Your cart is currently empty!
Achieving Faster Chord Changes on Guitar
Learning chords is fundamental to playing guitar. That should go without saying. However, I find that many beginners struggle for months to find fluidity between the simplest of chord changes. The reason, they have trained their hands to do just the opposite of their desired outcome. To find a path to faster chord changes, no matter how difficult, you have to teach your hands the correct way from the very beginning.
One Finger at a Time? Not for Faster Chord Changes
From the very beginning, guitarists learn by placing one finger at a time to create a chord. This is great for getting the fingers in the correct position. However, if this habit is not replaced in the early stages, then it takes much longer to create chord changes quickly and in time. Look at the following progression of finger placement for a C chord.
Finger 1 is placed on the C of the 2nd string.
Finger 2 is placed on the E of the 4th string.
Finger 3 is placed on the C of the 5th string.
If the above looks familiar, then you are in good company. The problem is that a beginner, and even some intermediate players, continue to practice this way until one day they can finally play the chord as a block (i.e. landing all the fingers at once). I have an adage that I repeat to students all the time, “practice makes permanent.” If you practice it that way, then you have no choice but to play it that way. And, there is a better way.
Block Landing for Faster Chord Changes
Instead of teaching your hands to play one finger at a time, begin teaching them to play as one block where all the fingers are spaced in the air and land simultaneously on their respective strings. Surprisingly it is rather easy to develop this skill. After I began teaching this idea, students who normally took 4 weeks to get down a transition from one chord to another went down to achieving it in just 2 weeks. We’ll take the same C chord and show how to develop this with ease.
Step 1:
Place fingers in the correct position to make the C chord and produce a clean sound. It is fine to use one finger at a time for this step.
Step 2:
Release the pressure from holding the strings down but do not let your fingers leave contact with the strings. Return your fingers to compressing the strings as you did in Step 1. However, you are “landing” all at the same time rather than one finger at a time.
Step 3:
After you feel comfortable with going back and forth between Step 1 and Step 2, then proceed to start at Step 1 and when you release the fingers allow them to come completely off the strings about 1/8 to 1/4 an inch holding the chord shape. Then, return the fingers to the strings landing the chord shape. Check to make sure each finger has landed accurately and no buzz is present.
Step 4:
As you feel your hand getting more comfortable with landing the entire chord at once, then it is time to take your hand completely out of position and form the chord shape above the strings. Drop your hand to your side, raise it to the guitar neck, form the chord in the air, and land all the fingers at the same time. If you cannot, then you need more practice with the previous steps.
Conclusion
I have seen this process work with even the most difficult chords and on the easiest of chords. Remember, everything is always difficult before it is easy. Take your time and you will find that the method works. Practice each chord you are having difficulty with and teach your hands the correct way to transition from one chord to another.
I have two degrees in guitar performance and was privileged to study under Aaron Shearer, Tom Kikta, David Skantar, Ken Karsh, Tim Bedner, and currently Christopher Berg. Outside my editorial work on this blog, I teach full-time across many genres including classical, jazz, blues, rock, funk, and metal.
by
Tags: