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Old 02-01-2013, 11:29 PM
roadbiker roadbiker is offline
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Default Need a tip on barre chord for fingerstyle

I'm learning to play Julia (The Beatles) and making some decent progress. I'm struggling a little changing some of the chords because of untamed finger independence, but I am definitely getting there.

One of my biggest obstacles is getting clean barre chords. The song is played with the capo on the second fret and I'm being challenged by the Am7 (played as an Gm7), the Am9 (played as a barre Gm9), the B7 (A7), the G9 (F9), and the Gm7 (Fm7). All of these chords are barred and I can't seem to get my index finger positioned to play a nice, clean chord, which is not so much an issue when strumming, but very important when playing fingerstyle.

Anyone have a similar experience - and a solution? I know "practice, practice, practice" is one of the answers, but I'm also wondering if there is a technique or particular way to barre my index finger to produce a clean sound. And for this I am tapping into the infinite wisdom of the AGF members...

Thanks!
Jim
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Old 02-01-2013, 11:48 PM
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ljguitar ljguitar is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by roadbiker View Post
...One of my biggest obstacles is getting clean barre chords. The song is played with the capo on the second fret and I'm being challenged by the Am7 (played as an Gm7), the Am9 (played as a barre Gm9), the B7 (A7), the G9 (F9), and the Gm7 (Fm7). All of these chords are barred and I can't seem to get my index finger positioned to play a nice, clean chord, which is not so much an issue when strumming, but very important when playing fingerstyle.

Thanks!
Jim
Hi Jim...

These are three one-minute videos on barres I made for students (and friends). They may help or point the way to some techniques which may help.

Where is the Pressure? - CLiCK

Barre From Above and Behind - CLiCK

Barre from Front - CLiCK

Hope these do bring some direction for you...

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Old 02-02-2013, 12:53 AM
saxonblue saxonblue is offline
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Hi Jim,

What works better for me is to use the middle finger rather than the index for the root notes on those particular chords, YMMV. I still find the last 2 a little bit difficult only because they're so close to the capo. A lot easier transposed down a step & played open.

Cheers, Mick
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Old 02-02-2013, 04:12 AM
clintj clintj is offline
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For me, slightly rolling my hand so the barre is held more with the side of the index finger instead of the pads, and a little experimentation with where the finger lies on the strings (basically how close the first knuckle is to the fretboard) finally unlocked the clean barre chord for me.
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Old 02-02-2013, 06:32 AM
Bingoccc Bingoccc is offline
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It's not old-school but my barres and hammer-ons improved immensely after I started doing hand and finger exercises that pushed my left hand beyond the levels that just playing did.
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Old 11-25-2018, 08:34 PM
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Blueser100 Blueser100 is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ljguitar View Post
Hi Jim...

These are three one-minute videos on barres I made for students (and friends). They may help or point the way to some techniques which may help.

Where is the Pressure? - CLiCK

Barre From Above and Behind - CLiCK

Barre from Front - CLiCK

Hope these do bring some direction for you...

Thanks for these tips and videos Larry. I am giving “Julia” another try after setting it aside years ago. I was struggling with the same problem Roadbiker had. Hopefully he found your tips helpful as well. 👍
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Old 12-02-2018, 05:19 PM
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Just another thanks Larry for your help. I’ve been making adjustments you suggested on those barre chords and I am seeing improvements. [emoji106][emoji4]
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Old 12-08-2018, 11:06 AM
dkstott dkstott is offline
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One more suggestion is to look at the notes being required while playing the chord in the song.

You might find that having clear notes from all of the strings isn't required & a holding a full barre chord might be overdoing it.

I've found that I can easily get away with partial barre chords, simply because I only need maybe 1-2 bass and 1-2 melody notes in each section before the next chord change.
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Old 12-08-2018, 12:10 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by dkstott View Post
One more suggestion is to look at the notes being required while playing the chord in the song.



You might find that having clear notes from all of the strings isn't required & a holding a full barre chord might be overdoing it.



I've found that I can easily get away with partial barre chords, simply because I only need maybe 1-2 bass and 1-2 melody notes in each section before the next chord change.


Thanks for that. In “Julia” you cant get away with a partial barre in the measures in question, at least if you want to play it as written. It’s the same Travis picking pattern throughout but harder to do higher up the neck and being able to capture the bass notes on the low E.
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Old 12-09-2018, 11:27 PM
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You're just going to have to practice it. With some barre's you can lay the barre finger flat, other times you have to put it on its "edge" and roll/curl it a bit. It depends. You have to look at the notation and see where you need the pressure and adjust as you go along.
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