Key=F# Play=F Capo=1 F G Em F*3So if a tab has this written do I just put the capo on the first fret and play a regular F G Em ?
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Likely because the person singing the song is more comfortable singing in that key or the artist thinks the song sounds better in that key rather than in plain old F.
Correct. You put a capo on 1 and then play chords listed pretending that the capo is the nut.
Just like a piano, you can play a C Chord many ways on a guitar.
Playing the notes C, E, G makes a C Chord
But so does playing E, G, C, or G, C, E. They’re all a C Chord, but the sound to the ear has a different quality.
If the composer wants the F# Chord, but wants it with the quality derived from playing the shape of a standard F Chord, just barred one fret up, then they’ll indicate that in the composition’s instructions, as you’ve outlined. Since the whole composition is intended to be played barred one fret up, then the instructions are simply to capo 1, and play the shape of the standard F, G, and Em chords.
You could, in theory, remove the capo, and play F#, G#, and E#m normally, and the song could still be recognizable, but would have a very different quality to it, which is not the composer (or arranger)’s intention.
I cheat this way a lot when I need to play C in a song (cause I’m a bad guitarist), instead of playing the standard C Chord, I’ll transition from G to C simply by moving my index and middle fingers down a string, and mute the low E String. It’s still a C Chord, but has a different quality. But since it’s just one chord in the whole song, and I’m typically playing recognizable songs around the campfire, nobody really notices or cares.
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