2.7   Getting the Hang of New Guitar Chords

| 2.6 Use Hammer Ons and Pull Offs | Back to Free Guitar Lessons |

Getting the hang of new chords is a very long and hard process - some people would find it extremely frustrating. But that said, just like with anything in life it's just about practice and keeping motivated.

When you start trying to play a new chord, you may find that you either can't get your fingers to reach the frets or that you can't construct the chord quickly enough. If your problem is the first one, it's all about practicing and allowing your fingers to become more flexible. However it should be noted that you should do this gradually and with care, as forcing your fingers to spread more than they should could result in injury.

If you find that you can't construct the chord quickly enough to play the song at the normal tempo, you should try playing the song at a slower speed and gradually increase the tempo. This should ideally be done using a metronome, as this will encourage a systematic approach and will allow you to see your improvement. If you do not have a metronome, you can either purchase one (for example from our Online Guitar Store) or you can use our free online metronome.

If you're having trouble with one chord in particular, try practicing just that chord change. By this I mean play the chord that is before the chord you're having trouble with, and then change to the problematic one. Repeat this until you get hang of the chord change. This method will work because of a thing called "muscle memory". If you repeat an action often enough, your muscles will "remember" exactly what to do.

Another pointer which may help you improve your chord playing is by looking at the fingering of the chord. On chord charts there are usually numbers at the top to indicate which fingers to use for each fret within the chord. Click here for an example of an E chord. These are the most common way of fingering the chords, but it may not be the suitable fingering for you. Try fingering the chord, and switching fingers around until you find one that is comfortable for you.

| 2.6 Use Hammer Ons and Pull Offs | Back to Free Guitar Lessons |