In this lesson, we'll learn 12 awful stretchy guitar chords - and why they sound so awesome! If these stretchy guitar chords don't tear your fingers apart and you're able to play them, you'll have loads of fun! :) But before we get into that, let me talk about… the pinky finger.

Short Fingers? Me Too!

I struggled a lot with my pinky finger when learning guitar. My pinky is really short, and playing these stretchy chords always feels awkward to me.

JustinGuitar talks about short fingers, short pinky, and guitar playing.

The good news is that, just like many other things, it only takes practice to develop the strength and dexterity of your fingers.

Moonlight in Vermont by Johnny Smith was one of those songs I thought I would never be able to play, but I did! Finally, I was able to do it - and I'm sure you are too! Here's an awesome finger stretching exercise you can try.

Now let's check out what is so special about these stretchy chords!

Why Do These Stretchy Chords Sound So Good?

Most stretchy guitar chords have many dissonances - meaning the distance between the tones and semitones is unusual and kind of clash. That will be a common theme for many of these grips!

Let's take a look at them!

Stretchy Chord 1 - Aadd9

What's interesting about this chord is the dissonance, tone, and semitone distances that clash together! This happens between the B to the C#. This clash is what makes it sound fantastic.

Stretchy Chord 2 - A11

In this chord, you have a semitone gap in the middle tone. You can add some variety and play many different base notes on this chord!

Stretchy Chord 3 - A11 (G/A)

This is a dominant A chord - and it's neither major nor minor! To make this reach, you might have to put your fingers down in a particular order to get into position. Sometimes, you have to try and explore ways to make the stretch!

Stretchy Chord 4 - A6

This particular chord is played in Moonlight in Vermont by Johnny Smith. This is a close-voiced chord, which means the tones are voiced together as close as possible! Very similar to an A triad from a C shape barre chords - but we have a tone gap between the 5th and 6th strings. It has a lovely sound to it and a useful chord in jazz and solo.

Stretchy Chord 5 - A9

This chord is intriguing - yet painful. Pretty cool I discovered this one during the lesson. That's the beauty of exploring chords! This would be a dominant 9th chord. This one hurts so good - if you know what I mean! :)

Stretchy Chord 6 - Amin6

Ouf - this one is stretchy! It feels like doing yoga for the fingers - but more painful. But it's quite a lovely chord - it has a melancholic tone to it which can be perfect for slower songs! You might need a little break before venturing into this chord.

Stretchy Chord 7 - Amin9

This chord has a root note on the thinnest string, and you won't be playing the thickest string on this one either. It has a semitone between the B and the C, and a tone between the G and the A.

Stretchy Chord 8 - Badd11

In this chord, there's a semitone between the D sharp and the E. This dissonance is what makes it sound so beautiful! This one is an excellent substitute for guitar ballads. Think of it as a regular B major chord which a little bit of dissonance in it. You can find this chord in the song ''Always With Me, Always With You'' by Joe Satriani. Give it a listen and see how amazing this chord can sound!

Stretchy Chord 9 - Dadd9

This a great sounding chord - the harmony between the clashes sounds lovely altogether!

Stretchy Chord 10 - Dmin9

This is as stretchy as I possibly can go - Good luck with this one!

Stretchy Chord 11 - Gadd#11

For this chord, you won't be playing the two thickest strings. Think of this as a G triad with a sharp 11th. Having that harmony at the top makes it sound fantastic!

Stretchy Chord 12 - Amin7

A minor 7th chord - not too bad if you have a slightly longer pinky. If you want to get clever, you can drop the first finger - and you'll have a minor 6.

I know I said we'd check out 12 grips... but I've got an extra one! Take a look:

Stretchy Chord 13 - Amin13

For this chord, you won't be playing the thickest string. There's a nice semitone 6 and the flat 7th. This chord can be an excellent substitute for a minor 7th chord!

How to Use These Chords?

I love these dissonant, clash guitar chords, but putting them on songs is probably not the best idea. Most of them require loads of practice and are pretty hard to manage when you're on the stage. Imagine changing from and to these chord grips!

What I want to inspire you here is to explore them. I encourage you to play with these grips and see what you get from them. If you're into jazz, they're the perfect chords to try.

Want to understand more about the theory behind chords? Check out the JustinGuitar Practical Music Theory Course.