Bar Chords!!!!!!ugh!

[guitarforadummy]

hi I was wondering if anyone could give me tips on playing bar chords. Right now I am limited in what I can play because I have a hard time postioning my fingers in order to play the note!! Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!!!!!!!!!!!

[skee1]

Originally posted by guitarforadummy
hi I was wondering if anyone could give me tips on playing bar chords. Right now I am limited in what I can play because I have a hard time postioning my fingers in order to play the note!! Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!!!!!!!!!!!

I think you might get more answers to questions like,
this in the (Guitar Basics) forum.
Really what you need to learn to execute a bar chord,
is to hold your left had fingers correctly.
plus learn to use your thumb behind the neck.

Mark

[Christoph]

People always ask questions on how to play barre chords, or that they're having problems getting them down.

First of all, make sure you've got your hand straight. Don't try to play barre chords with your hand and arm at an angle to the neck.

Second, make sure your thumb is at the center of the neck for bracing, not wrapped around or some such crazy thing.

Third, experiment to find a position that is comfortable for your index finger while still being able to properly barre the strings.

And finally, just practice. It will take some time to get used to the chord shapes and hand positions, but you'll get it.

[Hootayah]

... and remember you don't necessarily have to play *all* the strings. When I'm doing barre chords in hard rock tunes, I rarely play the 1st and 2nd strings. With power chords and distortion you can get a good sound with just the root notes.

[skee1]

Christoph

great job explaing.
I know one think if he's just starting out his left,
hand fingers are going act like rubber and thier,
not going to want to do what he tells them to do.

Mark

[Christoph]

Hey Skee, long time no see.

Yup, when I started out my left hand was just a useless piece of flesh. It couldn't do anything . . . so don't get discouraged, G-for-a-D man.

[SteveWeir]

Another good thing to remember is good posture.

It may feel uncomfortableat first but play with the guitar resting on your left leg as opposed to the right (if you are right handed that is)
This helps position you wrist and elbow better and also helps with stronger fingering for barre chords.

gl

Steve

[Flying V]

When I started with barre chords, my teacher always told me to first place my index finger, and then when every note sounded ok, I had to place my other fingers. When the chord sounded good, I had to move it to a higher and lower frets.

If you are well trained in the 'normal barre' chords, you can always go further with more jazzy chords: the 7,9,13 chords. These are very good to exercise your hand. Succes!

[wierdomusic]

Hey dude, you have the same problems every guitarist has when they start you're normal man! Do you know all your simple basic chords in the open position? If you can spell the word C A G E D with them then you do.
Try to do each shape ..for example the D shape and replace the notes that would have been open notes with your index finger.Remember to keep the same distance between the fretted notes and play it high up on the guitar.
Barre chords in the E shape are not really the easiest to play and if you play higher on the guitar its a bit easier since the frets are closer tgether.Work your way down the fretboard slowly with one shape until your reach the point where it starts to get tough. Reemember also that barre chords like F in the E shape are a real pig for any guitarist starting out.
Wierdomusic AKA: The Wizard of Odd