Major Triad 1 3 5 VS 1 5 3?

[RideForVengance]

I've been wondering, is there any specific reason why major chords usually have the 5th before the 3rd? For example, an A major barre chord on the 5th fret is: A, E, A, C#, E, A. (starting on the low E string)

So the pattern for that is: 1 5 1 3 5 1

A major chord played 1 3 5 sounds a little weird... for example, from the 5th fret of the low E again: A, C#, E on strings 6 5 and 4 respectively doesnt quite sound right. Do people just not play major chords like that often because of the feel? Or is there some theory behind the explination?

 

[sonofhendrix13]

Its easier to play it that way when you're playing moveable chords. Otherwise, I don't think there is any reason.

 

[sumairetsu]

It's just the result of the tuning of the guitar (assuming we're speaking about the guitar being in standard tuning and said guitar being a 6-string). When playing an open E Major chord, for instance, you're not going to be able to fret the 3rd (G#) of the chord on the low E string and still maintain the chord's tonality - it's a physical impossibility. If you were to play the E Major chord with the G# on the low E string and play all the other notes of the chord, you would then end up with the first inversion of the chord.

There are some guitar players that do play the chords in the Root-3rd-5th structure, but you'll really not see that too much in Heavy Metal. Most Metal guitarists usually delete the 3rd of a chord altogether and rely on the standard Root-5th power chord.

 

[EvileOL]

Chords are played all different kind of ways, if you play 1 3 5 on a piano, itll sound normal, you just won't be uesd to hearing it like that. if you played a power chord (1 5) and a second guitar played the exact same note you WOuld have played to be the 3rd, it'll sound fine, but there's too much of a clash for some people on guitar. Alot of metal people hear a major chord and go "EUGH!" and make the 3rd a minor and go "yuss! gr1m!". I triad doesn't have to be those exact notes, break it up a bit. A (5th on low E), E (2nd on D), C# (2nd on B). There's all kinds of inversions for chords to make them sound more exquisite or experimental, then depnding on what the bass note or chord under enath them is, there's all sorts of different stuff to do with them (alot of jazz uses stupid chords that metal guitarists would hear and go "what the fuck?" but when heard in the context of jazz, they're fine.)