Barre Chords

[D.R.22]

Hey everyone,

I've been transcribing Joe Pass' "Autumn Leaves" from his Unforgettable album and I've found that I'm unable to barre the B7 chord (in the 2nd part where he starts fingerpicking his way through chords/melody) with one finger. Some strings ring and others are muted. I've tried pressing harder and gripping the neck differently but I haven't been able to barre all six strings with one finger, plus my forearm is starting to ache...

I've watched Jamie Andreas' lessons on youtube and facebook where she gives exercises on how to barre with one finger while keeping the other fingers free but that doesn't really help me since my problem seems to be lack "strength." Anyway, I appreciate any tips or help with barring all six strings with one finger, left hand technique in general or any exercises that I can incorporate into my practice time to build up strength and endurance.

ps: I warm up going up and down the neck chromatically to get every finger involved. I was also wondering if grippers would help?

Thanks in advance,
Dom

[vintagelove]

Hey everyone,

I've been transcribing Joe Pass' "Autumn Leaves" from his Unforgettable album and I've found that I'm unable to barre the B7 chord (in the 2nd part where he starts fingerpicking his way through chords/melody) with one finger. Some strings ring and others are muted. I've tried pressing harder and gripping the neck differently but I haven't been able to barre all six strings with one finger, plus my forearm is starting to ache...

I've watched Jamie Andreas' lessons on youtube and facebook where she gives exercises on how to barre with one finger while keeping the other fingers free but that doesn't really help me since my problem seems to be lack "strength." Anyway, I appreciate any tips or help with barring all six strings with one finger, left hand technique in general or any exercises that I can incorporate into my practice time to build up strength and endurance.

ps: I warm up going up and down the neck chromatically to get every finger involved. I was also wondering if grippers would help?

Thanks in advance,
Dom

Hi, I am willing to bet you have "rock and roll finger". It's something I like to call the way I see a lot of students/people play their barre chords. Basically, your index finger is curved (with your middle joint at the highs position relative to your fingertip and the knuckle). The "correct" technique, or at least the one that works if your playing impossible classical guitar pieces, is your finger should be straight, almost backbowed (with the finger tip and knuckle slightly above the middle joint). Now in reality, this back bow won't happen, but exaggerating that will ensure your middle notes are firmly held down while minimizing excess force. All of the other stuff is good advice as well i.e. using shoulder/arm weight to aid in holding down the chords. Lastly make sure your action/setup is appropriate.

Hope that helps!!!

[matt.guitarteacher]

How often are you otherwise playing barre chords? Anything is more difficult if you are not practicing it regularly, and barre chords are one of the more difficult things to play when you're learning. If this one song is your only occasion to really play barre chord it's probably not going to cut it . A lot of practice is required to learn to play them . a teacher 's pretty valuable as well.

[D.R.22]

I play "regular" barre chords like a G barre chord with the root on the third fret quite often, since they are used in rock and blues. Yet I can never get every note to sound-- especially the B string. But you're right I've never actually been able to press all strings down with my index and have always avoided doing so because I fear it will strain my forearm. I remember practicing "Layla" by Eric Clapton a few years back and I ended up hurting my forearm/wrist because of all the barre chords. I reckon my action is high on some of my guitars but I read somewhere that Freddie Green's was incredibly high and he still managed to play them (not saying that I'm anywhere Mr. Green in terms of chops Ha!).

[monk]

DR22,
Freddie Green didn't play barre chords. In many instances he fingered two or three notes but only played one note.

Barre chords were seldom used by swing/big band guitarists. The type of chords that were used in those days were called "orchestral chords". They consisted of three or four voices with no doubles and were easy to move around the fingerboard. You will find the occasional special case where a jazz guitarist plays a "regular" barre but for the most part the three and four note orchestral chords are the go-to chords for jazz because there are no doubled notes and they are easier to move around.
Regards,
Jerome

[Frethack]

Hmmm. I think warm up and repetion will help. I see you do that, but perhaps you need more time. Its tough jumping into them if you are cold. I nearly cramp holding a F7 in the first half hour of playing. Eventually you will build strength. Maybe stick to your guitar with the least string tension or tune down a half or whole step. See if thats easier and work your way back up to standard tuning. Above all dont hurt yourself. Its tough to overcome injuries of the hands and arms.

Also, If you cant barre the whole neck...dont. There are other chord shapes to try that might work better in terms of neck position and getting to your next note or chord. I always try to map these out and see what works best for me.

[Bikewer]

A basic note for anyone experiencing problems with barres.....Have you had your instrument set up properly? An awful lot of folks, and not just beginners, suffer with a too--high action which can make attempting barres miserable.

[D.R.22]

A basic note for anyone experiencing problems with barres.....Have you had your instrument set up properly? An awful lot of folks, and not just beginners, suffer with a too--high action which can make attempting barres miserable.

I think that might be one of my problems. I remember going to a luthier with my guitar to ask him about my action and he said "only Howlin' Wolf could play barre chords on that guitar!" I lowered the action myself, since it is a cheap guitar and I didn't want to spend too much money on it. However I'll be going home this weekend and I'll be playing with my stratocaster -- I'll see if I can play the chord I'm having troubling with on a guitar that is set up properly.

[KirkP]

Also, check that the thumb is near the center of the back of the neck, not wrapped around it. Think of the index and thumb as a woodworker's clamp.
You said you lowered the action, but that was probably just at the bridge. Action at the nut and truss rod tension need to be right too, especially for barring. Also, fleveling becomes more important as you lower the action.

[pubylakeg]

some random thoughts,

It might help to have a look at your playing position and posture in a mirror.

Analyse your arm, from the shoulder right the way down through the elbow, and wrist, to the hand for any signs of tension or rigidity. The action of pressing a full bar shouldn't really require a lot of pressure. Your arm should feel quite relaxed.

Some players develop a bad tendency to rest their left forearm on their left thigh. Make sure you're not doing this.

Does the bar technique feel equally difficult when sitting down, or standing up using a strap?

There is also a means of "rolling" the left hand index finger, very slightly, so that the side surface of the finger nearest to the thumb is making contact with the string, as opposed to the pads of the finger exclusively providing the downward pressure.

Keep at it!

[GuyBoden]

Some good advice given, my advice is this: don't play barre chords.

[rob taft]

Dom, First off take you guitar to a competent repair person and have it set up correctly. Even a cheap guitar today should be capable of good action. If to use your words ""only Howlin' Wolf could play barre chords on that guitar!"then it will be difficult to play a barre chord cleanly.

From your original post the use of barre chords were brought up in relation to fingerstyle guitar. Using barre chords is an essential part of classical and jazz fingerstyle guitar. If your playing big band ala Freddie Green than you don't need to worry about barre chords. If you are playing solo fingerstyle than you need to get the technique under your fingers. Take look at Martin Taylor for example. After you fix the "action" problem, it just comes down to practice. Assuming your guitar is set up correctly you don't need supper hand strength to fret a clean bar and play other notes with the other fingers while maintaining the barre.

A year ago, I switched over from pick to all finger-style. Now I could already play a clean barre chord but when I played classical and jazz fingerstyle pieces I found myself using full barres, half barres quite a bit. When I switched over I studied with a good classical player. Again, putting the guitar action aside, you just need to keep working on it, focus on the placement of your thumb, the places where your finger contact the strings etc. For example I'm finishing up a fingerstyle version of My Funny Valentine and it utilizes artificial harmonics at the end of the tune. In this case, I start off with a full barre across the first fret and alternate open strings and harmonics to get the "harp" effect. I had difficulty getting this to ring clearly on the d string. Well it's because my first finger joint falls right on the d string (in this case Eb) and the harmonic was slightly muted. On this guitar and on this piece I have to shift my finger ever so slightly so the D string does fall directly into the joint. What I'm trying to say is in summary. Fix the guitar then practice-practice. Start with just focusing on making a clean barre with one finger. Then add the other fingers and than since this is fingerstyle start playing arpeggios/scales with your right hand while maintaining the barre.

[wolflen]

yes the set up is crucial..also one aspect that is sometime overlooked..the nut itself and string gauge-the strings should fill the nut right to the bottom..so the nut itself may need to be filed a bit wider to accommodate the string..mostly the low E A D..if overlooked may produce uneven pressure in getting chords to ring ..

I once played a fender custom strat..it had butter soft action from 1st to 22 fret..the strings were light (10-46) and deep set in the nut..one thing about electric guitars that new players may overlook..you don't need to slam on the strings to get volumn..that's what amps and controls are for..very low action is good and you can strum fast and hard and still not get any buzz at any point ..

my current les paul is set up with (10-46) and very low action..the nut is able to accommodate a heavier string set should I want/need it..

one exercise I show new players - to not fear the F barre chord-with a set up guitar-form the E major chord with fingers 2 3 4 at the first position..use just enough pressure to get the chord to ring true for 4 beats..now do not take fingers off the strings but relax the pressure..now do a fast - pressure/relax with a slow strumming motion so you are hearing the chord clearly then the rest..now move up one fret and use your first finger(barre) .. pressure/relax until the chord rings true--now play one string at a time in the barre chord position until each note of the chord rings true..do the same exercise as high as your guitar allows..and back down to the F barre

also my thumb is approx. in the middle of the neck pointed at a slight upward angel toward the tuners..in the pressure/relax exercise it also takes part..(actually my entire arm does)

hope this may help

[BigDaddyLoveHandles]

Some good advice given, my advice is this: don't play barre chords.

Sure, if you're comping with a bass player, but suppose you a playing a solo chord melody ballad and you want the occasional arpeggio to fill things out? You're liable to try all sorts of tricky grips, and barres will be the least of the gymnasties.

[Jabberwocky]

A lot of very good pointers. Another thing to consider is your playing posture and the "attitude" of your guitar. Check out Mr. John Stowell's playing posture and the way his guitar is positioned.

The way I had it explained to me, let the weight of your forearm do all the work. One should be able to make a proper barre without pressing the thumb against the back of the neck. If you are squeezing the neck, you are doing it inefficiently. If the tip of the thumb is turning white, you are wasting too much energy. The thumb is just for stability and positioning. You should feel your thumb touching the back of the neck, not applying force to it.

A bony index finger is also a problem as the B-string which falls under the joint tends to buzz. A small piece of surgical tape just under the joint (not around the joint) helps although that reduces its flexibility.

But address your playing position first and see if playing the guitar classical style with the neck up helps. The weight of the forearm works better in this position to effect the barre. Those low-slung rocknroller git under the bollocks postures don't work too well in jazz.

Lastly, as has been said, eschew barre chords. They tend to sound muddy anyway.

[D.R.22]

A lot of very good pointers. Another thing to consider is your playing posture and the "attitude" of your guitar. Check out Mr. John Stowell's playing posture and the way his guitar is positioned.

The way I had it explained to me, let the weight of your forearm do all the work. One should be able to make a proper barre without pressing the thumb against the back of the neck. If you are squeezing the neck, you are doing it inefficiently. If the tip of the thumb is turning white, you are wasting too much energy. The thumb is just for stability and positioning. You should feel your thumb touching the back of the neck, not applying force to it.

A bony index finger is also a problem as the B-string which falls under the joint tends to buzz. A small piece of surgical tape just under the joint (not around the joint) helps although that reduces its flexibility.

But address your playing position first and see if playing the guitar classical style with the neck up helps. The weight of the forearm works better in this position to effect the barre. Those low-slung rocknroller git under the bollocks postures don't work too well in jazz.

Lastly, as has been said, eschew barre chords. They tend to sound muddy anyway.

Thanks for all the answers guys! I think getting all of my guitars set-up properly will be my birthday gift from myself to myself! And yes my playing position is usually awful as I play sitting on the side of the bed, hunched over et all. I've looked into getting good straps so I can play standing up but I usually just play a few hours a week if I'm lucky because of university so I wasn't too worried about that. But now that my semester is over and summer is slowly rolling in I will definitely find myself spending a lot more time playing. Again, thanks for all the tips and answers, I'll keep them all in mind when playing!

[va3ux]

Another thing to consider (after you've followed the other suggestions, and you have a good setup on your guitar) : consider whether a different fretboard radius suits your hand better than the radius you have now.

[Paully]

The muscles I felt working hardest when I began with barre chords were in my forearm. I found some exercises that really helped strengthen that "barre chord muscle".
Extend fretting arm out in front of you.
Then one at a time grasp your first fretting finger at the first joint and pull back until you just start to feel it in your forearm.
Holding the finger back close and open the other fingers twenty times. Do this with all four fretting fingers. After all four fingers are done, start again doing fifteen reps this time. Followed by sets of ten then five.
I have been doing this for over a year and can actually flex that forearm muscle you feel when beginning with barre chords.
As proof that it works I can play barre chords on my acoustic strung with 13's without my thumb touching the neck.
Anyway,
just a suggestion. Hope things work out for you.
Paully

[D.R.22]

Thanks! I think these kind of exercises would be better than grippers...