Barre Chords

Easy When You Know How!

"Barre Chords - Are a type of guitar chord
where one or more fingers are used to press
down multiple strings across the fingerboard ..."

When you play this type of chord you put your index finger over the whole six strings in order to "stop" more than one string at once. You can also play a "half" which may be anything from two to five strings.

The more complex the music gets, the more this chord comes into its own. There are so many chords played in classical guitar music that you need excellent guitar technique to deal with them.

The way I’ve found best to play these chords is by placing your finger as flat as you can across the strings. I also tend to use the side of my finger closest to my thumb in a slightly turned style as I find I can avoid the ridges in the digits of my fingers and the effect is to have a flatter surface on which to perform it.

Here are two photos of me playing a full barre (across six strings) and a half-barre (across four strings)…

Because it's a great way to super-boost your playing
and become the guitar player you've always wanted I
personally recommend these titles. Just click on
the pictures below to BUY NOW...

Don't forget to get your free monthly music here... Great Guitar Tips & Free Music

Take a look at Tim Gillespie's Book Of Chords. It really is an unusual but clever way of looking at chords and barre chords on the guitar...

Notice my index finger is slightly turned to miss the ridges in my digits as I explained above. It’s quite an easy thing to do once you get used to it. Although many "experts" say your finger should be straight, I’ve never had a problem with it and I can perform some pretty complex and technically difficult music.

I suggest you experiment and make up your own mind. We are all different with different physical capabilities – there are A-L-W-A-Y-S exceptions to the rule, so don’t be afraid to flout convention when needed.

Here is a graphic of the "half" (4 strings) and "full" (6 strings) as they look in music notation on the third fret of guitar…

Ralph Denyer's, "The Guitar Handbook has some excellent information on barre chords...

I hope this page has been of use to you in understanding how to play chords.

Good luck!

Still Haven't Found What You're Looking For?

Simply enter whatever term you're searching for e.g. if you're searching for all pages that mention the word "segovia" just type in that term and away you go!

You can even search the Web. Just enter "classical guitar" followed by your search word(s). I hope you find me again!

Ready? 1-2-3... Search!