Part 1 Understanding Chords
1 Understand the strings. It's best to first familiarize yourself with the guitar strings and how they contact your fingers. For convenience, we're going to number the strings. The strings on your guitar should be numbered as shown in the picture:
• Sort vertically from 1 to 6, from highest pitch to lowest pitch.
• Horizontally, sort by fret position from high to low.
• Note that if the instructions say "Place your first finger on the third fret," it means that you should place your finger "between" the second and third frets. This will allow the strings to make contact with the third fret.
If you know English, you might want to use this formula to memorize the pitch of each string, from the lowest (upper string) to the highest (lower string):
E at A ll D ay, G et B ig E asy.
2Number the fingers. Look at your left hand and imagine there are labels on the fingers. The index finger is 1, the middle finger is 2, the ring finger is 3, and the little finger is 4. The thumb is a "T", but for this article, we don't need to play chords with a "T".
3. Learn the C chord. The first thing to master is the C chord—one of the simplest chords in music. Before learning, let’s find out what it means. A normal chord, whether on a piano, a guitar or a well-trained vocal rat, is a sound made up of three or more notes (two notes, called a "duplet", are common in music, but are not chords). Chords involve more than just three notes, but that's beyond the scope of this article. The C chord looks like this on the guitar:
• The lowest note is on the third fret of the fifth string: 1 (do)
• The higher note is on the second fret of the fourth string: 3 (mi)
• Be careful not to place your fingers on the sixth string. When playing the C chord, this string should always be "open".
• The highest note is on the second string and the first fret: 1 (do)
• A C major chord does not require the highest and lowest strings.
4 Try these sounds. Play the notes in the chord one at a time from lowest to highest. Go carefully and slowly: press the strings tightly against the frets, then pluck the strings with your right hand. Make the sound last as long as possible, then move on to the next note:
• Place your middle finger on the third fret of the fifth string and pluck the string as before until the sound fades away. This is the 1 (do) note.
• Place your index finger on the second fret of the fourth string, pluck the string as before, and play 3 (mi).
• take a break! Simply strum the G string without placing your fingers.
• Place your index finger on the second string and the first fret, and then play 1 (do) loudly!
• Play again a few times. When you're ready, quickly sweep your fingers or pick across the four middle strings. You played the C chord!
• You may feel pain at first, but the pain will go away if you have developed calluses.
Part 2 Learn more chords
1Expand your music library. Being able to play the C chord is already great. It is definitely an introduction to more interesting music fields, but when it comes to music, there is more than just the C chord! When playing the key of C major, you will often use two other chords, the F chord and the G chord. The basic F chord tabs are as follows:
• The notes of the F chord are 4 (fa), 6 (la) and 1 (do). Pay attention to using the same finger to complete 4 (fa) and 1 (do): the index finger should press the first fret of the first and second strings at the same time.
• Generally speaking, the lowest note of a chord is its base, but in the F chord, the sound of 4 (fa) is on the first string and fret, which is also called "string inversion."
2 extended F chord. You can also play a 4 (fa) on the fourth string: place your middle finger on the third fret. You may notice that the chords don't sound any different, just "fuller".
3. Play the G chord. Just like the C and F chords, the G chord is one of the big three in the key of C major. There are many ways to play the G chord, here are two. The first one is easy: it's exactly the same as the extended F chord, you just move up two frets.
4 Play the G chord in the simplest way. There is also a way to play the G chord with just one finger.
5 Add the three chords. Now that you know the three basic chords of C major, put them together and you can mine countless pop songs from them. Play the C chord four times, the F chord twice, the G chord twice, and back to the C chord:
• Note that each chord is a Roman numeral. This means that the basic note positions of the chord are fixed regardless of fingering. Once you have mastered the basic notes of a chord, looking at the tablature is much easier than memorizing the chords.
• Practice until your fingers get tired, take a break and come back to continue: we will teach you the basic chords in the key of E and A!
6. Learn the key of E. A lot of rock music and blues are in the key of E. Here you will learn three chords: E Maj (I), A Maj (IV) and B Maj (V). Here is the key of E:
• When the fingers are already covered with calluses, the key of E is easy to play. You can play all the strings at once. Get ready the Marshall No. 11 amplifier, and a rock hero is born!
7 Play the A chord. This is a "major chord" in music. There are several ways to play it. Use one finger to hold down the second fret of the second, third, and fourth strings at the same time (play 1 (do) #, 6 (la), and 3 (mi) respectively), or you can combine it with other fingers. For example, place your ring finger on the second string, your middle finger on the third string, and your index finger on the fourth string.
• As you get better at playing, you'll realize that rapid transitions from one chord to another can sometimes lead to strange fingerings and incorrect pronunciations. The key is to make the most of your fingers, and once you start practicing, don't be afraid to experiment.
8 Play the B chord. It can be played in an easy way or in a difficult way. The simple method is shown in the picture above, and the fingering instructions are marked with black numbers. You can also add consonants, which are represented by gray numbers.
9 Give it a try. Here is another simple fingering for playing the key of E:
• Create different chord fingerings, don't just stick to the lines on the paper.
10. Learn the key of A. You're two-thirds of the way there! The key of A contains 6(la)(I) in 1st place, 2(re)(IV) in 4th place, and our powerful old friend, 3(mi)(V) in 5th place. Here's how to play the D chord:
• Note that your index finger is on the first three strings: this is the beginning of the "big barre" chord. A full barre chord involves holding all the strings with one finger and is based on the basic form shown in this article.
11. Learn an inverted A chord. This inverted A chord is very useful when played along with D and E chords:
12Try it. Pictured above is another ditty for practicing new chords.
• Now, get ready to try the song Down on the Corner by Creedence Clearwater Revival and practice it again!
Part 3 Using Video Chord Charts
1. Learn the G major chord. Place your ring finger on the third fret of the top string. Place your middle finger on the second fret of the fifth string and your pinky finger on the third fret of the first string. Pluck all the strings at the same time to play a chord. If you want, you can also press the third fret of the second string—it's not necessary, but it makes the chord richer.
• --3--
• --0--
• --0--
• --0--
• --2--
• --3--
2. Learn the C major chord. Place your ring finger on the third fret of the fifth string, then place your middle finger on the second fret of the fourth string. Also place your middle finger on the second fret of the fourth string - note that this is the same as the beginning of the G chord, just one string down. Finally place your index finger on the first fret of the second string. All but the top string are used.
• --0--
• --1--
• --0--
• --2--
• --3--
• --X--
3. Learn the D major chord. Playing this chord only uses the lower four strings. Place your index finger on the second fret of the third string. Then place your ring finger on the third fret of the second string and your middle finger on the second fret of the first string. This forms a small triangle. Using only these three strings and the fourth string, you can play a chord - that is, an open D chord.
• --2--
• --3--
• --2--
• --0--
• --X--
• --X--
4. Learn E minor and major chords. This chord uses all six strings. Place your middle and ring fingers on the second fret of the fourth and fifth strings, then place your index finger on the first fret of the third string. Then place your index finger on the first fret of the third string. Strike all six strings.
• --0--
• --0--
• --1--
• --2--
• --2--
• --0--
• You can play the E minor chord by simply removing your index finger and letting the third string open. [4]
Figure 21
5. Learn A major and minor chords. The A major chord is one of the simplest chords - it can be played just by placing your index, ring and middle fingers on the second fret of the second, third and fourth strings. All strings are used except the low E string.
• --0--
• --2--
• --2--
• --2--
• --0--
• --X--
• Play the A minor chord by playing the first fret instead of the second fret on the B string. The hand shape is the same as the E major chord.
6. Learn the F major chord. The F major chord is similar to the C major chord, just squeezed. Don't worry about the top two strings. Place your ring finger on the third fret of the fourth string. Place your middle finger on the second fret of the third string. Finally, place your index finger on the first fret of the second string. Only the lower four strings are used.
• --0--
• --1--
• --2--
• --3--
• --X--
• --X--
Tips
• Once you understand the basic chords, it is easier to think about the chords in terms of their tonal mechanics. For example, when playing the key of E, 3 (mi) (I) is called the tonic. The tonic is the note that all the other chords are close to - this gives Western music its dynamic feel. 6 (la) (IV) in the key of E has the function of assisting the tonic - it is like a passive note floating in the middle, wanting to move forward happily and returning to the tonic to rest. The function of the leading tone is just like its name: to take you where you want to go. In the key of E, this role is occupied by 7(xi)(V), which makes your brain want to go back to the tonic! As you get more familiar with chords and want to write your own melodies, try writing I-IV-V (or other types) instead of 3-6-7. If you find that the singer can't sing in the original key, this will make it easier for her to switch.
warn
• As Ringo Starr said during a busy studio session, "I've got blisters on my fingers!", you'll get blisters too, and your fingers will hurt. And guitarist George Harris said, "This too shall pass." The calluses will eventually replace the blisters. Practice regularly, and soon you won't be troubled by finger pain anymore.