It might seem like a daunting task to learn the several hundred and even thousands of acoustic guitar chords. But actually only a few basic chords are required to know them all. You could even shrink what you need to grasp by remembering that major chords have a bright sound while minor chords give out a darker sound.
As with all types of guitars, acoustic guitar chords diagrams notate guitar chords. They are very similar to the standard diagrams of other guitars but for one very crucial difference: strings are represented by lines that are horizontal instead of being vertical. So when you study a chord diagram, the vertical lines you see in the grid are strings and the horizontal lines represent are the frets.
Dots found in the diagram tell you to hold strings down while numbers displayed either at the top or bottom of an acoustic guitar diagram denote what fingers you need to use as follows:
- 1 is for index
- 2 is for the middle finger
- 3 is the ring finger
- 4 is the pinky
- 0 means a string is not held down but just played
- If you see an X, then the string is not held down and not played.
- The notation T stands for thumb but this is rarely used.
The G-major chord is the first acoustic guitar chord we’ll look at. Here you have your middle finger on the 6th string at the third fret, your index finger is on the 5th string at the 2nd fret and your ring finger goes on the first string on the 3rd fret. Now you play each individual note one by one including the open strings. Make sure you can clearly hear each note and ensure that you don’t hear strange rattling or buzzing noises coming from the strings. Should the sound not be right, you could try pushing harder on the string so that is presses nearer to the fingerboard. You might also like to try and bring your finger closer to the fret. Your fingers, should not either touch one another or any of the other strings. Then once the sound is good you can strum all the notes at once. At this point you will be now playing a G-major acoustic guitar chord.
For getting the fingers in the right position, the E-minor is the easier acoustic guitar chord to learn. Here your index goes on the second fret of the 5th string, while your middle finger rests on the 2nd fret of the 4th string. You will find that there will be enough space for both fingers to rest on the fret without them touching. After having tried the notes, keep adjusting your fingers until the sound that you hear hits the right note. As with the G-major, strum both strings to play the E-minor chord. This minor chord will give out a noticeable darker sound.
C-major, D-major, A-minor, and A major are the basic acoustic guitar chords. To learn those chords, practice until they feel both familiar and comfortable. In time you will commit them to memory making you play much more smoothly.
Make sure you start off slow when you first learn the acoustic guitar chords. Soon enough you will find that your fingers will get in place by themselves. As you keep practising you will soon find that your fingers will move faster and faster across these acoustic guitar chords and it will become second nature to you.
The author Ivan Calderwell wrote this article showing you how to learn how to play acoustic guitars chords. More on acoustic guitars resources can also be found on his web site: acoustic guitars shops, a one stop for every acoustic guitar enthusiast.
Tags: acoustic guitar chords
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