The capo is most commonly used for the purpose of adjusting the guitar for vocal pitches. For example, if a song that is in the key of “D” is too low for your voice, try placing the capo on the 1st fret. If it is still too low, keep going up until it is comfortable. If the capo is placed on the 2nd fret, and you were to play a first position “D” shaped chord, the actual chord would be in the key of “E.”

The capo is not only used for helping vocalists; it can help the guitarist as well. The capo can help new guitarists that haven’t become fluent in playing different keys. For example, most beginning guitarists typically learn songs that are in the key of either “D” or “G.” We’ll use “G” for the example. Let’s say you learn a song in the key of “G.” If you run across the same song that has been written for the key of “A,” you may not yet know how to transpose the song by changing chord positions. The solution is very simple. Place the guitar capo on the second fret and play the song using the “G-shaped” chords just as you did in the previous version. Voila!!! You’ve just played the song in the key of “A.” Move the capo down to the first fret, and the same song will be in the key of “G” sharp or “A” flat. This principle works the same for all keys. Just remember to start with the normal key of the song and count up to the desired key to determine capo placement.

Caution: while using a capo will help a beginner, it shouldn’t be used as a crutch forever. Learn to play in every key and you’ll be glad you did. Then, you’ll simply be using a capo because you like the way it sounds on a particular song, not as a crutch because you can’t play in that key.