C power chord so you can better understand how it's constructed and what's going on under the hood. 

The C5 chord is built from the C major scale: C D E F G A B

To understand the chord formula, you need to understand "scale degrees," which is simply numbering the notes of a scale starting with the root note. 

Often, music teachers reference the piano due to the simplicity of the layout for scales, but I think the illustration below will do: 

1     2    3   4    5   6    7
C   D    E    F    G
    A   B

The C5 Chord is Neither Major Nor Minor 

In music theory, the 3rd scale degree determines if a chord is major or minor, and because the 3rd scale degree is not part of this chord's formula, it's simply not a major nor minor chord. 

If you've read my breakdown of the
C major chord, you'd know that a C chord uses notes C E G, which are the chord notes 1 3 5 notes of the scale. Where the C5 only uses the 1 and 5 notes, it uses the C note and the G note, which is why it's written as C5.  

Using the Power Chords

As already mentioned, because the power chords sound strong, they are used extensively in rock and heavy metal but are found in all types of music. 

Because only two notes are used to make this chord, it’s much easier for soloing due to their versatility, and they reduce clutter when using distortion. You'll also find them used for the big chorus in pop songs.

Chord Progressions Using C Power chord

C5 - Bb5 - A5 - A5 (very popular chord hard rock and metal)

C5 - F5 - G5 (very popular for punk rock)

C5 - G5 - A5 - F5 (very popular for rock and pop) 

Now you know a few ways to play the C5 chord and understand some C chord 5 theory!

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