Anyone here play guitar?

[Arkitech]

This weekend I attempted to begin learning the guitar, so far I've just been concentrating on exercises to improve my flexibility. However yesterday I tried working on playing my first chord (G) and it seems physically impossible. My fingers don't seem to stretch the way that they should and I end up pressing down on more than one string (the wrong strings that is). I've been practicing holding the guitar in the right way, with my wrist pointed to the floor and my fingers kind of curved downwards toward the strings. I don't know if my hands are too fat or what but I just can't seem to get the hang of playing chords.

Any suggestions for a newbie?

 

[agnitrate]

Your fingers will get much more flexible if you keep practicing. Just keep pushing your fingers into the form of the chord and it will feel more and more natural over time. Just keep at it!

-silver

 

[Vinney]

maybe you should also try starting with an easier chord like an Em - something requiring only two fingers and get used to holding down the strings and then move on to three fingered chords

 

[aircooled]

practice...practice...practice....

start with the E chord... it's easy

 

[Arkitech]

sounds like some good suggestions, I don't even realize there were 2 finger chords

So outside of E are there any other 2 finger chords that I can learn to start playing songs

 

[SludgeFactory]

E minor is the 2 finger chord, E requires 3 digits

E7 and A7 are 2 fingers also, and they show up frequently in songs. But really you need to figure out how to get open chords like G, D, A, C and E to ring, some combination of those are the backbone of the vast majority of popular songs written on guitar.

Actually there are 1 finger or even no-finger chords if you alter the tuning, but at this point that would just be cheating yourself

 

[Kibbo]

Anyone can play guitar.

 

[nakedfrog]

You're not starting out with bar chords, are you?
I would say spend time just switching from Em to G and back.

 

[NesuD]

Practice and repetition is the key. I thought G was impossible to when I first started. Now it is automatic and comfortable to play. Try learning the major triad first. I believe that is E,C,and D then learn G, and A. those are all open chords. That will get you started after that you will need to Learn F which is played Barre. There is an open shape for it but the Barre chord is a nicer bigger sounding way to play it. then learn B which is also Barre but is not used as frequently. Master the open major chords first though then be sure to learn F as it is used quite often. If you can get those down the minors will come pretty easily. I always made it a point to put in a minimum 1/2 hour everyday no matter how impossible the chords seemed.

 

[daveshel]

Originally posted by: Kibbo
Anyone can play guitar.

With practice.

 

[Fritzo]

When I'm teaching, I always break up the top strings and the bottom strings. Start with the High E, B, and G strings and work on half chord shapes. For instance, the G chord would be your 3rd finger on the third fret of the E string. Learn these chords on these strings: A, (B is evil, skip B for now), C, D, G. D will probably be the most difficult to learn since you need to use all three fingers at once. Once you have these chords down, add the bass strings.

This method lets you build up dexterity in your fingers. Also, for a hint, shout out the notes you're strumming as you go. This will help you learn scales later. Let me know if you need any other help.

 

[Gibson486]

Practice. It took me a week to do an F chord when i was a beginner......

Learn with Oasis songs. Noel is like the master (it's a jk guys, calm down) of using your standard open chord and making them sound good.

 

[OREOSpeedwagon]

Originally posted by: Kibbo
Anyone can play guitar.

good song

 

[Wag]

Learn how to play the blues.

E, A and Bb7.

 

[Gibson486]

Originally posted by: OREOSpeedwagon

Originally posted by: Kibbo
Anyone can play guitar.

good song

I hated that song and still do.....

 

[TheShiz]

Originally posted by: Kibbo
Anyone can play guitar.

anyone can play anything, but not everyone can play everything well.

 

[nakedfrog]

Originally posted by: NesuD
Practice and repetition is the key. I thought G was impossible to when I first started. Now it is automatic and comfortable to play. Try learning the major triad first. I believe that is E,C,and D then learn G, and A. those are all open chords. That will get you started after that you will need to Learn F which is played Barre. There is an open shape for it but the Barre chord is a nicer bigger sounding way to play it. then learn B which is also Barre but is not used as frequently. Master the open major chords first though then be sure to learn F as it is used quite often. If you can get those down the minors will come pretty easily. I always made it a point to put in a minimum 1/2 hour everyday no matter how impossible the chords seemed.

That's the real key to success.

 

[Arkitech]

Thanks for the advice guys, I can't wait to get home and practice now

 

[JulesMaximus]

Originally posted by: aircooled
practice...practice...practice....

start with the E chord... it's easy

 

[SWScorch]

haha I think the G chord is one of the easiest ones, but that's because for a while it was the only chord I knew and I just played it over and over. It's second nature to me now, but every other chord is hard Just keep plugging away and your fingers will become more flexible naturally.

 

[BD2003]

Yep, as everyone else said, practice. It does seem quite impossible to start, and if youre learning on a steel string acoustic, it probably hurts like a bitch too.

I just picked the guitar up about 3 months ago, thought it was impossible too, but practice makes perfect. You just can't get worse by practicing...just get a real good book, find some good friends, and if youre loaded, consider a teacher.

That f chord is a pain though. I can barre all 6 strings easily, but getting just those bottom two puts such a strain on that one finger...strange.

Oh and as far as the G chord goes, you're gonna have to get your pinky into it, whether you like it or not.

 

[Slvrtg277]

I got worse with practice, because I was practicing bad habits. It's still tough to play things the right way after teaching myself the wrong way.

 

[Fritzo]

Originally posted by: Gibson486
Practice. It took me a week to do an F chord when i was a beginner......

Learn with Oasis songs. Noel is like the master (it's a jk guys, calm down) of using your standard open chord and making them sound good.

F is tough too (which I why I suggested skipping it for now), but as dexterity is built it'll become easier.

Originally posted by: SludgeFactory
E minor is the 2 finger chord, E requires 3 digits

E7 and A7 are 2 fingers also, and they show up frequently in songs. But really you need to figure out how to get open chords like G, D, A, C and E to ring, some combination of those are the backbone of the vast majority of popular songs written on guitar.

Actually there are 1 finger or even no-finger chords if you alter the tuning, but at this point that would just be cheating yourself

Not true. Step one of learning any instrument is teaching your fingers to move in the right way. You can do this in any tuning, using one finger chords, etc. Heck, the Mel Bay method is based on that Once that is mastered, the mechanics of guitar music can be pursued. 9/10 people are going to drop guitar because their fingers hurt or they can't get build the required dexterity, so it's really important to get past this.

 

[GT578]

I learned the basic chords myself....practiced until my fingers moved to each note comfortably. Then my friend, who is an excellent player, suggested I do some exercises where I'm stretching my fingers over the first four frets to improve my accuracy and position of each chord I play. Just like everyone said before....practice and time is the best way.

 

[aircooled]

and don't forget:

Elephants
Always
Do
Grow
Big
Ears