Psycho shower-scene chord: how to play it on guitar

Psycho shower-scene chord (G♭(1 13 ♭7 7)): guitar chord

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Standard

Psycho, 1960 · Bernard Herrmann · nearest shape for the hand

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G♭(1 13 ♭7 7)

G♭–F–E–E♭ Standard

4 strings, 1 open

FamousPsycho1960 · Bernard Herrmann

'The Murder' (the shower scene), bars 1–16: built one entry per bar from the top down in bars 1–8, then repeated with upward glissandos in bars 9–16

Not a chord in the usual sense but four neighbouring notes, E♭, E, F and G♭, spread out so each is a major seventh from the next. The strings enter one by one from the very top of their range downwards, then attack the notes again with sliding upward glissandos. Those spread-out half-step clashes, played loud without mutes, are the shrieking stabs of the shower scene.

Also called Shriek, the 'slashing' chords, The Murder cluster, Psycho Shower Cluster

Sources: Pearson Edexcel A-level set-work guide, Herrmann: Psycho · Royal Holloway Teacher Hub, 'Bernard Herrmann's Film Music: Psycho and others' · Bill Wrobel, 'Chord Profile #2 (Psycho)' (from the written score)

Chord clock

What’s in it

R G♭13 E♭♭7 F♭7 F

About this shape

Lowest note: G♭3, the root
Highest note: F4, the 7th
Stretch: 4 frets
Fingers: 3 fingers

Where it sits on the neck

Fingering not checked by a guitarist yet.

Psycho shower-scene chord (G♭(1 13 ♭7 7)): guitar chord

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Psycho shower-scene chord (G♭(1 13 ♭7 7)): guitar chord

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