Difficulties with beginning chords

[BarbaraM]

Hi, @baranenyahoo-com, and welcome to TAC!

I too have small hands. So 2 things I ended up doing. First was the finger stretching course (courses are on the left of your main screen). Then stretch before each playing session. It won’t create miracles, but it will help. The second thing was I made sure I was playing a smaller-scale guitar. My Zager Parlor has a 23.5″ scale length, and is perfect for me. That is measured from the bridge to the 12th fret then doubled, I’m told.

Best of luck to you, and have fun on your guitar journey!

[MattTX_24]

Welcome and congrats on starting your guitar journey!

Not sure what kind of guitar you have, but your guitar type, size, string setup, etc, can all have an effect on how easy it is to play your instrument.

Aside from things like hand/finger stretching and simply getting used to playing chords, the guitar itself would be the first thing I’d look at to address your issue.

If you haven’t done so, I’d recommend a trip to a guitar store to play around on a wide range of models to see if something feels any better. Lots of companies make smaller guitars, for instance, Taylor makes a GS Mini or the Baby Taylor, but lots of companies have their own versions. Even if you weren’t able to buy something immediately, it might give you a little relief knowing there are guitars out there that would make it easier for you to learn on. Even something as little as playing around with the guitar’s action or setup (google it) can change the ease of playing.

If you haven’t done any of the above, that is where I’d start.

Good luck and keep at it!

• This reply was modified 2 weeks, 1 day ago by  MattTX_24.