Few things strike fear into the hearts of aspiring guitarists like the words “barre chords.”
The question I am most often asked is basically something along the lines of….
“I just can’t make a barre chord sound all the way. I have short/fat/stubby fingers and I just can’t get them to play a barre chord. Do I have any chance at all of becoming a decent guitar player if I can’t play a barre?”
First – yes, you will be able to play guitar, regardless of whether or not you can play a barre chord now.
Second – your finger shape/size really has nothing to do with your ability to play a barre chord. I know it probably doesn’t seem that way now, but in reality it’s the truth. I have yet to meet someone who couldn’t do it regardless of age or finger size and shape.
Playing a barre chord accurately is all about precision and placing your fingers in exactly the right place. The problem is, that “exact right place” is going to be a little different for each person because each person’s finger is shaped a little bit differently.
There are 2 common mistakes I see…. 1 is that your first finger must remain absolutely straight. I often put a slide across the index finger of my students and then ask them to play the barre chord. The slide makes it so the finger won’t bend.
What usually ends up happening is because they cannot bend the finger, they do the other things they should do because there is no choice. 1) They lift up the guitar neck to get it closer to their own head and this always makes it easier.. 2) The adjust the position of their wrist and thumb to allow the finger room to lay straight across the strings.
The other thing about barre chords is that they do take some time. Once you learn them, you may not be able to play them right away. But what you may have forgotten is that you couldn’t play any chord right away. When you first learn open ‘C’ you can’t just play it perfectly. It may have taken days or weeks to get it to where you could play it consistently, and your barre chord shapes will be no different.
Finally, remember that in most “band” playing you’ll play a full barre chord maybe 1% of the time. if you’ve heard me talk about “little chords” then you know that I use the barre chord shape as a guide, but I rarely play it entirely.
So relax, be patient, and have some fun with it. If it doesn’t seem like you’re getting anywhere, turn your guitar over and remind yourself what it was like to play as a beginner… always good for a laugh.
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For you beginners. Barre chords are much easier to learn on an electra guitar vs an acustic. About half the pressure is needed. Today, even a cheap electric guitar like a Squire Strat for less than 200 bucks is easier to play than your average 600 dollar acustic. And you\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\’ll sound better on the electric as well. Years ago cheap foreign guitar\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\’s were junk but that\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\’s no longer the case. I have a 1200 Gibson Les Paul that doesn\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\’t sound or play any better than my Arbor 200 dollar copy.
Agree 100% with Jerry’s comment on the advantage of buying an electric guitar as a practice tool for playing barre chords. I started playing guitar (acoustic) about 5 years ago, and barre chords were so frustrating to me that I came close to giving up. I few months ago I bought a Squire Strat, and all of a sudden things started to work. The best part is that I can now play many of the barre chords on my acoustic as well.
Getting the electric did a few other things for me. It expanded my playing opportunities, because now I can practice (with headphones) without disturbing anyone (and without feeling self-conscious about my errors).
I know Griff keeps telling us that he just picks up an acoustic or an electric on a whim, and that it doesn’t make a difference. I understand what he means, and I suspect he’s right. But as a learning tool the electric offers a couple of advantages.
Agree 100% with Jerry\’s comment on the advantage of buying an electric guitar as a practice tool for playing barre chords. I started playing guitar (acoustic) about 5 years ago, and barre chords were so frustrating to me that I came close to giving up. I few months ago I bought a Squire Strat, and all of a sudden things started to work. The best part is that I can now play many of the barre chords on my acoustic as well.
Getting the electric did a few other things for me. It expanded my playing opportunities, because now I can practice (with headphones) without disturbing anyone (and without feeling self-conscious about my errors).
I know Griff keeps telling us that he just picks up an acoustic or an electric on a whim, and that it doesn\’t make a difference. I understand what he means, and I suspect he\’s right. But as a learning tool the electric offers a couple of advantages.
i saveing up for your great course ,you have the best way of showing and make the hard easy,, ive played for years but just from the e-mails i have recived, i have taken a big leap forward in my playing .thanks so much for the e-mails
and i will be getting your course soon …thanks again
Gary
I will never forget the day I played my first bar chord. A friend of mine had tried and tried to teach me how, for days and days on end, he finally gave up in total frustration and left, after telling me I would never learn how to play the guitar while alluding to some mental defect on my part being the problem. I just couldn’t get my hand and fingers to co-operate. What he said really upset me, so much that I finally gave it one more try in total determination and to my total amazement I did it, the hand and fingers just clicked into place. WOW! I was no longer stuck on the first three frets, I could play chords all the way up and back down the neck, major, minor, 7th, 6th, and more just by moving one or two fingers.
So don’t give up, no matter how long you have to try again and again, just remember that the magic moment WILL arrive when it just happens and when it does you’ll have it forever. Something that might help is if you learn to play all the E and A chords without using the index finger, once the other three fingers gain the muscle memory the rest just falls into place.
I often just play my electric guitar without plugging it into the amp. I will agree with others here that an electric is much easier to practice with (and easier on the fingers too) than an accoustic. My electric is a student model Epiphone SG that I paid less than $300 for the entire kit. Great little guitar.
The problem with playing the guitar (other than all the confusion about notes chords, minor, major, augmented and such) as I see it, is its physicality meaning it goes against the natural physiology of the human body. Example: In Martial arts if you want to remove a weapon from someones hand you simply bend the wrist moving the palm toward the inside of the fore arm. Try it ! See your hand automatically opens and makes it very hard to hold your fingers and thumb together thus releasing the object. Well guess what? That is the same position your hand is in when you play the guitar! You have to train your muscles to go against their natural inclination and you have to build muscle memory and that can only be done by practice. I have a friend who has just earned his red sash in Kung fu. I asked him How did you get that good ?
His answer: ” By practicing and making my body do everyday what I knew to be right and building on that simple foundation.
Sure it’s hard but it’s worth it!
Oh yeah, it took him eight years and guys Johnny Winter can break walnuts between his thumb and forefinger!
barre chords easy,Keith Richard uses nothing else. learn on acustic then its simple on electric
I totally agree with the electric being used here. I was also totally frustrated with bar chords . I tried so hard but nothing seemed to work. then one magical day I got my first one to ring out true. What a good feeling. I am no expert here. but do not give up it will eventually happen.
I started playing my first 3 chords d,g,a, manyyrs ago .I have beeen playing Bar chords for years I use both acoustic and electric . lots of fun . enjoe if you want to pla y all styles of music . Carl Bissonnette
Barre chords are such a richer voicing of many chords. I almost always use them for F,G,B and A. a C is a little high on the neck but it works well if you are already up there anyway. I learned to play AND sing all the time so whatever I can do to help the guitar fun and easy are good.
In the tweedlies I was brought back to the Begininning Lick by Richie Blackmore on the song STRANGE KIND OF WOMAN of the DEEP PURPLE fame, the Made In Japan album. please someone go check it out,It’s the very first notes of the tune and makes-up the whole stucture of the song.This lick is very fundamental but try it the way he plays it. and then go faster then faster then faster and you still won’t pull it off the same ,,,Very ODD.
Griff, to all players that are trying to use ” Barre Chords”… have to understand that Pratice makes perfect… once you master it, you will find out that some songs almost require barre chords to sound fuller. Also you gain so much speed when playing… I wish the best of luck to all who are trying to learn barre chords… you’ll love it !!! Nobody was born playing guitar, nevetheless playing barre chords… Don’t get discouraged… Most of all don’t give up !!!
Best of luck, and Griff is the best teacher… stick with him… Artesia, Ca.
Griff, to all players that are trying to use \" Barre Chords\"… have to understand that Pratice makes perfect… once you master it, you will find out that some songs almost require barre chords to sound fuller. Also you gain so much speed when playing… I wish the best of luck to all who are trying to learn barre chords… you\’ll love it !!! Nobody was born playing guitar, nevetheless playing barre chords… Don\’t get discouraged… Most of all don\’t give up !!!
Best of luck, and Griff is the best teacher… stick with him… Artesia, Ca.
I agree with whats been said so far but would like to add that yes, playing barre chords on an acoustic can be tough, but there are benfits, you build the muscles in the hand due to the greater effort required to play them, so once you’ve mastered them on the electric guitar, go back and play on your acoustic.
If it really is too tough and you’re thinking of throwing in the towel – don’t!, Instead get your music shop or luthier to set up your acoustic with lighter strings making it more like your electric to play, thats the secret to being able to play either type as and when the mood takes you.
I have an old 12 string guitar, which is a not the easiest beast to play but I keep it because it gives my hands a work out a couple of times a week which makes playing my electrics seem effortless.
Finally, bear in mind that not all electric guitars are easy to play there are some real cheese cutters out there, so badly set up they’re just about unplayable.
Even if they’re set up perfectly certain guitars can be a challenge, try and play a Rickenbacker 330/12 for an hour at a gig using barre chords, your hand will be screaming……(this is because Rickenbacker don’t make the neck any wider on the 12 string models, so to play one well you have to be very accurate when you’re fingering the chords to avoid buzzes, this increases the tension in your hand and after a while it starts to ache…)
Keep playing but more importantly keep enjoying it!
I agree with whats been said so far but would like to add that yes, playing barre chords on an acoustic can be tough, but there are benfits, you build the muscles in the hand due to the greater effort required to play them, so once you\’ve mastered them on the electric guitar, go back and play on your acoustic.
If it really is too tough and you\’re thinking of throwing in the towel – don\’t!, Instead get your music shop or luthier to set up your acoustic with lighter strings making it more like your electric to play, thats the secret to being able to play either type as and when the mood takes you.
I have an old 12 string guitar, which is a not the easiest beast to play but I keep it because it gives my hands a work out a couple of times a week which makes playing my electrics seem effortless.
Finally, bear in mind that not all electric guitars are easy to play there are some real cheese cutters out there, so badly set up they\’re just about unplayable.
Even if they\’re set up perfectly certain guitars can be a challenge, try and play a Rickenbacker 330/12 for an hour at a gig using barre chords, your hand will be screaming……(this is because Rickenbacker don\’t make the neck any wider on the 12 string models, so to play one well you have to be very accurate when you\’re fingering the chords to avoid buzzes, this increases the tension in your hand and after a while it starts to ache…)
Keep playing but more importantly keep enjoying it!
Griff’s remark about only using full barre chords maybe 1% of the time is correct for some outfits, but in my garage-rock band Used Goods I employ them fully 75-80% of the time–literally couldn’t live w/o ‘em–so I think the type music you’re playing is largely what determines how often you’ll need to barre and thus how important it is to practice and get them right. Oddly enough, I really didn’t find barre chords that much more difficult to shape than open forms, though I know that’s atypical. And yes, most electrics do make it easier to barre but great advice about not giving up on acoustic–even if you primarily play electric, practicing on an acoustic will make your barres easier and let you play them faster when you shift to electric…
thanks guys ,newbie here, griffs beginner blues tape made me want to stay with it. i try to do a f barre chorde and almost broke my finger. they seem so difficult to learn but so easy sounding to play. i accused my guitar friend of showing me the wrong way because at times it does seem impossible but iknow otherwise. i just keep working on it. can hardly wait to it all gels together. griffs tape is execellent.he is the reason istay with it. went to 4 different teachers and just lost money. the teacher makes the difference. now thanks to griff and practicing iam finally learning guitar. thanks once asgain guys . happy strumming!!!!
222761
Hi Griff
earnin ea
I am 68 years old and I gave up on playing a few years ago and I am starting again on learning how to play the guitar and I sure wish that I stayed with it, I should have never given up, so let me say to all of the the would be guitar gaints out there , remember when you see a butt kicking guitar player that skill did not come in a bottle that you drink down like a potion with magical powers, no one becomes great without great pratice.
The key is complete commit to your dream with no compromises if you mean what you say do not ever quit or you may be one day 68 and starting all over again, I wll never quit again and above all neither should you.
I still have dreams and goals before I die, one of them is learning to play the guitar well enough to play with a band some day (become what you dream to be)no but you can end your dream.
550948
Hi Griff
earnin ea
I am 68 years old and I gave up on playing a few years ago and I am starting again on learning how to play the guitar and I sure wish that I stayed with it, I should have never given up, so let me say to all of the the would be guitar gaints out there , remember when you see a butt kicking guitar player that skill did not come in a bottle that you drink down like a potion with magical powers, no one becomes great without great pratice.
The key is complete commit to your dream with no compromises if you mean what you say do not ever quit or you may be one day 68 and starting all over again, I wll never quit again and above all neither should you.
I still have dreams and goals before I die, one of them is learning to play the guitar well enough to play with a band some day (become what you dream to be)no but you can end your dream.
170345
Hi Griff
earnin ea
I am 68 years old and I gave up on playing a few years ago and I am starting again on learning how to play the guitar and I sure wish that I stayed with it, I should have never given up, so let me say to all of the the would be guitar gaints out there , remember when you see a butt kicking guitar player that skill did not come in a bottle that you drink down like a potion with magical powers, no one becomes great without great pratice.
The key is complete commit to your dream with no compromises if you mean what you say do not ever quit or you may be one day 68 and starting all over again, I wll never quit again and above all neither should you.
I still have dreams and goals before I die, one of them is learning to play the guitar well enough to play with a band some day (become what you dream to be)no but you can end your dream.
The best thing of all by far, playing Barre chords, is your chord vocabulary increases as well as your fingerboard knowledge….you can..map and target chords…on the fly…play them if you wish or not at all…there are (chord sounds) that you cannot get using “OPEN” chord shapes.
In particular “Fifth’s” and “Seventh’s” All in all, as difficult as they appear to be the reward is definatly worth the pain and effort.
The best thing of all by far, playing Barre chords, is your chord vocabulary increases as well as your fingerboard knowledge….you can..map and target chords…on the fly…play them if you wish or not at all…there are (chord sounds) that you cannot get using \"OPEN\" chord shapes.
In particular \"Fifth\’s\" and \"Seventh\’s\" All in all, as difficult as they appear to be the reward is definatly worth the pain and effort.
Barre chords are easier on electric. Not really too good for acoustics.-watch out, too much strain can cause carpel tunnel syndrome!
I think barre chords will be the death of me! I keep working at them and have almost injured myself trying to master them in the process!!! very frustrating but I know I will learn them someday – right?!- LOL. Oh well, I can still play in open chord land!
hey the barre cord is a night mare i have tryed to play guitar for two years i still struggle have you any short videos on the subject hey griff your guitar playing is brilliant keep sending the videoes steve
I remember having some trouble with barre chords when I first started playing guitar… now they’re almost second nature; I can handly even ‘double barre’ chords (as long as I don’t have to hold ‘em for too long!)
If I have a tip to add to the good advice given above by Merlin, as well as Griff of course, it is that barre chords are easier to play further up the neck (as long as your guitar doesn’t have a ridiculously high action; in which case, have it fixed!)
They’re also easier to play if you use a capo, as this lowers the amout of pressure you need to form the barre… of course, it raises the pitch, but that’s a trade-off; my point here is that if you have trouble at first making barre chords sound clean, try them with a capo, or further up the neck; once your fingers know what they’re doing they won’t find it so hard when you go right back down to the first and second frets…
It worked for me anyway…
Hey everyone, Just wanted to chime in on the barre chord discussion. I have an acoustic set up with .0016 strings. They are logs. I gotta say they sound awesome, but really hard on the hands. However when I pick up the electric the neck is like butter. If you really want get a good workout try pulling off some of those Hendrix style claw chords. You know, the chords that use your thumb to play the low E string. These are movable shapes as well. Once you start getting these down. Barre chords will never seem so bad ever again. Also try alternating between playing your barre chord then playing the chord arpeggio style. When your hand starts cramping play the arpeggio. when the arpeggio gets too fast and thin go back to the Barre. And like Griff says you’ll probably just start using the parts of the chord that you need at any given moment. Listen to the sound your making as you play the chord.
It took me 8 months to perfect barre chords. I can now play them anywhere on the neck. When you learn the full barre chord first it is much easier to learn and understand the smaller chord versions that Griff uses. With one or two finger changes you can play minors, dominant majors, 6ths, 7ths, 9ths and 13th notes easily.. Also if you just hit the four high strings with a full barre shape you get a brighter sound that Griff recommends in band situations. The Kinks early hits You Really Got Me etc are all full on barre chord songs and the best example of how great they can sound. Good playing.
I just happen to land to this site and it is a good written read, a little on the short side, but a pretty acceptable one.
I really adore the layout too, it is fairly simple to navigate.
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