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Chapter Eleven • Bar Chords • Your Private Guitar Teacher
page 129
Chapter Eleven
Bar Chords
Your Private Guitar Teacher
Copyright © 2013 Dale Schmidt. All rights reserved.
Duplication in any form in any media is illegal and strictly prohibited.
Your Private Guitar Teacher • Chapter Eleven • Bar Chords
page 130
Chapter Eleven • Bar Chords • Your Private Guitar Teacher
page 131
Tips and
Problem Solvers
The music cuts of the song samples, methods
and techniques in this chapter can be found at:
www.yourprivateguitarteacher.com/listeningbooth
Chapter Eleven
Bar Chords
If there is a common thread that runs through my students, it’s the frustration that many of them feel when learning bar chords. Some of them
have gone as far as to call bar chords the “evil” chords. Part of this is the
fact that are very few things we do as human beings that requires the
strength and positioning needed to play bar chords on guitar. The muscle
that runs between on the inside palm of your hand from the thumb to
your index finger (important for playing bar chords) doesn’t get much of
a work out when doing routine movements during the course of the day.
At least not in the same way as playing bar chords.
The good news is that bar chords are not as difficult as they seem when
you first try to play them. You simply have to build the strength and
dexterity needed to play them cleanly. If you would ask me if I’ve had
any students that simply could not play bar chords, the answer is yes. I
would guess though, that it’s lower than 5%. Those students still learned
to play and are quite happy making guitar music with first-position
chords as there are tons of songs you can play using the basic chord positions.
I want to take a moment to mention that some guitars (especially acoustic guitars with a high action) make it very difficult to play bar chords.
I’ve played hundreds of different guitars in my 15 years of teaching and
I can remember a few that were simply in too bad of shape to allow bar
chords. If your guitar is in this category, it’s a good idea to have a qualified repair person take a look at it. Your guitar could be out of adjustment, damaged in some way or simply not of enough of a quality guitar
to play properly. Try to make this determination early so you don’t spend
too much time fighting a guitar that makes playing bar chords difficult.
Learning to
play bar chords
is a process.
It takes time
to train your
fingers to do
something that
at first seems
very unnatural
and difficult. If
you’re a true
beginner, you
may want to
work with this
chapter after
you get the
basics. Just be
sure you find
your way back
to this chapter
sooner rather
than later.
Bar chords open
up unlimited
possibilities on
the guitar.
Your Private Guitar Teacher • Chapter Eleven • Bar Chords
page 132
Tips and
Problem Solvers
If you have
trouble getting
your pinky to do
what you want
it to when playing bar chords,
you’re not
alone—all guitar
players struggle
with this at first.
Keep your fingers arched
so they don’t
touch unwanted
strings.
When using
your first (index) finger to
form the bar,
rotate it slightly
so the strings
touch the outside edge of
your finger
where it is flatter and stronger.
Time to get started
Take a look at the Am chord below. This is one of the easier chords to play
and a chord found in thousands of songs.
A B
O
1
2
3
But what if the music calls for a Bm chord? You could jump to page 140
where you’ll see a list of chords, but if you take the time in this chapter and
learn how create bar chords on your own, you won’t have to rely on a book
or chart every time a new chord comes up.
How they are formed
Bar chords are made by placing your index finger across all six strings (in
some cases, just four or five strings), using the remaining fingers to form
the rest of the chord. Here’s is an example:
The first chord above, Am, is played in first position. To play a Bm chord
however, you’ll need to bar all six strings (with your index finger) at the 2nd
fret and use your remaining three fingers to play the remaining notes of the
chord. In essence, your first finger is taking the place of the nut and your
remaining three fingers are playing the basic Am chord shape.
NOTE: The
page margins
are different on
the left-hand
pages so you
can easily read
the music and
follow the lessons when this
book is placed
on a music
stand.
A B
Nut
This bar is your first
(index) finger
2
3
4
The Am chord shape
played with your middle,
ring and pinky fingers.
Chapter Eleven • Bar Chords • Your Private Guitar Teacher
Notice above that both chords look basically the same, but the Bm is
played two frets higher and the first finger covers all six strings at the
2nd fret. And your middle, ring and pinky fingers are used to play the Am
shape.
There is a way to play a Bm chord without using a bar chord:
X X
1
2
3
4
But there is no bass note in this chord and you have to be careful not to play
the 5th and 6th strings as they are not part of the chord. A bar chord is better.
Note: Playing bar chords for the first time can be difficult. They’re not
going to sound great right of the bat. This chapter will help you with the
physical challenges of forming bar chords.
Let’s take a look at another example. The first chord below, Em, is
played in first position.
B A
2
O O O
B
A
The Em chord (far
left), becomes a
Gm chord (left)
when you bar on
the 3rd fret and
make the Em
shape with your
ring and pinky
finger.
3
3
4
The chord next to it becomes a Gm chord when you bar the third fret
and play the remaining notes with your third and fourth finger. Doing so
creates a Gm chord. You can think of it as playing an Em chord (an Em
shape) on the 3rd fret—to create a Gm chord.
page 133
Tips and
Problem Solvers
The best way
to think of bar
chords is they
are chords that
can be moved
up and down
the neck. Even
when using the
same bar chord
position, when
you move it
up the neck it
becomes a new
chord. For example, the Em
chord to the left
becomes a Gm
chord when you
bar the third
fret.
Notice how you
have to change
the fingers you
use to create
the Em shape
when it is a bar
chord. Keep
that pinky in the
right place!
Your Private Guitar Teacher • Chapter Eleven • Bar Chords
page 134
Tips and
Problem Solvers
Make sure that
you take the
time to understand the chromatic scale. On
the piano, the
chromatic scale
moves up (or
down) one key
at a time including the black
keys. The black
keys are sharps
(#) and flats
(b). The white
keys are the
natural notes.
Whenever you
are moving one
fret at a time,
you are playing
the chromatic
scale. The same
is true of bar
chords. They
change in the
same way. In
other words,
moving up the
neck one fret at
a time: D to D#
to E to F and so
on.
Now you’ve played a Gm chord including the bass note for a nice full sound.
If this and your other bar chords are not clear, and some strings sound muffled and dead, don’t despair, there’s help with that in this chapter.
Remember: Throughout the book, I’ve included Tips and Problem Solvers in
the margins of the pages. Use them!
Why you need bar chords
There are hundreds of chords including basic minor and major chords that
can’t really be played well without using a bar chord. For example, how would
you play an Ab chord? How about a C# chord? What fingering would you use
for a Bbm7th? Bar chords open up a whole new world of guitar playing. And
once you learn just a few positions, you’re on way to learning them all.
Bar chords are particularly helpful when playing different rhythms on the
guitar because they give you control of all six strings. Learning bar chords,
no matter how difficult it may seem at first, will help make you the great
guitar player you want to be.
In the long run, it’s much better to learn the basic bar chord positions that
can be used for literally hundreds of bar chords. Let’s take a look at how
to play an G# chord using an E chord in the first position (next page). But
first, a little more information about how bar chords are formed.
I want to stop here for a second to talk about the chromatic scale. Don’t
let the name intimidate you. A chromatic scale is simply one note played
after another. An example would be moving left to right, one key at a time
(including the black keys) on the piano.
Starting with the note C, a chromatic scale is as follows:
C - C# - D - D# - E - F - F# - G - G# - A - A# - B - C
On the guitar, each note on the chromatic scale above is one fret higher (or
lower) than the previous one and follows the pattern above.
C
C#
D
D#
E
Note: from now on in this chapter, chord diagrams are shown without string widths.
Chapter Eleven • Bar Chords • Your Private Guitar Teacher
And each chord is one fret higher (or lower) than the previous one:
B A
F
B
A
F#
B
A
G
2
3
2
4
3
2
4
3
4
So to play that G# chord, start with the basic E chord position (this time
using your middle, ring and pinky finger to play it):
B A
E
0
2
3
4
0
Next, move that
E chord up four
frets and bar
across the 4th
fret. This makes
an G# chord
(right).
B
A
G#
2
3
4
> >
> >
C - C# - D - D# - E - F - F# - G - G# - A - A# - B - C
Using the diagram above, you’ve moved from E up four (frets) to G#.
Now you have the basic E position moved up and all six strings barred
on the 4th fret. This is a G# chord. A bit difficult to play at first but much
easier than trying to play a G# chord in the first position. Plus, you get
bass notes to work with and a nice full sound from the bar chord.
Before I show you another example, here’s more (and very important)
info about the chromatic scale: you can name the notes (and chords) in
sharps:
page 135
Tips and
Problem Solvers
One of the challenges of playing bar chords
is keeping your
wrist straight. If
you have a tendency to bend
your wrist in an
attempt to play
a chord, focus
on keeping it
straight and
let the fingers
and thumb of
your left hand
do most of the
work, not your
wrist or arm.
When moving
up the neck
with bar chords,
keep your fingers close to
the fret board
and in the
shape of the
chord so you
don’t have to
totally recreate
the same bar
chord each time
you play it.
Your Private Guitar Teacher • Chapter Eleven • Bar Chords
page 136
Tips and
Problem Solvers
If it helps, think
of a note that is
sharp or flat as
a black key on
the piano. For
example, the
black key between the notes
C and D has
two names: C#
and Db. They
are the same
note.
When using
your index
finger to bar
across the
strings, rotate
it slightly so
you touch the
strings with the
harder, outside
edge of the finger, not the soft
fleshy part. This
will help you bar
all six strings.
C - C# - D - D# - E - F - F# - G - G# - A - A# - B - C
or in flats:
C - Db - D - Eb - E - F - Gb - G - Ab - A - Bb - B - C
Without going into music theory and a long explanation, I recommend that
you learn both names for the same note. For example, C# is the same note
as Db. Bb is the same note as A#.
C - C# - D - D# - E - F - F# - G - G# - A - A# - B - C
C - Db - D - Eb - E - F - Gb - G - Ab - A - Bb - B - C
Important! There is no E# or Fb. And there is no B# or Cb. (Looking
at the piano, the notes E an F don’t have a black key between them, nor do
B an C.) You’ll never see sheet music or songs in guitar books that have E#,
Fb, B# or Cb chords (or notes). They don’t exist.
I suggest to review all the information above until you have a good understanding of how it works before moving on.
Crossroad
• If you just can’t get going on bar chords (most true beginners don’t tackle
them until they’ve played a while) jump to another chapter of your choosing.
• If you have a good understanding of bar chords and how they are played,
continue on in this chapter.
• If you’re already an ace at forming and playing bar chords, jump to another chapter of your choosing.
How to overcome the physical challenge of playing bar chords
Everyone struggles with forming bar chords at first. I’ve had a number of
students tell me “My fingers just can’t do that.” The good news is, they all
eventually learned to play bar chords. It takes some students longer than
others, especially young students who may have not developed the strength
needed to play bar chords cleanly.
Note: I mentioned earlier in this chapter that your guitar might be making it
difficult to play bar chords. Go back to Chapter Two to find out more.
It’s important that your thumb is in the proper position in order to create
the strength you need to play bar chords cleanly. It should be nearly perpendicular to the neck and opposite your first finger (that is barring across
all six strings to create the bar). Without using the guitar, squeeze the
thumb of the left hand with your index finger to see how the muscles work
together.
Here are three bar chords you can try, F#m7, B7 and Fm. It’s very common and totally expected that you’ll experience dead sounding strings when
first forming bar chords. So keep at it and it will get easier and easier. Your
left hand (the hand that plays chords), particularly will tire easy at first but
within a short time you’ll develop the strength and muscle memory needed.
Chapter Eleven • Bar Chords • Your Private Guitar Teacher
Pay close attention to where to place the bar (your index finger) and
what fingers are used to play the rest of the chord.
F#m7
B7
Fm
3
3
3
4
4
It’s OK to cheat a little
One of the first things to remember when playing bar chords is not all six
strings have to be played at the same time. In fact, it can be more musical to play two or three sings only. Let me explain.
You can create a tighter and more rhythmic sound by playing the bottom
three strings only (the sixth, fifth and fourth string). In contrast, you will
get a brighter and lighter sound by playing (strumming or finger picking)
the three top strings only. Below is the tab for the F#m7 chord above,
first playing the bottom three strings then the top three strings.
2
4
2
2
4
2
2
4
2
2
4
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
X X X X
X X X X
X X X X
X X X X
X X X X
X X X X
Note: To make things simple, I’ve marked the tablature above with the
notes of the F#m7 chord but also with Xs. This is to help you remember that you can play three strings at a time for any chord, not just bar
chords.
Listen to Cut 59 to see what the F#m7 chord sounds like, first playing the
bottom (thickest) three strings, then the top (thinnest) three strings.
Choosing to play only the bottom three strings or the top three strings
can be very helpful when learning bar chords. My students make good
use of the technique when learning bar chords especially if they can’t get
all the strings to sound good at first. I tell them to focus on the strings
page 137
Tips and
Problem Solvers
Notice that you
can play two
completely different chords
when barring
on the 2nd fret.
The F#m7 and
B7 chords at the
left use different
fingers to create
different chords.
Most chords you
play in the first
position can be
moved up to
create a new
chord.
And don’t forget
your “muscle
memory” that
I talked about
earlier in the
book. Your
fingers will “remember” where
you placed then
when playing a
certain chord.
Just make sure
you practice
enough to let
your muscle
memory go to
work.
Your Private Guitar Teacher • Chapter Eleven • Bar Chords
page 138
Tips and
Problem Solvers
that are clean and clear and not play the strings that are muffled. You can
play great guitar music with only two or three strings at times.
Crossroads
If you are in
the processing of learning
bar chords and
can’t get all six
strings to sound
good, focus on
the three bottom stings, your
sixth, fifth and
fourth strings.
That’s where
your bass notes
are found and
those strings
tend to make a
fuller sound.
• If you’re looking for the way to play a particular chord as a bar chord, go
to last pages in this chapter.
• If you’re not sure about seventh (7th) chords, minor seventh (m7th)
chords or other chord names, go to Chapter Six, Chords And How To
Play Them.
• If you’re still not ready to tackle bar chords, don’t despair. Move to another chapter of your choice and take on bar chords later.
•If you want to learn more about bar chords, continue in this chapter.
Focus on making these three
strings (marked
in bold in the
Am chord to
the right) sound
clean and clear
when playing
bar chords.
As an example, the bass note for Am (basic position) and Bm (bar chord)
is the same string, the fifth string. It is marked with a B. This is because
both chords are played with the Am shape (but different fingers are used
when playing the bar chord Bm as the first finger is needed to form the bar).
The bass note of the chord
As I mentioned earlier, one the biggest reasons for using bar chords is you
can include the bass note in the chord. (Remember the three things needed
for music to be complete: chords, melody and bass notes.)
Using a simple rule will tell you which string of a bar chord is the bass note:
The bass note is the same as it is in the chord’s first (basic) position.
Am
Bm
A B
O
A B
1
2
3
2
3
4
As another example, the bass note for Em (basic position) and Gm (bar
chord) is the same sting, the sixth string. It is marked with a B. See the
next page.
Chapter Eleven • Bar Chords • Your Private Guitar Teacher
Em
B A
2
Gm
O O O
B
A
3
3
4
The bass note (B) is the same for the two chords above because they
both use the Em shape. No matter where you play this bar chord, the
bass note is always the sixth string.
Alternate bass notes in bar chords
The same rule applies for alternate bass notes. However, using alternate
bass notes in bar chords is for experienced players. My recommendation is to first learn how to play bar chords (you can cheat a little as I
mentioned earlier in this chapter), then make use of the bass notes of
the chords. Then, when you really get rolling, you can add alternate bass
notes if you like.
Remember: Throughout the book, I’ve included Tips and Problem Solvers
in the margins of the pages. They will help you with this and all the other
chapters.
More about bar chords
You can use all the techniques in this book when playing bar chords including the strum patterns and finger picking patterns from a number of
the other chapters.
Be patient. Like many things about learning guitar, it may take a while
to be able to play bar chords. Keep at it until you build up your strength
and your muscle memory takes over.
The next page has a number of chords that can be created with the Am
position. Page 141 has a list of first position chords that can be used to
create new chords by moving up the neck using the chromatic scale as a
guide.
Keep this book handy so you can create the bar chords you need so you
won’t have to give up on a great song because you don’t know the chord!
page 139
Tips and
Problem Solvers
If you focus
on making the
three bottom
(bass) strings
sound good in
your bar chords,
it will make it
easier to use
bass and alternate bass notes.
Listen to Cut
60 where I play
the two chords
to the left using:
Bass note,
strum, alternate bass note,
strum
Your Private Guitar Teacher • Chapter Eleven • Bar Chords
page 140
Tips and
Problem Solvers
Am
A#m/Bbm
Bm
Cm
C#m/Dbm
Dm
D#m/Ebm
Em
The numbers
to the left of
the bar tell you
which fret to
bar your index
finger across.
This chart is
the Am chord
position moved
up one fret at
a time. This is
the way all bar
chords are created. Most first
position chords
can be moved
up to create
a new (bar)
chord. Each fret
is one step on
the chromatic
scale.
6
5
Fm
8
F#m/Gbm
9
7
Gm
10
G#m/Abm
11
The bar chords above were created (moved up or down the neck) based on
the notes of the chromatic scale:
C - C# - D - D# - E - F - F# - G - G# - A - A# - B - C
But since I started with an Am chord, it will be easier to understand by
looking at same scale begining with A:
A - A# - B - C - C# - D - D# - E - F - F# - G - G# - A
Chapter Eleven • Bar Chords • Your Private Guitar Teacher
The following basic (first position) chords can be moved up the neck in
the same way using the chromatic scale to determine the name of the
bar chord created. The chromatic scale is shown on the previous page as
a reminder.
Am
Amaj7
Em
Em6
page 141
Tips and
Problem Solvers
Some examples: this chord
played (barred)
on the 3rd fret
creates a Gm6
chord.
This chord
played (barred)
on the 5th fret
will create a
D7sus4 chord.
E9
Cmaj7
D7
A7sus4
E
A7
Em7
Dm
Remember: you’ll be using your first (index) finger to play the bar for
these chords so you’ll have to use your three remaining fingers to form
the rest of the bar chords.
On the next page, you’ll find a chord progression to help you get used to
recognizing, forming and playing bar chords. Listen to Cut 61 as I play
the bar chords in the first line.
Remember
that each time
you move a
bar chord up
one fret, use
the chromatic
scale to tell you
what the newly
created chord
is called. The
chromatic scale
is shown on the
previous page
and in many
places throughout this book.
Your Private Guitar Teacher • Chapter Eleven • Bar Chords
page 142
Tips and
Problem Solvers
These bar
chords use
some of the
chords positions
from the previous page.
This is advanced
stuff so make it
a goal to play all
of these down
the road—not
right off the bat.
Use these as
the basis to
find all the
bar chords
you need.
Move them
up and down
according to
the chromatic
scale.
You’re going to
find that your
chording (left)
hand might tire
quickly. Take a
break frequently
but keep at it
to build up the
strength you
need.
Strum each four times. Use the info in this chapter to form these chords.
Bm
G
Am
Em
5
Bm7
F#m
7
2
2
2
3 4
3 4
2
3 4
3 4
3
3 4
E position
Bar - 3rd fret
Am position
Bar - 2nd fret
Gm
Em position
Bar - 5th fret
Dm
Am position
Bar - 7th fret
Cmaj7
Am7 position
Bar - 2nd fret
Fmaj7
5
Em position
Bar - 2nd fret
Am7
5
C7sus4
5
2
2
3 4
2 3
3
3
4
3
4
3
4
Em position
Bar - 3rd fret
C#m
Am position
Bar - 5th fret
Amaj7 position
Bar - 3rd fret
G#
F#m
Cmaj7 position
Bar - 5th fret
Em7 position
Bar - 5th fret
A7sus4 position
Bar - 3rd fret
B7
E7
A
7
5
2
3 4
2
3 4
4
3
4
3
2
3 4
Am position
Bar - 4th fret
E position
Bar - 4th fret
Em position
Bar - 2nd fret
Bb7
Fm
Ebm
A7 position
Bar - 2nd fret
Ab
A7 position
Bar - 7th fret
E position
Bar - 5th fret
G
C
6
3
3 4
4
8
2
3 4
2
3 4
2
2
3 4
3 4
3 4
A7 position
Bar - 1st fret
Em position
Bar - 1st fret
Am position
Bar - 6th fret
E position
Bar - 4th fret
E position
Bar - 3rd fret
E position
Bar - 8th fret