[solidwalnut]

Barre Chords for Beginners and Beyond

It's time to create a lesson-thread where all folks of experience can help our brothers and sisters who are new to learn and play and use barre chords. Such a dirty word at times and hard work for those who are starting out. But fear not! We're glad to help. Here ya go.

What are Barre Chords?

They are chord formations that can move up and down the fretboard. Stop here and open this lesson to check out the basics of them.

Keep that lesson open so we can take advantage of the great graphics that Kirk has on his lessons. Notice the first graphic you see: The E chord form moving up the neck two frets. This is what it's all about. At this point, we're only going to concentrate on two forms: The E major and the A major forms. The variations follow these easily but we need to get a grip on the basic principles first. We need visual anchors.

Let's use the fretboard map for both anchors. Keep this fretboard page open for reference, but for simplicity sake I'll repeat the E and A strings here.

0........1...........2..........3..........4..........5..........6..........7...........8...........9..........10.........11........12.........13........14.........

A ||-A#/Bb-|---B---|---C---|-C#/Db-|---D---|-D#/Eb-|---E---|---F---|-F#/Gb-|---G---|-G#/Ab-|---A---|-A#/Bb-|---B---|--

E ||---F----|F#/Gb-|---G---|-G#/Ab-|---A---|-A#/Bb-|---B---|---C---|-C#/Db-|---D---|-D#/Eb-|---E---|---F----|-F#/Gb|--

If this doesn't translate well for you in your monitor, just refer to the E and A strings on the fretboard map page.

The E form Barre

Starting with the top string or the low E, the open string is of course an E note. This is the bass note of the open E chord and the visual anchor for the E form barre chord. When you first learn to play the open E chord, you usually learn it by using the index, middle and ring fingers and it looks like this:


022100

Now play the same chord using the middle, ring and pinky fingers.


022100

What happens if you slide this formation up one fret and barre your index finger across all of the strings? Well, what's the first fretted note of the E string? An F of course, so it's the F major chord. And so on up the neck.


133211

Now open up the E Form Major page and check out how the rest of the E form barre chords work up the fingerboard.

The A form Barre

Starting with the next string, the A is of course an A note. This is the bass note of the open A chord and the visual anchor for the A form barre chord. When you first learn to play the open A chord, you often learn it by using the index, middle and ring fingers.


x02220

This isn't always so, but go with me on this one for now.

Now play the same chord using the middle, ring and pinky fingers.


x02220

What happens if you slide this formation up one fret and barre your index finger across all of the strings to the A string? Well, what's the first fretted note of the A string? A Bb of course. So it's a Bb chord. And so on up the neck.


x13331

Now open up the A Form Major page and check out how the rest of the A form barre chords work up the fingerboard.

Ok, ok, there are variances on how the A and the A form barre chords are formed. Notice in the variations on the A form barre pictures below that I'm really only reaching over to the fret the A string and not barreing the rest. Work smarter, not harder! Sometimes your fingers just can't do any of these things. Here's another variation on the open A, and this is often used when playing electric.



And here's a couple of those variations on the A form barre.



"A form barre 2" comes in handy when you want to learn that rock and roll move.



To Sum it Up, Let's Talk...

Take a look at the photos...notice that I'm only barreing the strings that aren't covered by the other fingers. Take the E form barre for example, for a G chord: 355433. I only need to barre the 3's!! The middle, ring and pinky fingers are taking care of frets 5 and 4! This could make a difference in how you approach the form. For my hand specifically: as I barre across with the index finger, I go across as far as I can (see the third pic) so the B and bottom E strings are near the crease of the finger and hand. That way, I use the fleshy part of the finger to barre those strings. This leaves the fleshy part of finger near the tip to barre the top E.

Be sure to check out all the links under Chords and check out the chord pictorials and chord finders here at this site.

There's much to talk about as far as playing barre chords. One area you can work with is discovering that it's ok to play partial barre chords. There are many players who can't play full barre chords, and so they stick with partials. No problem. Often times partials are desirable. Let's talk about those.

Let's talk about the different ways you play the A forms. What are some of your tips on learning and playing barre chords? Where's the thumb supposed to be? Are there links to other threads from this site about barre chords? What happens when my hand starts cramping?

This lesson can also be found in my lesson forum. For a list of the lessons, click the Lessons for the Beginner and Beyond link below.

[stanleyp]

Thanks for this thread ... have enjoyed it very much. Am presently in my 7th month playing guitar, and am working on barre chords too ... so all the hints help. I find changing from the Open chords to barre chords is tougher than just using all barres (where the song will allow).

For instance, it is easier to go from a Bm barre (of course) to a G barre and back again; than to an open chord G and back.

I'm sure this is just practice practice practice ... but I still feel pretty good when I can nail a few barrechords in a row this way!

Stan

[solidwalnut]

Originally Posted by stanleyp

Thanks for this thread ... have enjoyed it very much. Am presently in my 7th month playing guitar, and am working on barre chords too ... so all the hints help. I find changing from the Open chords to barre chords is tougher than just using all barres (where the song will allow).

For instance, it is easier to go from a Bm barre (of course) to a G barre and back again; than to an open chord G and back.

I'm sure this is just practice practice practice ... but I still feel pretty good when I can nail a few barrechords in a row this way!

Stan

Cool. I'm glad it working out for you. You were saying it's easier to go from a Bm barre to a G barre and back. It certainly is. But I like to keep my hand loose and switch back and forth between open and barres whenever I can. It's hell getting old! But keeping the hand loose is a good thing for the future.

Steve

[tomg123]

I rarely use barre chords and should spend more time with em. I can go from F barre to open C but any song i do is smoother with just open chords. And i actually find full barres to be easier then partials for me, except when its just the high e and b strings i'm barreing

[solidwalnut]

Originally Posted by tomg123

I rarely use barre chords and should spend more time with em. I can go from F barre to open C but any song i do is smoother with just open chords. And i actually find full barres to be easier then partials for me, except when its just the high e and b strings i'm barreing

No rules, that's for certain. I guess another way of looking at useing full barres is that just because you barre all of the strings doesn't mean you have to play them all...

[tomg123]

Thanks solid, of course the other problem is using those 3 end fingers when i've really only worked with the first three for most chords, then the added stress of how many strings to cover with the first finger. So one full barre does it guess. There's really only one answer after all the advice and that is practice

[solidwalnut]

Originally Posted by tomg123

There's really only one answer after all the advice and that is practice

Isn't that the truth. Whenever you want to give it a go, learn all the CAGED chords with the small fingers. You'll be glad you did.

[AX7221]

I've heard guitarists who prefer freting say an E major form bar chord by putting their thumb on the low e string, then using thier ring finger on A, pinky on D, middle finger G then index finger on B and E. Or say an A minor form bar chord with thier thumb on E and A, then thier pinky, ring finger and middle finger on D, G, B, then thier index finger on high E. I tired to find a picture of it but couldn't. My hands are too small to play it, but I've heard people say it's much more versitle, meaning more bar chord fingerings to choose from, meaning they could never go back to the old way. Like I said I haven't been able to manage them but I'd figure I'd bring it up for completenes' sake and someone who actaully can play it can go into it.

[solidwalnut]

Originally Posted by AX7221

I've heard guitarists who prefer freting say an E major form bar chord by putting their thumb on the low e string, then using thier ring finger on A, pinky on D, middle finger G then index finger on B and E. Or say an A minor form bar chord with thier thumb on E and A, then thier pinky, ring finger and middle finger on D, G, B, then thier index finger on high E. I tired to find a picture of it but couldn't. My hands are too small to play it, but I've heard people say it's much more versitle, meaning more bar chord fingerings to choose from, meaning they could never go back to the old way. Like I said I haven't been able to manage them but I'd figure I'd bring it up for completenes' sake and someone who actaully can play it can go into it.

Sure, why not? More tools in the tool bag. I use it ocassionally. It's not my default, but I'll use it depending on where I'm going with it or where I've been in certain progressions. It's not so natural for my hand, but then again it doesn't feel too bad. It's just not what I'm used to, and it feels like more of an unnatural stretch for me.

[Vladimir D.]

Hello!
What does small "m" and number "7" stand for.
Thanks!

Gm7
G7
Gm

[solidwalnut]

Originally Posted by Vladimir D.

Hello!
What does small "m" and number "7" stand for.
Thanks!

Gm7
G7
Gm

The small "m" is for minor, the number stands for the flavor of the chord, in this case a 7th.

Here's how you play these three chords using the E formation barre:

Gm7 = 353333, G7 = 353433, Gm = 355333

Steve

[Vladimir D.]

Thank you Steve!

[distrust]

Hi I'm new here. ^^
Your lesson about barre chords is nice and complete. I'm a 21 year old guy who happened to be a guitarist in our church, here in our small village, and i've been giving lessons and tips to the young kids in our church, and i say this will be very helpful. honestly, for the past few years, i didn't even know it was called "barre chords" XD.

anyway, i just wanna share my experience with barre chords. at first, i had trouble shifting from C to F, or D to Bm. i practiced first on F, what i did is, i placed my middle finger first on 2nd fret-G string followed by the ring finger on 3rd fret-A string, pinky finger on the 3rd fret-D string then i flatten my index finger on the 1st fret. i practiced this moving from one chord to another starting with my middle finger (ex: from F - A, A-G), and i gradually developed my speed when changing from one chord to another.

[solidwalnut]

Originally Posted by distrust

Hi I'm new here. ^^
Your lesson about barre chords is nice and complete. I'm a 21 year old guy who happened to be a guitarist in our church, here in our small village, and i've been giving lessons and tips to the young kids in our church, and i say this will be very helpful. honestly, for the past few years, i didn't even know it was called "barre chords" XD.

anyway, i just wanna share my experience with barre chords. at first, i had trouble shifting from C to F, or D to Bm. i practiced first on F, what i did is, i placed my middle finger first on 2nd fret-G string followed by the ring finger on 3rd fret-A string, pinky finger on the 3rd fret-D string then i flatten my index finger on the 1st fret. i practiced this moving from one chord to another starting with my middle finger (ex: from F - A, A-G), and i gradually developed my speed when changing from one chord to another.

Thanks for the kind words. And thanks for sharing your experience on your method of learning.

I want to pass along the method I learned for switching between chords, and this also includes barre chords. It's a method described in my lesson, Form Chords and Switch Between them Quickly.

The method described there is a method I call Chord Planting. In a nutshell, I learned to form chords in the air over the strings and then plant my fingers on the fretboard in that formation. I repeated this for all of the chords. What I would do is to choose two or three chords at a time and switch between them in this fashion without regard to any rhythm. Then, I wouldn't strum until the chord was firmly planted on the fretboard. If I had any fretbuzz, it was a do-over.

The result is that I learned to switch between chords so cleanly and quickly that I could follow any rhythm with ease and confidence. An added bonus is that when I make chord mistakes, I can very quickly switch to the correct chord. A) people don't realize the mistake and B) this is the beginning of instilling confidence where you don't stop in the middle of playing just because you made a mistake.

Steve

[Cactus]

Originally Posted by thedamon

barre chords are also very versatile. Let us look at the different chords you can make by just staying at the third fret.

3
3
4 This would be a G chord
5
5
3

3
3
3 This would make a Gm chord
5
5
3

3
3
4 Here is a G7 chord
3
5
3

3
3
3 And a Gm7 barre chord
3
5
3

3
5
5 Here is a B barre chord
5
3
X

3
4
5 This is one I use often, a Bm chord
5
3
X

3
5
3 Here's a B7 chord
5
3
X

3
4
3 And finally a Bm7 chord
5
3
X


The numbers show which fret to put your fingers on. Notice how the index finger covers the entire third fret on all of the above examples. Slide the hand up or down the neck to get to the chord you want.

I hope this helps those people who are beginning to use Barre chords. This is my first post, so I guess this would be a good time to say, "Love the site."

thedamon

Hey, New guy here.....
Got major confussion.

Quoting you here:
The numbers show which fret to put your fingers on. Notice how the index finger covers the entire third fret on all of the above examples. Slide the hand up or down the neck to get to the chord you want.
End quote)


OK, take the "B" here for example.
I am not getting how to understand these numbers e.g.

3
5
5
5 here is the B chord
3
X

I am blind as to what these numbers are, and how to read this. Can you give me the real elementary explaination please sir?

Thank you very much!

Cactus

[allthumbs]

The numbers represent the frets your fingering. BTW, your B chord is actually a C chord. A B chord would be your index across the 2fret and your other fingers or finger covering the 2,3,4 string.