TAC Family Forums

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  • Bill_Brown

    Member
    March 2, 2023 at 11:16 am

    Hi @ellenbelshin23gmail-com , welcome to TAC. The “power” chords that Tony is showing you are simple forms of E shaped and A shaped barre chords. In other words, these shapes are considered easy compared to the full barre chord shapes. If you can play a G chord, then you can make these power chord shapes. Let’s take the A5 chord shape that’s in the tab. Place your index finger on the loE string at the 5th fret. Then place your ring finger on the A string at the 7th fret. Now place your pinkie on the D string at the 7th fret, just below your ring finger – strum only those 3 strings. The same shape that your fingers are making for this A5 chord can be used for the other 2 chords (D5 & E5) shown in the tab. That exact same shape is moved to different string sets and/or different frets. It’s the shape that your fingers are making that’s important. Also keep your thumb aligned with your index finger. Use as little pressure as possible on the strings (fretting fingers) and neck (thumb) – just enough to get sound from those fretted strings. Keep your wrist (of the fretting hand) loose, do not lock it up. By doing these things, you should minimize any pain in your hand and wrist. If you start to feel pain or muscle cramping, then stop playing and do some of the stretches that @the-old-coach is suggesting. Also, make sure you’re drinking enough fluids (water), lack of fluids leads to muscle cramps. Most importantly, don’t give up! Keep trying, however if you reach a point where it doesn’t seem fun for you, then stop and walk away, move on to the next topic, it’s OK, at least you tried.

    Best of luck to you Ellen.