Basic Guitar Chords

Many people are aspiring to learn how to play the guitar. The guitar has risen into a certain level of popularity that it has become a symbol of talent, creativity and coolness. However, learning how to play the guitar is no joke. Learning to play the instrument requires one to learn how to play the chords.

First you must know how to read a chord diagram…

Basic Guitar Lesson

When you are first learning to play guitar, concentrate on learning basic chords to build a solid foundation. There are three basic groups of chords: major, minor, and dominant seventh (7th). These three groups of chords make up much of the world's music. After you have mastered these fairly easy chords, you can always go on to Barre Chords, and other more complex chords later. Master the basics first! A good way to make practicing these basic chords more interesting is to play them in groups known as Chord Families. This will allow you to pretty quickly play some great chord progressions and songs.

The Five Basic Major Chords

The Basic Guitar Chord Chart below shows a good variety of some easy-to-play open chords. The chords are represented in the form of a guitar chord diagram or “box” that is much easier to read than standard musical notation.

The Five Basic Minor Chords

The Dominant 7^th Chords

Possible Difficulties and Problems:

• Your Fingers Hurt

-       That’s normal keep on going till your finger tips produce a layer of corn.

• Your Left Handed

-       You need to think particularly carefully when choosing a guitar. A lefty guitar will probably feel more natural to you and could be the right choice.

• The chords doesn’t sound clear

-       Your finger might be far away from the fret or too close.

-       Apply more pressure

-       If a string doesn't sound you might be touching it with the flesh of an adjacent finger. Keep the finger nails of your left hand short.  Your fingers should be almost 90 degrees against the fret board and long finger nails prevent you from doing this.

Best Tips for Beginners

            One should learn how to play the guitar with some inspiration at the back of his head. Listening to good guitar players will give one some idea of where he would want to go in the future. An important thing to remember when learning how to play guitar chords is that the movement of the right hand is as important as the movement of the left hand. Most beginners would find themselves taking breaks in strumming until the left hand positions itself properly for the next chord. This is normal during the first few day of practice, but at some point, the right hand should dictate the tempo of the movements of both hands. Strumming or plucking shouldn't be delayed.