To play Aaug on the guitar, you need the notes A, C#, F. Its first guitar voicing is a barre chord at fret 2: low E string at fret 5 (ring finger); A string open; D string at fret 3 (middle finger); G string at fret 2 (index finger); B string at fret 2 (index finger); high e string at fret 5 (little finger). This guide covers the augmented chord in full: what is in it, how to play it cleanly on the guitar, where it fits musically and how to practise it.
What notes are in the Aaug chord?
The Aaug chord is a augmented chord, and its notes are fixed: A, C#, F. Every voicing on every instrument uses these same notes, in some order and in some octave — change one of them and you are playing a different chord. The table below lists each note with its interval from the root A, so you can see the structure of Aaug at a glance. On the guitar, the barre chord of Aaug puts those notes under your fingers in the order the fingering lists them.
| Note | Interval |
|---|---|
| A | Root |
| C# | 3 |
| F | #5 |
The root is A, the note the chord is named after and the note your ear hears as home. Above it, the intervals in Aaug are 3, #5. Those intervals are the fingerprint of the augmented quality — any chord with the same interval pattern, on any root, is the same kind of chord. On the guitar, the notes appear in the order the fingering dictates, but the set of notes never changes.
Aaug sounds exotic and tense, the sound of a chord that can resolve in several directions at once. The colour is strongest when all the notes ring clearly. A muted chord tone, especially the 3rd or the 7th where the chord has one, flattens the character of Aaug noticeably. On the guitar, the barre chord of Aaug puts those notes under your fingers in the order the fingering lists them.
Comparing Aaug with its closest relatives helps to fix it in your ear. In short, augmented against major: both have the major 3rd C#, but Aaug raises the 5th to F instead of the perfect 5th E, and that one change removes the chord's sense of home. Practise the two chords back to back and listen to the one note that changes — that single note is the difference between the two chords. On the guitar, the barre chord of Aaug puts those notes under your fingers in the order the fingering lists them.
How to play Aaug on guitar
On the guitar, Aaug has 3 voicings in the data below, and each one uses the same notes — A, C#, F — in a different place on the neck. There are 3 voicings listed for Aaug on the guitar; learn the first, then add the others as you need them. Finger numbers below use 1 for the index finger, 2 for the middle finger, 3 for the ring finger and 4 for the little finger, and x means the string is not played.
The barre chord puts Aaug in around fret 2: low E string at fret 5 (ring finger); A string open; D string at fret 3 (middle finger); G string at fret 2 (index finger); B string at fret 2 (index finger); high e string at fret 5 (little finger). It barres across strings 4 to 5 at fret 2 with the index finger. The barre is the hard part: the index finger must press every string from 4 to 5 evenly at fret 2, so roll it slightly onto its bony side and keep it close to the fret wire. If the barre buzzes, move it a fraction closer to the fret and press from the arm, not the thumb alone. Strum or pluck it slowly first and check that every note in Aaug — A, C#, F — sounds, with no buzz and no accidental open string.
The movable voicing puts Aaug in around fret 3: low E string at fret 5 (middle finger); A string open; D string at fret 3 (index finger); G string at fret 6 (little finger); B string at fret 6 (little finger); high e string at fret 5 (ring finger). The stretch is the challenge: the fretted notes span from fret 3 to fret 6, so keep your thumb low behind the neck and let your fingers reach rather than squeezing the neck. Strum or pluck it slowly first and check that every note in Aaug — A, C#, F — sounds, with no buzz and no accidental open string.
The open position puts Aaug in open position: low E string muted; A string open; D string at fret 3 (ring finger); G string at fret 2 (middle finger); B string at fret 2 (middle finger); high e string at fret 1 (index finger). The challenge here is the muted string: 1 string is marked x, and it needs to stay silent. Let the edge of a fretting finger rest lightly on it — muting by touch, not by pressing. Strum or pluck it slowly first and check that every note in Aaug — A, C#, F — sounds, with no buzz and no accidental open string.
Choosing between the voicings of Aaug is a musical decision, not a right-or-wrong one. The open or low-position voicing rings the most and suits strumming, while a barre or movable voicing lets you slide Aaug up the neck to any key without changing the shape. When you change chords, pick the voicing of Aaug that sits closest to the chord before it — shorter moves between shapes mean faster, cleaner changes. Practise the change into Aaug from the chord that comes before it in your song, not the chord on its own, because the move is the skill. On the guitar, the barre chord of Aaug puts those notes under your fingers in the order the fingering lists them.
A short practice routine for Aaug on the guitar: play the first voicing four times slowly, checking each note, then change to it from the chord a fourth above A and back, four times, at a slow tempo. Then play the second voicing the same way. If a note buzzes, stop and fix the finger placement rather than playing through the buzz — clean notes at a slow tempo become clean notes at full tempo, while buzzes practised fast become habits. Use the Guitar Chord Finder to see the diagram for Aaug while you practise, and the Chord Finder to compare it with the same chord on other instruments.
Common mistakes
These are the mistakes that most often make Aaug sound wrong on the guitar, and each one has a concrete fix. Work through them one at a time rather than trying to fix everything at once.
Resolving it nowhere. Because it is symmetrical, Aaug can resolve in several directions, but it must resolve somewhere. Pick a destination chord and practise the move. On the guitar, the barre chord of Aaug puts those notes under your fingers in the order the fingering lists them.
Confusing it with a whole-tone sound. The augmented triad is part of the whole-tone scale, but on its own it is just three notes: A, C#, F. Do not add extra whole-tone notes unless you mean to. On the guitar, the barre chord voicing is the place to hear it in Aaug.
Barre collapsing on the high strings. In a barre voicing of Aaug, the high strings are the ones that buzz first, because the index finger presses hardest near the thumb. If the top notes of Aaug sound dead, roll the barring finger slightly toward the fret and press from the arm, not from squeezing the neck. On the guitar, the barre chord voicing is the place to hear it in Aaug.
Playing a perfect 5th. If the 5th is E the chord is just major. The sharpened 5th F is the whole point of the augmented chord. On the guitar, start with the first voicing above and listen for the notes A, C#, F in Aaug.
Where Aaug is used
Aaug is not a diatonic triad in any major or minor key, because it is an extended or altered chord, but its base triad belongs to the key of D major, the key of E major, the key of A major. a dominant colour in jazz, where the sharpened 5th adds tension to a V chord. As a dominant-type chord it also points toward D major, the key a perfect fourth above A, which is the tonic it most often resolves to. That is where Aaug does its work: not as a home chord, but as a chord that creates movement and then resolves. On the guitar, start with the first voicing above and listen for the notes A, C#, F in Aaug.
Because Aaug is an extended or altered chord, it appears in progressions as a colour or a dominant rather than as a diatonic staple. Try it in place of the plain A triad in a progression you already know, and listen to how the extra notes change the feel — that substitution is the usual way extended chords enter real music. The Chord Progression Builder lets you try Aaug in a progression in any key and hear how it connects to the chords around it. On the guitar, the barre chord of Aaug puts those notes under your fingers in the order the fingering lists them.
The same chord on other instruments is covered in Aaug on piano, Aaug on ukulele, Aaug on bass, and the scales that fit over it are the A major scale and the A minor pentatonic scale. Learning Aaug on the guitar and then checking it on another instrument is one of the best ways to fix the notes — A, C#, F — in your memory, because the notes stay the same while everything else changes.
Practising Aaug
A short worked example makes Aaug concrete. Play the four-chord progression D – A – Bm – G in D major, the key Aaug most often resolves toward: D – A – Bm – G. Play each chord for one bar at a slow tempo, and listen to how Aaug sounds in that sequence — whether it feels like home, like a lift, or like a chord on its way somewhere else. Then play the same four chords in a different order, starting on Aaug itself, and notice how its character changes when it opens the progression instead of sitting inside it. On the guitar, the barre chord voicing is the place to hear it in Aaug.
For a second exercise, play Aaug and then the chord a fourth above A, back and forth, four times each. That move — a chord and the chord a fourth above it — is the most common resolution in Western music, and it is the move Aaug is built for when it acts as a dominant. Finish by playing Aaug on its own, slowly, and naming each note out loud as you play it: A, C#, F. Naming the notes while you play them is what turns a shape into knowledge you can use in any key. Test yourself with the Practice Chord Quiz and keep time with the Metronome as the tempo rises. On the guitar, start with the first voicing above and listen for the notes A, C#, F in Aaug.
Frequently asked questions
Where is Aaug used?
As a passing chord between a major chord and the chord a semitone above it, and as an altered dominant in jazz. It is a colour chord, used briefly for lift and surprise. On the guitar, check the first voicing above for that note.
How do you play Aaug on the guitar?
The first voicing is the barre chord: frets 5–0–3–2–2–5, fingers 3–0–2–1–1–4, on the guitar. That voicing uses the notes A, C#, F, and it is the one to learn first. The page above lists more voicings for Aaug, so you can choose the shape nearest the chords around it.
Is Aaug hard to play on the guitar?
It depends on the voicing. The first voicing of Aaug on the guitar is the easiest starting point, and the movable voicings further up the neck are harder because they need a barre or a wider stretch. Practise the first voicing cleanly at a slow tempo before you try the others, and the harder shapes will come more easily.
What is the easiest voicing of Aaug on the guitar?
The barre chord is the easiest voicing listed for Aaug on the guitar: frets 5–0–3–2–2–5, fingers 3–0–2–1–1–4. Learn that shape first, get every note ringing cleanly, and only then move on to the alternative voicings further up the neck.
Why does Aaug sound strange?
Its 5th is sharpened to F, so the chord is two major 3rds stacked and divides the octave into three equal parts. With no perfect 5th to anchor it, the chord sounds like it floats. On the guitar, check the first voicing above for that note.