A shape barre chord

I"ve seen others play with thier pinky. It did not seem to hinder them at all. I play the A with any of the 3 other fingers but NOT my pinky. It really depends on the chord I just moved from or the chord I am going to play next. The only tthing I can think of is that it would stop you from being able to play an Asus4 chord or move to a Dsus2 gracefully. That said, you may want to consider using another finger or get used to playing with other fingers.

Asus4 - Do you see how using a pinky would not be good if you went from A to Asus4?

Dsus2 - Same issue if you were moving from an A

I use my ring finger to barre the "A" shape.

This leaves the pinky open to add 7 or 9 or 11 (not sure on that theory part) to that shape by using the pinky and fretting the next fret up on the "B" string.

Thanks for the tips, I can see where using the ring finger to barr the A shape would be best, but seriously I dont think my ring finger will bend backwards enough to barr the strings.

Can technique make up for lack of flexibility in this finger, is using the ringer finger as a barr something that ALL can accomplish with practice, it just seems like an impossibilty right now.

Thanks again.

David

How long have you been playing? Most people have troubles in shaping chords when they first start. And yes, you will need your ring finger to shape barre chords. It will get easier with practice.

Thanks for the advice, I've been playing guitar about four years, and although Barr Chordes are not my strong point, not sure I have a strong point, I can manage most chordes, it's just trying to bend the tip of that ring finger that seems so difficult.

I'll have to see if I can find an exercise or something that might help, I'm not giving up :)

Any suggestions on bending the tip of the ring finger backwards, short of breaking it ? I'm game to give it a try.
I guess this is just one of those guitar thangs', just may take some time...

You can just leave the first string out of the chord. Many people do. The one thing you don't want is that the first string is down enough to sound but not down far enough that it rings properly and ends up buzzing.

You could also angle the ring finger a little (hand side of the finger a little towards the neck) and that might help in clearing the first string. Don't angle too much though or you won't be holding the second string down right.

I sometimes play A shape barre with my pinky and find that I can play the open high e string. Its not unusual as the pinky is generally more flexible then other fingers.

While there are traditional methods to fret chords, everyone is different and a popular fingering may not work for everyone. The thing is to experiment with different fingerings. For instance, I will play a "barre A" type chord all of these ways at times:


D Major chord 5th fret (barre A type)

e-5i------------5i-----5i-
b-7r-----7p-----7p-----7p-
g-7r-----7p-----7r-----7m-
d-7r-----7r-----7m-----7r-
a—5i-----5i-----5i-----5i-
e-------------------------


The second fingering is probably the form I use most simply because it is the most comfortable form for me. I really don't care how other people hold this chord. The last form may look strange, but there are occasions I use this form if it helps me switch to the following chord easier.

So there is nothing written in stone. Learn the traditional fingerings, but experiment with others as well. The most important thing is that you play the chord cleanly.

I use the ring finger to free up the pinky to get that boogie woogie thing going ......... and no not picking my nose. I do that with my right hand. :lol:

Hi,

As Wes says, the most important issue is to play it cleanly. Whichever way suits you (or the particular chord change) is fine - just as long as it works. Although I can do all of his ways from a 'standing start' I'm still pretty lousy at most of them in the middle of a song. So while you're perfecting whichever one(s) you feel most comfortable with it pays to remember that you don't need to sound all five strings anyway. Three are enough for the chord, and three clean notes beats five crummy ones. 8)

Starting on the A string 5th fret, in his diagrams the notes are D, A, D, F#, A. One 'extra' A and a spare D too.

As you can see, the necessary 3 notes are found on the 'middle' 3 strings. The note order will affect the 'voicing' or sound, but it will still 'fit' in the song. I know quite a few players who will simply lay a single finger barre across and then make sure they only strum the D, G and B strings. :wink:

I mostly use a couple of the methods Wes shows, but when I'm playing a song - rather than practising the shapes - I'll often strum only the 3 strings, just to be on the safe side... :roll:

Depends on the song and the chord change though.... Good luck. :)

Cheers,

Chris

I use my pinky also. It usually depends on whether or not the high e string needs to be heard. If not, I'll use my ring finger. It's just what feels right at the time.

Denny

Wow thanks for all the advice! GOOD STUFF..... Last night I went home and tried practing with my ring finger, I moved up to seventh fret instead of the second fret, B major, I'm hoping that practing a little higher on the neck will make it a little easier at first and maybe help get the technique/flexibilty working then I'll try playing down the neck.

When I was playing, not practicing last night, I used my dependable pinky finger, this sounds the cleanest for now, it will have to work until I can get that ring finger working a littlle better.

Thanks again
David

If you are trying to play an A barre chord why dont you just use your index finger??

If you are trying to play an A barre chord why dont you just use your index finger??

That's fine if you want to add to an open A chord - but if you want to move the shape up and down the neck, ie play a D chord at the fifth fret with an A-shaped barre chord - the index finger's going to have to make the barre, and the ring finger is generally used for the mini-barre two frets up, especially if you're playing a blues shuffle.

Look at this chord.....x57775....a D chord played with an A-shaped barre. If you play it with the index forming the barre at the fifth fret, and a mini-barre across the 7th (don't worry about the top E string - you can either mute it, or with practise, let it ring.) then you have quite a few options.....

Little finger on the D string at the 9th fret, you're adding the sixth - D6. A bit of a stretch, but if you can push that pinky one fret further up to the 10th fret, you've got a D7 chord. That's the classic blues shuffle - D (or D5), D6, D7. Move the pinky to the G string at the 9th fret, and you're adding the 9th - Dadd9. Pinky on the B string at the 8th fret, you've got Dsus4. Pinky on the top E string at the 8th fret, you've got a fairly easy way to play D7. THAT'S why it's a good idea to use your ring finger for the mini-barre!

:D :D :D

Vic