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Can't Play Barre Chords!
Picked the guitar back up 6 months or so ago...after about 30 years. Didn't have a lot of trouble finding the chords again and have been playing a little of every genre (not well, but playing) I've spent a considerable amount of time learning some blues riffs and leads (Ami and some Clapton unplugged stuff) .
All of a sudden, I can't play a Barre chord! Muted strings, not able to get chord shapes to form correctly. What the heck? |
#2
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#3
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At 66, I'm having more trouble than I used to, even with guitars of a similar action. I think it's a question of either losing some strength in those muscles or possibly some tissue in the index finger itself. I've compensated by lowering the action even more than it was, or simply tuning it down a half and putting a capo on the first fret.
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Yamaha FG-411-12 String Oscar Teller 7119 classical (built in 1967) and a bunch of guitars and mandolins I've made ... OM, OO, acoustic bass, cittern, octave mandolin, mandola, etc. ... some of which I've kept. |
#4
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(The following is assuming that your guitar is properly set-up for your style of play)
Resist the temptation to look at your fretboard and fingers when playing; tilting the guitar a little is fine, but if you really "keel it over", it puts a lot stress on your hands and wrists when you start playing barre chords... try angling the headstock of the guitar out in front of you, like 45 degrees or so, +/-... this will help you keep a straighter forearm and a flatter wrist when chording/playing... Remember that using the lower edge of your index finger helps a lot to get clean barres; you only need to press down when you are sounding the chord, not constantly... Practice will do the trick; I find that it's easier to learn barre chord shapes when I have the beginning players make the open chord shape with their last 3 fingers on the fretting hand... then it's easy to slide that shape up the neck while adding the first finger to barre. Keep after it! Good luck... remember, EVERY one of us had trouble with barre chords at one time or the other, and we can all do it... so can you!
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"Home is where I hang my hat, but home is so much more than that. Home is where the ones and the things I hold dear are near... And I always find my way back home." "Home" (working title) J.S, Sherman |
#5
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It just occurred to me that I had been doing a lot of hand/finger exercises, stretches, etc. before I started working on solo parts for some songs...individual notes stuff....and quit doing the stretches/warmups. I'll work that back into my routine before playing and see if it helps....yep...strength and body mass suffer as we grow older...but the babes still love me! (HA!)
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#6
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Just like you, after years (only 10 for me) I picked up the guitar again. After six months, still struggling with barre chords, it was frustrating. Continued practice and three more months, I'm doing a lot better, even getting some of those minor chords that were my bane. Seems like less fingers should equal less effort, but....anyway, that's another story.
So stick with it, you'll really be fighting off the babes! |
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#8
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I find it helpful to bring my middle finger to the aid of the barre-ing first finger;
laying it atop the first finger allows the effort to be shared by two fingers and is only a problem when i need that middle finger to hit some other notes while the barre is in play. and practice. If I don't play the barre chord songs regularly, it's an achy breaky bunch of hours or days to get the strength built up again. good luck! yours in tune, amyfb
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I went to mediums from lights and now I'm having problems too. Just keep working at them. I think barre chords have to have a practice session all to themselves, a couple of times a week, but I never get around to doing them. I'd rather practice songs as its more fun.
Maybe doing a few exercises with them at the end of a practice is more practical.
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Barry My SoundCloud page Avalon L-320C, Guild D-120, Martin D-16GT, McIlroy A20, Pellerin SJ CW Cordobas - C5, Fusion 12 Orchestra, C12, Stage Traditional Alvarez AP66SB, Seagull Folk Aria {Johann Logy}: |
#10
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I tried jseth's suggestion regarding angling the headstock away from my body. That helped a lot. Now back to finger exercises and practice, practice.
Thanks all for your assistance - David |
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#12
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Make sure the guitar is setup properly too, maybe take it to a tech? Bad setup can make any guitar nigh on unplayable.
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#13
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...and keep the index finger straight! The only knuckle that should be bent is the one that joins the finger to the rest of the hand. All of the other index finger knuckles should be straight for full barre chords.
If the "meat" of your finger is making it difficult to apply enough pressure to the string (e.g. the meat is absorbing a lot of the pressure and is making you have to press harder than you would otherwise need to) try this: Put the meat down so the edge of your index finger is just touching the fret - then ROLL the finger just slightly off the fret. This will "push" some of that "meat" out of the way, and put you just behind the fret, both of which minimize the pressure that you need to apply. |
#14
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Yeah, screw barre chords. The joints on my index finger can't take it.
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