As you practice these chords, keep your fingers close to the frets (those small bars separating each string). This will enable a clean sound when strumming.
An easy way to play a clear G major chord requires curling your first finger so the open string rings clearly, then strumming all six strings.
A Major
As a beginner guitarist, one of the initial chords you should focus on learning is a major chord. This chord serves as the backbone for many classic songs like Sweet Home Alabama by Lynyrd Skynyrd and Bad Moon Rising by Creedence Clearwater Revival.
Major chords are composed of the first, second and fifth notes from their respective major scale. So for example in C major scale it would be C, A and E forming the chord respectively.
Practice barre chords (chords that require you to bar your index finger across five or six strings at once) can help prepare you for transitioning from this open shape into other chords later. Just make sure that when stretching your index finger it doesn’t drag across other strings and muffle them.
B Major
B Major is one of the essential beginner guitar chords. As it’s a barre chord, all six strings must ring without interfering with any third string ringing out, making this an essential step towards mastery of guitar playing.
Beginners often struggle with learning how to play an instrument. Positioning their fingers correctly and making sure all notes ring cleanly is no easy feat.
The B Major scale contains seven notes – tonic, supertonic, mediant, subdominant, dominant, leading note/tone and an octave – which connect into different chords when looking at its outer ring.
C Major
C major chord is one of the first major guitar chords most beginners learn, being both easy to play in open position and producing an appealing tone when strumming.
As your skills advance, it may be worthwhile experimenting with playing your chord in other positions on the fretboard for added variations in songs and chord progressions.
One option would be to move up to the fourth fret and perform a C major barre chord using all four fingers, leaving out your index finger from hitting the low E string in order to avoid hitting it directly with it.
D Major
The D chord is an open major chord suitable for use by beginners when writing songs. It can sound fantastic when used both acoustically as well as with distortion from emo or djent bands.
Finding an accessible chord takes practice; otherwise you risk accidentally hitting unwanted strings. To prevent this from happening, try muzzling the low E string with your thumb; simply wrap it around the back of the neck and touch the string to choke it off.
Jimi Hendrix was known for modifying an open D shape by placing his thumb on the second fret of the low E string and adding an additional note, creating what’s known as a Dsus2 chord that was more useful in certain musical contexts.
E Major
E Major is a classic rock chord and sounds fantastic no matter which way it’s played, yet like all chords, there are several variations available that add depth and flavor to your music.
Add jazzy flare to your playing by placing your pinky finger at the second fret of the first (high E) string – this creates an E major 7 chord that sounds fantastic when played through distortion – think blues! Or try muting G string using finger one’s underside for an open E power chord. Experimentation with different fretboard positions will help you master notes better as soon as you begin moving up and down the neck.
F Major
F major is a barre chord that requires strong finger and wrist strength to perform. It is often used as an interlude between other major chords like C and G; to make things simpler, try Figure 5. Here the index finger only barricades two strings while finger three mutes the A string through its tip.
Once you understand triads, they allow for experimentation with adding notes to the chord to create various flavors. For instance, adding an E to an F Major triad would produce an F 7th (Dominant). This feature is known as an extension and adds jazzy or summer-like elements to your music.