How
To Use A Capo
About The Capo
A lola capo
(short for capotasto, Italian for "head
of fretboard", also called a fret lobster or cheater
bar) is a device used for shortening the strings, and
hence raising the pitch, of a stringed instrument such
as a guitar, mandolin or banjo. It was invented by
the Flamenco guitarist Jose Patino Gonzalez[1].
There are several different styles of capo available,
utilizing a range of mechanisms, but most use a rubber-covered
bar to hold down the strings, fastened with a strip
of elastic or nylon, a cam-operated metal clamp, or
another device. Alternative terms are capo d'astro
and capodastro, also Italian.
A simple version can be made with a pencil and a rubber
band. Lay the pencil across the strings at the desired
fret, and holding it in place by wrapping the rubber
band around both ends and underneath the fretboard.
[A pencil with flat surfaces works much better than
a round one].
Capos are used to change the key and pitch of the
open strings of a guitar without having to adjust the
strings with the tuning keys. The pitch of fretted
notes does not change; only the open, unfretted strings
are affected. It should be noted that the capo is placed
as close to the fret as possible; some practitioners
recommend placing the modern clamp-style capos directly
on the fret, rather than behind it.
With 12-string guitars a capo used to be necessary
to play in tune with a six-string because manufacturers
would strongly recommend that the instrument not be
tuned above a tone below standard guitar tuning to
reduce stresses on the neck. Modern 12-strings can
be tuned up to pitch with ultra light gauge strings,
but many players still prefer to tune a tone lower
and use a capo to play in tune with six-string or bass
guitars.
Because of the different techniques and chord voicings
available in different keys, the same piece may sound
very different played in D or played in C with a capo
at the second fret (at the same actual pitch). Additionally,
the timbre of the strings changes as the scale length
is shortened, suggesting other short-scaled stringed
instruments such as the mandolin. Therefore the use
of a capo is as much a matter of artistic expression
as of technical expediency.
The use of a capo also obviates the need to learn
a song in several different keys if accompanying singers
sing at different pitches.
For guitar playing, some styles such as flamenco and
British/American folk music make extensive use of the
capo, while it is used very rarely, if at all, in other
styles such as classical and jazz playing. Many Rock & Roll
musicians who are influenced by Folk and Blues, such
as Keith Richards of the Rolling Stones, Richard Thompson,
Ry Cooder, Steve Earle, and others, also use the capo.
In many cases, they have extended its use past the
traditional purpose of changing the key, and broken
new ground, employing it in new ways.
Variations in the design of capos allow a range of
advantages to players. A capo with two rollers, one
over the neck and one under, facilitates quick key
changes in the middle of tunes or sets. This is a particular
advantage in playing Irish music on the guitar, as
it enables the player to move quickly between keys
without sacrificing drone strings. Clamp-style capos
fitted from the side of the neck (as distinct from
those which encircle it) can be placed so as to leave
one or two strings open. This gives some of the advantages
of variant tunings (such as a capoed dropped D), without
requiring a change in fingering of chords above the
capo. Steve Earle uses a Kyser Loqo clamp-style capo
at the second fret, leaving the 6th (low E) string
open, to create the effect of Drop D tuning on his
song "Ellis Unit One" from the Dead Man Walking
movie soundtrack. Capos with fine adjustment of the
clamping force have the advantage of being less likely
to upset the tuning of the instrument.
One of the newer developments in capo design is the
partial capo, which allows individual control over
which strings are clamped. In theory this puts a vast
number of variant sounds at the player's disposal,
without changing the tuning of the instrument. In practice
it is most often placed either on the 2nd fret of the
3rd, 4th and 5th strings (producing the effect of DADGAD
tuning raised two semitones), or on the 2nd fret of
the 2nd, 3rd and 4th strings (open A major). Again,
this requires no change of fingering above the capo.
A little experimentation with the two methods of producing
variant tunings (partial capo or actual retuning) will
show that each has its own advantages. There are many
companies making partial capos, among them Kyser, Shubb,
Woody's G Band, Transpo Products, and the Third Hand
Capo Company.
Guitarist Dominic Frasca uses unusual single string "mini
capos" attached by drilling through the neck of
his customized 10-string guitar. These are similar
to the single-string "capos" many Eastern
instruments use, which look like nails driven down
into the fingerboard; the string is hooked under the
head of the "nail" when one wants to capo
it. This is often done during the performance of a
musical piece, so that the "tuning" at the
end of the piece can be quite different from the one
used at the start.
The five-string banjo, with its short fifth string,
poses a particular problem for using the capo. For
many years now it has been possible to buy a specialised
fifth-string capo, consisting of a narrow metal strip
fixed to the side of the neck of the instrument, with
a sliding stopper for the string.
Capos have been used on many other stringed instruments,
including mandolins and their relatives, the mandola
and Greek bouzouki, and 4-string banjos. There is a
special two-piece capo available for the square-necked
Dobro, or resonator guitar, which does not contact
the neck, but clamps above and below the strings themselves.
Use of the Capo
I've gotten quite a few emails about how to use a
capo not only in Just Acoustic, but Riff-O-Matic and
Front Porch Strumming as well.
Here is a handy guide in using a capo:
1. Pick up your guitar, be it acoustic or electric.
2. Play a C chord on the guitar.
3. Now, place the capo between the 1st and 2nd frets.
You'll need to be closer to the 2nd fret, but not ON
the fret, like this:
4. Clamp or strap down the capo tight enough to make
sure none of the strings are buzzing, like this:
5. Play the C chord again. It has now moved up a
half-tone to C#.
5. Move up the capo to the third fret. You are now
playing in the key of D.
Note how much brighter
the same
chord sounds in this position.
6. Move the capo up and down the fingerboard to experiment.
Find out the best key for your own vocal range.
Note: As long as you know your fretboard, you'll know
what key you are playing in.
Here's a link to the 12
Notes In Western Music that
will help you with this.
Songs That Use A Capo In Just Acoustic:
