Learning Guitar Chords
While still in college, I got interested in guitar playing and asked a cousin to teach me. Although she was a good guitar player, I couldn’t quite get what she was teaching me so I decided to study with a music teacher so that I can fully grasp all that there is to learn in playing the guitar. It was not easy but it was fun. It took me quite some time to learn how to read chords and scales but it was all worth it after finally learning guitar chords and playing my favorite songs on my guitar.
The first thing I was taught was how to learn the basic chord patterns. There are actually two chord categories, the major and minor chords. The major and minor chord patterns on a guitar are C, A, G, E, and D chord patterns which are derived from the unique tuning of the guitar. The C minor and G minor patterns are more difficult than the C major and G major patterns while the three other minor patterns as easier to play.
In Learning Guitar Chords, you need to learn how to read a guitar chord diagram. The black dots on the diagram shows you where to place your finger while white dots shows you to play without fingering any notes on the fretboard. Your fingers are mapped out and numbered as T (thumb), 1 (index finger), 2 (middle finger), 3 (ring finger), and 4 (little finger). If there is an X on the chart, it means that you don’t strum the string.
Getting your fingers to work in learning guitar chords is a bit difficult when you are still starting to learn but with constant practice you will notice that it becomes easier as your fingers will automatically know which string to touch. It is important to have short nails when studying to play the guitar and position your fingers correctly. You might notice your fingertips getting sore after a few days of practice and you just have to give it some rest before resuming after it’s already well.
In playing guitar chords, it is important to remember that each note should be pressed down together and you need to practice doing this so that you can efficiently play the guitar. Play each of the major chords one at a time and after you have become comfortable playing one chord, move on to the next. After a while you can try combining and changing chords.
After you have mastered the major and minor chords, you can start practicing the power chords. These chords contain only two different notes and are composed of the root, a perfect 5th and the octave. As you go along in learning guitar chords, you will become familiar with all the terms being used in the lessons.
After learning only the basic steps in guitar playing, I decided to study on my own. Practicing everyday has made me a better guitar player and nothing can compare to the satisfaction and joy that I feel every time I play my guitar.
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