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#278625 - 26/07/10 09:07 AM
beginner needs help with barre chords
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munro9
Be Nice (I'm New!)
Registered: 30/03/10
Posts: 9
Loc: dunfermline, scotland
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right!!! i need help!! ive been going to lessons for a few months now and really enjoying it, should have done it years ago, HOWEVER ive hit the wall with barre chords! i just cant get the buggers. my hands should be quite strong as ive done judo for over twenty years (although there are a few misshappen fingers there). Can anyone help before my guitar goes through the windae
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#278627 - 26/07/10 10:56 AM
Re: beginner needs help with barre chords
[Re: munro9]
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english_bob
english_bob
Unregistered
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Barre chords are a well known milestone for the beginner guitarist, and unless you were used to pinning six very thin opponents down with the side of your forefinger, your judo's probably not going to help 
It WILL come with practice though, you just need to keep plugging away at it and building up both the strength in your fingers and the hardness of the skin down the side where it makes contact with the strings (you'll know all about this from your fingertips in the very early days, but don't worry, this is the last part of your body that needs to get calluses, unless the judo is making any other demands...)
It's generally a little easier to form a barre further up the neck, so if you're struggling with the first fret "F" shape, try it up at the fifth fret or higher- string tension is slightly lower as you're not right next to the nut. You might have a little more success this way, which will help your confidence.
Alternatively, try a partial barre rather than a full six-string one- hold down the E and B strings only, and you might find it works better. Again, you can work up to doing the full barre as you gain strength.
Good luck, and stick with it!
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#278639 - 26/07/10 05:10 PM
Re: beginner needs help with barre chords
[Re: ]
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elkay
Professional Forumite!
Registered: 23/11/05
Posts: 352
Loc: Croydon
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Barre chords is not about strength, but rather about the correct positioning of fingers. I'm sorry to contradict Bob, but imho you do not need strength and hard skin down the side of your finger to play barre chords (sorry Bob). When you cannot get a clear clean sound, the instinct is to press down harder. However, you should try to avoid this, and try instead to shift your finger positions. As you say, you probably already have strength in your fingers through your judo, so it should be clear to you that strength is not the problem.
Try this exercise. As Bob rightly says, it's easier forming barre chords further up the necks, so this exercise is about forming an 'F-shape' A chord on the 5th fret. Stretch your index finger across the 5th fret, and try to get a clean sound on the high E, B and low E strings. Your finger should be slightly bent and flexible rather than absolutely straight and rigid. Keep adjusting the position of your finger until you get clean sounds on the fore-mentioned three strings. Next, place your 2nd finger on G6, and again keep adjusting your finger positions until you get clean sounds from the E, B, G and low E strings. Carry on adding one finger at a time in the same way, each time adjusting your fingers until you get a clean sound from all the required strings. Try it with other chord shapes as well, starting with the index finger barre, adding one finger at a time, only moving on to the next finger when you get clean sounds. Don't worry, keep at it, be positive, and it'll soon come.
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#278643 - 27/07/10 02:15 AM
Re: beginner needs help with barre chords
[Re: elkay]
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munro9
Be Nice (I'm New!)
Registered: 30/03/10
Posts: 9
Loc: dunfermline, scotland
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thats intersting guys, thanks! i was looking for tips on the web and got a couple of sugestions to place the other fingers before the barre finger (make sense?) and id been trying that with very slow progress. ill go back to the index finger first and see how i get on! ill keep you up to date
cheers
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#278645 - 27/07/10 03:14 AM
Re: beginner needs help with barre chords
[Re: elkay]
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english_bob
english_bob
Unregistered
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I'm sorry to contradict Bob
Not at all. You're probably right. As long as we both agree that with practice (and perhaps a re-assessment of how yer man is approaching it...) it will come, and that the guitar definitely shouldn't be thrown out the window, it's all good
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#278649 - 27/07/10 05:30 AM
Re: beginner needs help with barre chords
[Re: ]
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munro9
Be Nice (I'm New!)
Registered: 30/03/10
Posts: 9
Loc: dunfermline, scotland
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hmmm think ive probably been relying on strength rather than technique! thanks guys!!
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