chord changes- are there some people who never learn

I feel exactly like you do. This post does not answer your question, but at least we are no longer alone....

I've found a couple of things that have helped me.

I decide on a chord, that i want to concentrate on - let's say "C". So what I play, then, is C, A, C, B7 (B isn't an open chord and the intention is to get chord changes right, rather than play music), C, D, C, E, C, F, C, G, C and back to A........

The other thing, is to play one chord (let's take the start of the series, I mentioned above) - C - and continue to play it, whilst at the same time picturing the next chord - A - in my mind. Only when I have the "A" firmly in my mind's eye, will I make the change. Then, do the same for going back to the "C" - get it firmly pictured in your mind's eye, before making the change.

exactly what greybeard said. i've been told to picture the chord in my mind, thats helped me.

Make the changes so very slowly that your fingers get there after your brain does.

Check out what fingers don't have to move, E to D for example. Once you have identified those fingers, don't move them.

Look at the shape of your fingers, C to G is really an easy switch when you realize that you are just shifting your ring and middle, locked in the exact same shape, to the next lower string. That shift should happen as a unit.

Something that helped me, besides thinking ahead to the next chord...for sounding smoother is what I refer to as cheating but not necessarily cheating but buying myself some time so I did not hear the 'pause' inbetween switching....I strum an upstroke on the bottom few strings while I am switching. This keeps things sounding fluent. I still do it going from an A to a F#m. :D

Another thing I have noticed in my practice and it is very true......when you tighten up and 'try' to go faster, it takes longer to get into position, especially when you are not happy with how your practice is going at the time. Force yourself to relax and take as long as it takes and you will find that soon it takes less time and you will be smiling. It takes a little discipline to relax but relax you must. 2 chords back and forth 1,000 times and you WILL get it, then add another in the mix and another and another. :D

Yet another thing I do to 'cheat' is to look for ways to be able to leave one finger on a string as a guide, as a reference point so I do not have to let go of the guitar and lose my place when the guitar moves....like from a D to a G, I put my pinky down on the high E BEFORE I let go to go fully into a G. From D to E, I leave and slide my index finger over and it makes the change so easy. From G to Em, I never lift my middle finger fully off the string, just lightly glide it over. I do not know if this is considered 'proper' to do or to advise others to do but it works for me. If this is not considered a proper practice, I hope someone chimes in here and corrects me. :D

are there some people who never learn?
Sure, lots. They're the ones who have quit. 8) You'll get the hang of it with practice.

Some folks have a harder time than others. What I do with students who are really struggling - besides showing them how to move efficiently - is to just practice getting into a chord 'cold'.

Take a chord like Am. Finger it, then take your hand completely away from the neck. Now, as fast as you can, get your fingers back on Am. Repeat that a hundred times.

Now try the change that goes from chord x to Am. You'll be noticeably faster - because changing chords is about two things: changing (making the motions efficient and all that) and LANDING the next chord.

Often with folks who have a lot of trouble changing for a decent period of time - several weeks or more - the root cause isn't the change, it's knowing the chords well enough. You're pausing to figure out the next chord, and then getting your fingers in the new places one at a time.

Once you've got the landing part nailed, then you can work at making the motions smoother and more efficient - and on landing other chords, of course :)

For this beginner, the hard part isn't so much the shapes of the chords (in the sense of the fingering position), but rather the difference in the space on the fretboard.

For example, even though I feel reasonably comfortable with my G and my D chords, I have trouble making this change, because moving my first two fingers from top strings to bottom strings is hard--I end up hitting strings 2 and 3 on my G, instead of 1 and 2, or something.

I'm working on this. But the thought of really distant chord changes--moving far up the neck--is a difficult one.

Hi Juletto,

I'm a beginner too - and an old one at that, so the fingers are pretty stiff!

I had the same feeling when I started too. But somewhere in the last year the work paid off and it all just suddenly seemed to "click". :D

I'd agree with the great comments in the posts above. The comments about "landing" chords and also using some fingers as "anchors" when possible both struck a (...cough..) chord with me. :roll:

When I started out I decided that I couldn't possibly take all the good advice on board at once, so I did things slowly at first and then fixed things up bit by bit. So at the start I had my guitar tilted a bit so I could watch my hands better, I watched the left hand constantly, etc.

Now I can play without looking at the left hand (mostly! - on familiar chords anyway) and with the guitar straight up and down.

A progression that I find good for getting the confidence up is G to Emin to Amin to C - lift off and start again at G. Apart from the restart at G there's an anchor finger at every change, so you just swing the others into place around it. Helps develop the habit of keeping all the fingers low and ready, not flailing around all over the place.

Once it's working change the order, and try adding another chord.

Good luck and keep practising. :D

Hi All,

newby here too.

what I am finding is the chords in the above post work real great in reverse.. C- Amin, Emin, G.....its got a crowded house- Better Be home soon feel to it ;).

It always helps when I can relate it to music........
Cheers

Mick

Hi Juletto,

I'm a beginner too - and an old one at that, so the fingers are pretty stiff!

Hi Chris,

A slight diversion from the topic here - hope you folks don't mind.

I'm old 'newbie' who started a few weeks ago. I've got a touch of arthritis in my left hand - is this what you mean about stiff fingers?

I am just wondering if learning the guitar will make the arthritis worse or, hopefully, the exercise will help it.

Hi Chris,

A slight diversion from the topic here - hope you folks don't mind.

I'm old 'newbie' who started a few weeks ago. I've got a touch of arthritis in my left hand - is this what you mean about stiff fingers?

I am just wondering if learning the guitar will make the arthritis worse or, hopefully, the exercise will help it.

Hi Dalron, great to meet you, :)

Yes, that's pretty much what I meant. I'll be 60 next year, so my hands are somewhat 'shaped' by other kinds of work, and I had what I assumed was arthritis in the little finger of my left hand - i.e. stiffness and sharp joint pain when I used it. And am pleased to say that, yes, the exercise helped rather than making it worse. :)

Initially I thought that I could simply use the other 3 fingers and skip the pinkie, but the pain actually disappeared after a while. I'm now deliberately working on using and strengthening that finger. One of my proudest possessions is now a "guitarist's callous" on the end of my little finger. :D

There were several things that I felt when I started out:

Like Juletto, I thought I might be one of those who never quite "got it". Proved False.

I worried that my hands were "old dogs" that couldn't learn new tricks. Proved False.

I thought my hands were "too big". I kept overlapping two strings with one finger and getting dreadful buzzing and wrong notes. Amazingly, the more I practised, the smaller my fingers got! Proved False.

I seriously thought that I was "musically dyslexic" as I just couldn't seem to wring the full meaning out of all those black dots. Remedy - just practice again. Proved False.

Somewhere I read a saying that "Practice should always sound awful" on the basis that if you aren't making some mistakes then you're just rehashing stuff that you can do, and that you should mix things you know with stuff that's still a bit out of reach. On this basis my practice has been brilliant! :D But it has paid off, and I'm really starting to feel that my goals are reachable and that the journey is certainly great fun.

Good luck. Chris

Hi Chris,

Thanks for taking the time to write all that: much appreciated.

I've been told that practice will actually help and slow the arthritis and looks as though the advice may have been right.

Cheers mate.

what I am finding is the chords in the above post work real great in reverse.. C- Amin, Emin, G.....its got a crowded house- Better Be home soon feel to it ;).

It always helps when I can relate it to music........
Cheers

Mick

Hi Mick,

Smart cookie! I'd never noticed that. According to this guy, those pretty much are the opening chords to Better Be Home Soon. Just a small difference. :D
Suggested Tab at Tabworld

Like you, I always like to try and make a bit of music out of the practice. If it's a chord change then I'll play it over and over - just the two chords - but I'll try to make a little song out of it to keep it interesting while I do the repetition. Try different strums, a bit of arpeggio style, a bit of picking, or whatever. It's surprising what pops out of the woodwork sometimes! :D

Likewise with scales. A couple of straight runs through and then I'm dodging up and down, skipping around, backwards and forwards, different speeds and note lengths, etc. I reckon that one of the main points of scales is to find out how the notes work together, so the more fun it is the longer I'll stick at it!

One of the amazing things is how rarely I hit a recognisable tune. In other words just how many zillions of different ways there are of stringing a few notes together... :shock: