Try this guitar challenge
STEP 1: Watch the video to learn the bite-sized piece of music
STEP 2: Click the “PLAY” tab below the video to play along with Tony until you can do it on your own.
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Responses
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Responses
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Nope. Can’t get there from here. My fingers just don’t bend/stretch to reach across the frets while holding the barre. I’ll keep trying, but so much for the 5-day part of the challenge.
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I’m not a big fan of barre chords and this was decidedly difficult, but I powered through it.
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Very difficult. Muscle Iāve never used
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This is tough. Seems like I need to fatten up the area around the joint closest to the tip of my index finger. I’m having a lot of trouble making the B string without trying to twist off the neck.
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Big win today! I have always had trouble with barre chords for years. I could not barre the fret cleanly, there is part of my pointer that is not very fleshy and I could never hold down the g and b string cleanly. I noticed today looking at Tony’s fret hand and how he he takes his barre finger and is almost on top of the fret. I did mimick the finger to his placement during the lesson and for the first time in my years of playing, I am hitting clean barre chords by just hugging and almost having my finger over the fret. I guess sometimes you pick up by you can pick things up by observation.
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Barre chords are still rough for me.
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I knew what the “E” shape Barre looked like so that helped but with the arthritis in my left hand barre chords do make it sore. Just gotta stick to it and my hand will get stronger. I did notice that I was able to make better, cleaner notes with my barres today.
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good on this
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Thank you! Iām beginning to win the battle with barre chords.This exercise is excellent. I discovered my truss rod needed a slight adjustment while going through this exercise!
Many thanks! -
Tony, definitely feel the muscle between my thumb and index finger barking at me, will definitely need to stretch before and after this exercise!
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Never you mind, I had the truss rod adjusted on the Martin and I am nailing it. Love it., lol wasn’t logged in.
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Never you mind, I had the truss rod adjusted on the Martin and I am nailing it. Love it.
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Man I have been taking this music theory class and working on progressions. WOW back to the drawing board with these Barre Chords. Jumping Gee Willakers, the “B” string is looking right at me going “NOPE, no today.” Still working on. Going to favorite this one. Probably all of them.
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working on it*
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Really having trouble getting that B string to ring out clean…
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Me too. First fret issue until I kept adjusting the up or down position of my index finger. The softer fleshy part, near base of my index muted it. I raised my index upward toward the ceiling slightly and found the sweet spot. 2nd fret worked after that adjustment of finger position. Tried and failed with frets 3-5. A slight truss rod adjustment resolved the 3-5 fret issues.
I can finally barre 5 frets with clear notes.
This simple lesson helped immensely in trouble shooting my issues.
Iāve been attempting barre chords for months so I had built up some finger strength which is probably at its peak.
Very pleased today.
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most difficult task yet but i keep at it
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Day 2 -E Shape Familiarity
The B string is a dud for me. The others are coming along, but itās a struggle for these arthritic fingers, sad to say. -
While it will take more work it at least seams doable.
-
This one isn’t gonna happen. Our maker blessed me with a normal index finger. The joint of my index finger is at the edge of the neck or the guitar, the end of that finger stops at the A string, while yours extends to the opposite neck side. So I will mark completed with an F. š
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If you can, wrap your hand around so that the thumb takes care of the low E string. You can still go up and down the neck when this shape is needed.
Clapton does it all the time, so it must be ok.
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Got it
Thanks -
Finely my full F chord sounds clear most of the time. Now to get there a little faster. I have tried to work on this at least 10 to 20 min, every other day. Thanks Tony and all.
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Okay, my limbering up (day 1) is improving, but this E shape is a beast! Will keep working on it…
š -
Tony I finger it better when my index finger is about two/thirds above the top of the neck. Is that something thatāll gimme problems later
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I find barre cords frustrating enough to want to throw me guitar out a window. I CANNOT get the B and high E unless the other fingers help!!!
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The problem for me is that if I get my index fingerto form a decent barre, the other fingers foul the strings. If I raise my palm to the to form a better chord shape the barre doesn’t work at all.
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WOW!!
This is brilliant .i have always struggled with barre chords
Now i feel i am really beginning to make a good sound when i strum them
Big thanks and big respect Tony -
I understand that this if for finger strength but is anyone else elbow sore lol?
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ouch. rolling helps but i find if I “push” my left hand away from my body – e.g. move the thumb toward the midline of the neck instead of draping it over near the6th string, it helps. Sort of classical style. I played classical for years and i find the position of the left hand is really optimized using that positioning, and that playing with the guitar on my right knee and draping my thumb up on the neck more toward the 6th string makes me really sloppy.
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good tip on the push away. with the thumb
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I am having a buzz with my G string. I tried rolling my index finger to the side and it made it worse. It did play, but not as clear as it should have been. My gosh. My index finger is killing me right now.
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That will take a lot of practise to strengthen my index finger. It is good practise though.
-
I am struggling with making a clear tone on the B string. While watching an old Peter and Gordon “I go to pieces” video, I see the “E” shape played with the thumb on the low E string and barre the B and high E with the index finger. I tried it and I can make the the B string sound a lot better. Would you recommend using this or should I keep trying to develop more strength in my index finger?
-
There are a lock of guitarists who use the thumb on the low E so if it works better for you I say go for it!
-
i’d say push yourself for now, knowing that if you strengthen that hand you can always revert to putting the thumb on the “E” anyway.
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it says my last activity was on Dec 31 1969 i know i am alittle slow , but didnt know i been at it that long LOL
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Yes, I know what you mean. I actually bought my first guitar in that year. Oh well, what is time anyway?
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Time is an illusion…
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Congratulations, !
Challenge complete
Come back tomorrow for your next challenge
Nope. Can’t get there from here. My fingers just don’t bend/stretch to reach across the frets while holding the barre. I’ll keep trying, but so much for the 5-day part of the challenge.
I’m not a big fan of barre chords and this was decidedly difficult, but I powered through it.
Very difficult. Muscle Iāve never used
This is tough. Seems like I need to fatten up the area around the joint closest to the tip of my index finger. I’m having a lot of trouble making the B string without trying to twist off the neck.
Big win today! I have always had trouble with barre chords for years. I could not barre the fret cleanly, there is part of my pointer that is not very fleshy and I could never hold down the g and b string cleanly. I noticed today looking at Tony’s fret hand and how he he takes his barre finger and is almost on top of the fret. I did mimick the finger to his placement during the lesson and for the first time in my years of playing, I am hitting clean barre chords by just hugging and almost having my finger over the fret. I guess sometimes you pick up by you can pick things up by observation.
Barre chords are still rough for me.
I knew what the “E” shape Barre looked like so that helped but with the arthritis in my left hand barre chords do make it sore. Just gotta stick to it and my hand will get stronger. I did notice that I was able to make better, cleaner notes with my barres today.
good on this
Thank you! Iām beginning to win the battle with barre chords.This exercise is excellent. I discovered my truss rod needed a slight adjustment while going through this exercise!
Many thanks!
Tony, definitely feel the muscle between my thumb and index finger barking at me, will definitely need to stretch before and after this exercise!
Never you mind, I had the truss rod adjusted on the Martin and I am nailing it. Love it., lol wasn’t logged in.
Never you mind, I had the truss rod adjusted on the Martin and I am nailing it. Love it.
Man I have been taking this music theory class and working on progressions. WOW back to the drawing board with these Barre Chords. Jumping Gee Willakers, the “B” string is looking right at me going “NOPE, no today.” Still working on. Going to favorite this one. Probably all of them.
working on it*
Really having trouble getting that B string to ring out clean…
Me too. First fret issue until I kept adjusting the up or down position of my index finger. The softer fleshy part, near base of my index muted it. I raised my index upward toward the ceiling slightly and found the sweet spot. 2nd fret worked after that adjustment of finger position. Tried and failed with frets 3-5. A slight truss rod adjustment resolved the 3-5 fret issues.
I can finally barre 5 frets with clear notes.
This simple lesson helped immensely in trouble shooting my issues.
Iāve been attempting barre chords for months so I had built up some finger strength which is probably at its peak.
Very pleased today.
most difficult task yet but i keep at it
Day 2 -E Shape Familiarity
The B string is a dud for me. The others are coming along, but itās a struggle for these arthritic fingers, sad to say.
While it will take more work it at least seams doable.
This one isn’t gonna happen. Our maker blessed me with a normal index finger. The joint of my index finger is at the edge of the neck or the guitar, the end of that finger stops at the A string, while yours extends to the opposite neck side. So I will mark completed with an F. š
If you can, wrap your hand around so that the thumb takes care of the low E string. You can still go up and down the neck when this shape is needed.
Clapton does it all the time, so it must be ok.
Got it
Thanks
Finely my full F chord sounds clear most of the time. Now to get there a little faster. I have tried to work on this at least 10 to 20 min, every other day. Thanks Tony and all.
Okay, my limbering up (day 1) is improving, but this E shape is a beast! Will keep working on it…
š
Tony I finger it better when my index finger is about two/thirds above the top of the neck. Is that something thatāll gimme problems later
I find barre cords frustrating enough to want to throw me guitar out a window. I CANNOT get the B and high E unless the other fingers help!!!
The problem for me is that if I get my index fingerto form a decent barre, the other fingers foul the strings. If I raise my palm to the to form a better chord shape the barre doesn’t work at all.
WOW!!
This is brilliant .i have always struggled with barre chords
Now i feel i am really beginning to make a good sound when i strum them
Big thanks and big respect Tony
I understand that this if for finger strength but is anyone else elbow sore lol?
ouch. rolling helps but i find if I “push” my left hand away from my body – e.g. move the thumb toward the midline of the neck instead of draping it over near the6th string, it helps. Sort of classical style. I played classical for years and i find the position of the left hand is really optimized using that positioning, and that playing with the guitar on my right knee and draping my thumb up on the neck more toward the 6th string makes me really sloppy.
good tip on the push away. with the thumb
I am having a buzz with my G string. I tried rolling my index finger to the side and it made it worse. It did play, but not as clear as it should have been. My gosh. My index finger is killing me right now.
That will take a lot of practise to strengthen my index finger. It is good practise though.
I am struggling with making a clear tone on the B string. While watching an old Peter and Gordon “I go to pieces” video, I see the “E” shape played with the thumb on the low E string and barre the B and high E with the index finger. I tried it and I can make the the B string sound a lot better. Would you recommend using this or should I keep trying to develop more strength in my index finger?
There are a lock of guitarists who use the thumb on the low E so if it works better for you I say go for it!
i’d say push yourself for now, knowing that if you strengthen that hand you can always revert to putting the thumb on the “E” anyway.
it says my last activity was on Dec 31 1969 i know i am alittle slow , but didnt know i been at it that long LOL
Yes, I know what you mean. I actually bought my first guitar in that year. Oh well, what is time anyway?
Time is an illusion…