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Are you having trouble learning how to play barre chords on the guitar? If so, you’re not alone! Many guitar players, especially beginners, as well as those who have been playing for a while and only play open string chords, likely experience similar difficulty. Luckily, there are a few technique tricks that will help you solve the problem of playing guitar barre chords. You already know, of course, that ‘barre’ means that you play multiple strings with the same finger.
Do you really have to know how to play barre chords on the guitar? Well, if you want to become a better player and have more fun, the answer is yes! The beauty of barre chords is that they’re moveable, they allow you to select chord voicings, and you can easily play in every key. Moving a barre chord shape to a different fret simply changes the tonic, or root note, which changes the name of the chord. Move an E chord up two frets and it becomes an F#; move a B chord down a fret and it becomes a Bb. So, it’s really better to think of barre chords for guitar as moveable chords. By the way, although sometimes referred to as ‘bar’ chords, the preferred terminology retains the French spelling, ‘barre.’
Let’s get started with the technique tricks for playing guitar barre chords. First, play an open string E chord using normal fingering; now, change the fingering and use your second, third, and fourth fingers. Slide the shape up the neck, so that fingers three and four are in the fifth fret. Next, place your index finger (already perfectly positioned) over the third fret and press down all six strings. Excellent! You just played a G major barre chord! However . . . perhaps it didn’t sound quite right. So, let’s fix that.
A critical element of learning how to play barre chords on the guitar is correct thumb position. Place your thumb vertically in the middle of the neck, keep it straight, and align it with your second finger. A very slight angle to the left or right is okay, but do not bend your thumb or use the tip. And, never position it horizontally pointing toward the tuning pegs. This is extremely important!
Notice that your arm and hand form about a ninety degree angle. If your arm and hand are in a straight line, or if your thumb peeks above or below the neck, start over and try it again. It should only take a few tries to get it right. Lowering your thumb even more on the neck will increase your stretching ability.
Note: clarity is the next big issue when learning how to play barre chords on the guitar. You’ll find that you don’t have to push down on the strings as hard as you might think. Instead, think of ‘pinching’ or ‘squeezing’ the neck between your thumb and fingers. Let your thumb do half of the work and use it for leverage! This really works, and if you ‘squeeze,’ playing guitar barre chords gets a lot easier.
If any of the strings still sound muffled, remember to keep your fingers curved (not the barre finger, of course), play on the tips, and position them as close to the metal frets as possible. The index finger is often the culprit, so roll it just a little bit and play more on the outside edge of your finger. That way, the strings don’t go under the finger joints. One more tip – whenever you use two fingers on adjacent strings in the same fret, always lock them together. Ride one slightly over the top of the other one. You’ll have far less strength if you separate your fingers. Please check Barre Chord Hand Position Photo Supplement
Since you’ve now mastered playing barre chords on the guitar, it’s time to learn a few barre chord forms. The first diagram row (below) shows the five moveable chord forms in ascending order. The color coded notes demonstrate the relationship between the chords by displaying which notes are common to each other. For example, yellow carries over to yellow, blue to blue, etc. Root locations are highlighted in the next row.
The second row shows the corresponding open string form, which becomes a barre chord when moved up the neck. Roots are displayed in purple.
Knowing how to play barre chords on the guitar also requires memorization. If you know how to play major, major seventh, minor, minor seventh, and dominant seventh chords, you can play almost everything. Memorize the following fifteen barre chords for guitar! You may want to skip the D minor chord in the third row, though – it’s pretty hard to play. The chord forms are classified by the inversion (which scale tone can be played on the bottom string). There are a lot of notation systems and most of them work well, so you may change this one to your liking. Roots are purple – optional notes and fingerings are blue. Paying attention to the barre chord root locations will come in handy for soloing, too!
With a little practice, playing guitar barre chords will become effortless. ‘Barring’ any problems (sorry, couldn’t resist that one), welcome to an exciting new world, and have fun!
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