[redrider37]

Hi

I need some inspiration right now because our guitar teacher has asked us to learn "Stairway to Heaven".

And I am struggling, He has asked us to do the following chords and because I don;t want to look a dummy (I am 54, we have kids from 8 to 16) and they seem to be coping better I have decided to ask you guys rather than him.

Am at the 5th fret bar, ring finger on 4th string 7th fret
G# (add b) 5th fret bar middle finger 6th fret 4th string, ring finger 7th fret High E
C/G 5th fret bar, 8th fret high E I use my pinky

I can do the Bar, but as soon as I try and use my other fingers I either touch the other strings or / and I tend to lift the index finger which ruins the bar.

My arm/wrist hurts, I don't mind but will I damage my tendons if I persist, how long should I do it for do you experinced guys suggest, I have been playing 2 years.

Thanks in advance.

pete

[allthumbs]

Don't hold a barre for more than a minute or two till you have the experience to stay as relaxed as possible when you do them. Shake your hand out often too.
Tuck your elbow into your side, point the neck slightly towards the wall in front of you instead of parallel to your body. Make sure your thumb is in the middle of the back of the neck. All those things will help your hand curl around the neck so your fingers hit the strings at a better angle.

[Bennett]

The other thing to remember -- if you're not already doing it -- is that you don't have to do a FULL barre. You only need to barre the top three strings (ie. E, B and G). Of course, when you then get to the C/G chord you'll have to also bar the D string.

Nevertheless, only barring what is needed can help significantly. Sorry if you're already doing this.

[Cliff]

Is the action on your guitar high? Barre chords can be a lot more difficult on an acoustic with the strings too far off of the neck. I recommend you buy a brand new beautiful guitar and then you'll feel good even if you never figure out Stairway to Heaven!

If the action is too high, you can probably bring it to a shop that can lower it properly.

Good luck with the song.

[Cliff]

With my guitar in hand, I am analyzing how I play stairway to heaven. My fingering is the same as you mention above (i.e at the 5th fret). My thumb is right in the middle of the neck behind the index finger. My index finger bars strings 1-4 with the tip of my finger right next to the 5th fret and the rest of the index finger on a slight angle toward the 4th fret. I have pretty long fingers so the middle finger and ring finger come in pretty perpendicular to the fretboard without catching the other strings. By having the thumb in the middle of the neck, it brings the fingers out in front quite a bit to allow the perpendicular fingering.

[redrider37]

Thanks to all of you for taking the time to reply, as usual the generosity of spirit on this site has humbled me, rock on.

Pete