Hallelujah is one of those songs everyone knows by heart; it can be found everywhere from movies and television shows, to covers by musicians from all genres.
Long has it taken for this song to reach this level of popularity. John Cale’s rendition made it famous and Jeff Buckley transformed it into an enduring melody anthem.
1. C Major
Hallelujah is an ideal song for beginner guitarists due to its easy structure. Additionally, this masterpiece by Leonard Cohen has become one of his best-known compositions and has been covered by an array of artists! No guitarist should go unprepared by learning this timeless tune!
Hallelujah is an unforgettable song composed by Canadian artist Leonard Cohen in 1984 and recorded for commercial release. Inspired by King David and Bathsheba in Scripture, as well as other Biblical passages, it references other Biblical verses as part of its message.
Hallelujah chords are relatively straightforward to play, while its strumming pattern might pose some difficulty for beginner guitarists. With six downward strums per measure and only two beats per measure per chord to emphasize with strumming, keeping time while playing this song may prove challenging for beginner guitarists. One way around this problem would be accenting both beats per measure by accentuating two beats that you feel by strumming chords instead. Arpeggiating them will also prevent this song from sounding too busy.
2. Am
Chances are, if you have been on this Earth long enough, chances are you have heard “Hallelujah”, composed by Leonard Cohen and recorded by Jeff Buckley and recently revived in popularity by numerous artists remaking or covering it.
The chords for Hallelujah are straightforward on an acoustic guitar, beginning with C, Am, F and G. You can strum them or play them as arpeggio. In the intro of this song there is also a step down/step up played on the 6th string second fret that adds extra dynamism.
Once the song reaches Am, you have two beats before it transitions to C. When reaching this final C note, remember the walk up to G note; open and pick sixth string using thumb. Next pick fifth and fourth strings using first finger for an awesome bass run sound that works well when played along with strumming pattern.
3. F
Making music together is easier once you know the chords and strumming pattern, provided you practice until each chord can be played without much thought or conscious effort. Strumming hands should focus their efforts on smoothly transitioning from chord to chord without issue.
Once you have the F barre chord down, then move onto G by playing an open E string on the 6th string while also picking its first fret for G chord – this will create an amazing sound for each verse – there are five in total so get ready to repeat that pattern multiple times over!
Hallelujah is an outstanding song to learn to play on guitar, thanks to its beautiful lyrics and easy chord progression. No surprise it has been covered so often by artists of various genres!
4. G
Hallelujah’s G chord can be challenging for beginners due to its two-beat per measure meter, making strumming it monotonously feel like going in circles. To remedy this situation, try accentuating downward strums as part of your rhythm to add momentum and keep things moving forward.
As another way of getting around this issue, try arpeggiating chords one note at a time; this will add flair and also be easier on your fingers.