There are various approaches to building chords, each of which will sound uniquely. One common technique involves spelling out a major scale to identify all necessary notes – this method is known as stacking thirds and is applicable both minor and major chords.
This video presents eight of the most essential guitar chords for beginner guitarists to learn, with Ayla providing some tips to enhance chord transitions.
E minor chord
E minor is one of the first chords most guitarists learn, due to its powerful yet soothing tone that fits well across a range of musical genres. Additionally, this chord is easy to finger and boasts several variations.
A popular way of playing an E minor chord is the open position, where your second finger rests on the fifth string at its second fret and your other two on fourth and third strings respectively. But another way can involve using all five fingers but in an altered order.
This variation requires your middle finger to rest on the sixth string’s second fret while your ring finger rests on the fourth string’s second fret – this variation sounds slightly less full than its standard E minor chord counterpart, yet can work in some circumstances. Keep your fingers tightly pressed down during playing to prevent unintentional muting or fret buzz from occurring.
D minor chord
D minor is an emotive chord found in many mournful songs and blues pieces, as well as being utilized for some blues tunes. While playing it using various scales may work, D minor pentatonic and D dorian scales tend to be the most commonly employed; D dorian scale can add bluesy qualities while D phrygian mode can produce darker effects.
The D minor chord can be tricky to play. To become proficient at it, an on-off drill may help, which involves placing your fingers on strings and strumming for four beats before taking them off again. This will enable you to master finger placement while reducing buzzing on other strings.
The D minor chord is a major triad that does not contain any flats or sharps; it is formed by taking the D major chord and lowering its third by half step. Use this chord chart below to study all of its major triad and seventh chords found within D minor.
B minor chord
B minor is an iconic chord found in many popular songs and key signatures, consisting of three notes B, D and F# in its minor triad form. As its sound is derived from D major it often shares similar characteristics – both sonically and from its key signature standpoint.
The classic way of playing a B minor chord is as a barre chord, which requires advanced finger strength. Beginners may find C#m chord easier. Greensleeves by Edward Grieg makes use of this chord often.
To play this chord, place your index finger behind the second fret of the fifth string (high E string), followed by placing middle finger by third fret of B string and finally placing ring finger by fourth fret of D string – being careful to keep all your fingers behind frets so as to avoid muting any strings! Ensure to arch and keep fingers behind frets to avoid muted strings!
C major chord
The C major chord is one of the first chords most guitarists learn, and is featured in numerous songs like Aretha Franklin’s Chain of Fools and Creedence Clearwater Revival’s Run through the Jungle. There are numerous variants available but all share its basic shape; using your finger tips at a steep, not shallow, angle to fret your string will prevent accidental touching between strings which would result in buzzing.
Your index finger can also bar the third fret to create a C major barre chord, giving you access to its sound. Try playing around with this barre chord as often as possible so you can get familiar with its feel; this will enable you to develop correct fingering for open and closed voicings as well as recognize inversions from root position voicings over time. Experimenting with different inversions for each chord may help strengthen your intuition for which ones sound best!