C chord is a standard beginner guitar chord, learned quickly by many newcomers. It serves as an ideal entryway into other chord shapes and sounds great in many songs.
If your song calls for C chord, consider switching it out with Cadd9. It works just as effectively and will minimize finger movement.
Open Position
The open C chord is a basic shape that any beginner guitarist should master as one of the first guitar chords they learn. It is easy to play and boasts a pleasant, bright sound; plus, you can use any three fingers (index finger, middle finger and ring finger) to play it!
This shape is also an ideal starting point for learning barre chords. The difference between them lies in that barred chords require additional fingers to form and have darker sounds; additionally it is essential that when playing any chord you avoid muddling any string as this will prevent proper vibratory action and lead to dull sounding chords.
Chord charts can be invaluable tools for beginners as they display each fret on the guitar with its respective finger number corresponding to it. A fret number 1 corresponds with one finger; an open string (X or O ) should not be played.
Barreled Position
The Barreled Position is an excellent way for new guitarists to start exploring chord progressions. It requires various finger placements on the fretboard and strumming four strings down from A string.
This chord can be found in numerous pop songs. Take, for example, Roy Orbinson’s international hit Dream Baby or Daydream Believer by The Monkees as examples of such works. Furthermore, its presence can be heard in Back in Time by Huey Lewis and the News or the lively choruses of Run-Around by Blues Traveler as examples of such use.
Playing barre chords provides more tonal options while simultaneously reducing finger movements on the neck. For example, following a G chord with a C chord in succession makes more sense to use Cadd9 than regular C. This is why learning multiple forms of each chord shape is important as having several patterns allows you to identify which key you’re in when sliding chords up and down fretboard.
Aminor Position
Once you’ve mastered basic chords in C, add some variety to your repertoire by exploring barred chord progressions – this technique has been employed by numerous musicians including Neil Young and Noah Cyrus.
Add some variety to your playing with minor seventh chords for added oomph! They make for great beginner chords but can add serious texture to intermediate guitarists as well.
Minor seventh chords add a jazz-influenced sound to your music, especially when played after a minor sixth chord. To play one, simply slide finger four down one fret until it lands on F sharp (a major sixth interval above A).
Major Position
C Major is an ideal starting point, since its notes contain no flats or sharps – this makes counting out each note easier so you can practice finger dexterity on the fretboard.
C-key chords are formed using both open and barred versions of this scale position, so practicing both forms will help both you and your audience become comfortable playing them and allow you to appreciate their differences (open version is warmer while barred one higher and thinner).
Once you’re comfortable with these two shapes, add notes from outside the Key to create more complex chords like CM7 (3-5-7) or G7 (5-1-3-7). This will enable you to explore various musical styles while increasing fretboard awareness!