Love yourself by Justin Bieber is a well-known song with an easy guitar chords structure, featuring simple open chords which remain unchanged through its entirety and can be played using a capo on the first fret.
Learning guitar chords is an excellent way to deepen your knowledge of music theory and gain more confidence when playing the instrument. Furthermore, this will make you a more versatile guitarist.
1. Learn the Chords
Learning the chords on a guitar is one of the most essential steps in playing it well, so that when it comes to performing songs you love, knowing how to strum those that sound right is of vital importance.
It’s best to take it slow when learning chords; focus on each shape individually until you can play each without making mistakes before moving on to the next.
Chord diagrams can also help you memorize chord shapes. Chord diagrams depict which strings and frets make up each chord shape; sometimes an “X” or an “O” appears next to certain strings on a chart, signifying they do not need to be played at all.
Learning the difference between major and minor chords will allow you to bring different nuances and flavors into your music performance. Major chords offer fuller sound while minor ones tend to add melancholic notes.
2. Practice the Chords
Once you have memorized chord shapes and can switch them quickly, the next step should be developing your rythym and timing skills. These skills are crucial when learning chord-based songs.
To practice, choose two chords you can alternate between and use a metronome to keep you in time and rhythm. Begin slowly before increasing the tempo gradually as your technique improves; be wary of trying to play too quickly as this could result in poor technique.
Note that certain chords come with numbers beside them to indicate where you should begin fretting them, which can be particularly helpful if the chord requires different fingering than other similar chords on the fretboard.
Some chords also display an “m” or “sus4” to indicate they should be played using only the 4th and 5th notes from a major scale (known as diatonic) – this can add suspense when played immediately before or after playing a parallel minor chord.
3. Practice the Scales
Scales can be daunting for some. I believe this difficulty stems in part from Hollywood – movies show students practicing scales to a metronome while Mrs. Evil watches, suggesting learning them may be tedious or will no longer be needed after memorizing them.
One way to add musicality and depth to scales is to switch up their phrasing. Instead of simply switching index and middle fingers, try skipping strings, unwinding and unwounding chords, or exploring scale patterns more systematically.
Use of a metronome when practicing scales at slow tempos before speeding them up is another technique for creating muscle memory in long term playing. This helps ensure even timing between notes as well as consistency of tone across each note. This long term technique helps strengthen musical muscles.
4. Practice the Arpeggios
Once you’ve mastered chords and scales, the next step should be practicing arpeggios. Doing so will enable you to move more quickly from chord to chord while also honing your fingering patterns. A great idea would be playing scale/arpeggio shapes over chord progressions so that you can observe how each pattern interacts and hear how it sounds.
Remember that a “shape” is simply a fingering diagram for a particular scale or arpeggio, complete with extra markings such as arrows to specific strings, fret numbers within circles representing frets and an associated string in the background with their number inscribed for reference. As an example, an A major scale might look something like this:
Be sure to practice each shape in each key at both slow and fast speeds for optimal articulation and technique development. Also practice with other fingerings and rhythms for further exploration.