Another barre chord post

[TerryH]

Okay, that same old chestnut! I’ve been practicing barre chords for about three weeks, but understand it can take months to play them well. I suppose you could say I have gone from finding them physically impossible to playing them extremely badly (the change from C7 to Dmin is still impossible). I’ve been through all the posts I can find on this forum and scoured Youtube etc., so I think I know what I should be doing. Apart from aching wrists and hands it does get more than just tedious playing the same chords over and over again without any perceptible improvement.
I hate to give up on anything and it does seem to be viewed as a sort of rite of passage, although I understand it is possible to play blues guitar without them. This is my final hurdle before BGU. Obviously I’ll give it a bit more time, but I was thinking of starting BGU whilst continuing to practice the dreaded barre chords simultaneously. And yes, I know the first chapter of BGU is also barre chords. The alternative is to go slowly crazy over the next few months.

 

[jmin]

Terry, I started playing about 50 years ago, and the one thing I still can clearly remember asking other kid guitarists, "can you play barre chords?" It's almost like getting your driver's license. You really can't go anywhere on the guitar until you get past this HUGE step. And you will! Everyone does, but never easily. Sounds like you're doing everything right. Research & Practice, practice, practice. But don't burn yourself out on 2 chords! Move on to some other stuff you can't do (yet)! Good luck!

 

[Elio]

Okay, that same old chestnut! I’ve been practicing barre chords for about three weeks, but understand it can take months to play them well. I suppose you could say I have gone from finding them physically impossible to playing them extremely badly (the change from C7 to Dmin is still impossible). I’ve been through all the posts I can find on this forum and scoured Youtube etc., so I think I know what I should be doing. Apart from aching wrists and hands it does get more than just tedious playing the same chords over and over again without any perceptible improvement.
I hate to give up on anything and it does seem to be viewed as a sort of rite of passage, although I understand it is possible to play blues guitar without them. This is my final hurdle before BGU. Obviously I’ll give it a bit more time, but I was thinking of starting BGU whilst continuing to practice the dreaded barre chords simultaneously. And yes, I know the first chapter of BGU is also barre chords. The alternative is to go slowly crazy over the next few months.

My suggestion is that you be careful not to overdo it while learning/practicing them. Especially at first, they tend to really induce fatigue in your hands and wrists, which then makes them even harder to do right. Keep the practice sessions short but frequent and you will build up the strength and accuracy over time. That will also help reduce the chance of a repetitive motion injury and muscle strain.  If you can do the barre chord lessons in BBG, you won't have any problem with BGU.

 

[david moon]

I agree don't over-do it. Make sure you have the pad of your thumb on the back of the neck, and your left wrist low. You might even need to hunch your upper body down closer to the neck.

If you are trying to play the E shape, such as A barred at the 5th fret

577655

you could try a "little chord" version

XX7655 and the first finger only covers 2 strings. Then start pushing that finger to cover more strings, even though its's just backing up other fingers.

 

[Elio]

Along with David's suggestions, another one is to roll your index finger over slightly so that instead of it lying flat across the strings, more of the side of the finger makes contact. I find that gives me a little bit more even pressure across all the strings.

 

[Silicon Valley Tom]

Along with David's suggestions, another one is to roll your index finger over slightly so that instead of it lying flat across the strings, more of the side of the finger makes contact. I find that gives me a little bit more even pressure across all the strings.

That is something I was taught many years ago, and it works for me.  Everyone is a bit different so if you have a problem with barre chords give this a try.

Another suggestion that helps some people is to have the neck of the guitar at an angle where the neck is angled above the body of the guitar.  Also, a guitar strap can help you by finding a good position to hold the guitar while playing and keeping it where you want it.

It really helps to do something like use a I, IV, V while playing a basic 12 bar blues rhythm.  Switching between the appropriate chords in real time is an excellent exercise.  Also, you can do separate sets of series in Major, minor and 7th chords.  That helps give variety to the exercise and additional experience at the same time.  Like anything else, do not over due it and injure your hands.  Just a few minutes maximum at this exercise each day is all you will need.  It takes time but is just another tool in your kit.

Tom

 

[luckylarry]

Along with all the great advice the members have given you let me throw one more thing at you. Do the barre chords daily for only 5 to 10 minutes then quit. You will find that your improvement is noticeable by doing less and then having less stress. Then just play what you know and have fun. 

 

[TerryH]

Good suggestions. I did buy a strap a few weeks ago and it has helped a lot with playing and posture in general. The main point is, I have been practicing too much, and just practicing mistakes with a tired hand and wrist. The problem is, you keep saying to yourself, just one more try and I’ll get it right. Then an hour goes by. After decades of participating in endurance sports I know exactly how a small niggle can turn into a full-blown injury if you don’t rest. Yet I haven’t been taking my own advice. Thanks for the reminder, guys. I’ll restrict my barre chord practice to 10 minutes, maximum from now on.

 

[MikeS]

I agree don't over-do it. Make sure you have the pad of your thumb on the back of the neck, and your left wrist low. You might even need to hunch your upper body down closer to the neck.

If you are trying to play the E shape, such as A barred at the 5th fret

577655

you could try a "little chord" version

XX7655 and the first finger only covers 2 strings. Then start pushing that finger to cover more strings, even though its's just backing up other fingers.

That's exactly what I was going to suggest. Once you can play "F" shaped chords cleanly, over time you will be able to lay the first finger over all of the strings.
I honestly seldom play full six string barre chords. I may finger them, but I usually just play the bottom four strings.

 

[luckylarry]

Terry I am an ex-jock as well. It really took me a long time to understand that unlike sports I can't muscle my way though playing the guitar. I am so happy that I learned to just do things in what is called chunks. I can tell you that I am learning better and faster now than ever. Plus I am getting more out of the lessons and enjoying the ride more. It is really true here that less is more. Hope this helps.  [smiley=beer.gif]

 

[Jacass]

This was a good read, thanks for this advice guys. I struggle with some barre chords and some are o.k. Now I know what to do to get better.
[smiley=thumbsup.gif] Cass.

 

[TerryH]

It’s been nearly two months on and my barre chords are not perfect yet, but they’re ok.
BGU arrived through the post a couple of weeks ago, and for anybody in a similar transition stage the first thing I discovered was that the barre chords in the first two lessons are quite a bit easier to play – so don’t worry about it too much. Just enjoy.
BGU is obviously going to be very challenging and doing BBG as an introduction was a really good choice for me.

 

[david moon]

The first few lessons in BGU are about rhythm. You need to be able to finger the chords without hesitation. If you are playing along with the rhythm track, and you flub, just keep going and catch up. That's what you will need to do in a band situation.