Basic Guitar Chords for Beginners

With these 11 basic guitar chords, you’ll be able to gain a better understanding of how to play guitar at the most basic level.

1) A Major

A major is an easy chord to start with, since the entire chord is located on the second fret, so you can free up your other fingers to mix it up. All you do is put your first finger on the fourth string, second finger on the third string, and third finger on the second string – all on the second fret.

2) C Major

C major is one of the most widely used guitar chords for a reason. The chord is a delicate combination of your basic C, E, and G notes. Your second and third fingers will align along a slanted pattern to achieve the chord. Don’t worry if it’s tough at first – your fingers will loosen up over time.

3) D Major

D major has a unique triangular shape. Use your first two fingers to play E and G on the second fret, then hold down the B string on the third fret with your third finger. The resulting sound is optimistic and heartwarming, and it may sound familiar from many famous lighthearted tunes.

4) E Major

The E major chord is unique in that it requires every string to play. Put your first finger on the first fret of the third string, then put your second finger on the second fret of the fifth string. The third finger goes on the second fret of the fourth string. Lastly, hold them all down and strum in a cohesive motion. Try to hit them all in one swoop!

5) G Major

The G major chord may be a little more challenging than some other chords, and it can be hard to quickly reach other chords after playing it. To play it, your first finger goes to the second fret of the fourth string, your second finger goes to the third fret of the fifth string, and finally, place your third finger on the third fret first string and strum them all carefully.

6) A Minor

If you can play E major, A minor should be easy. Simply move your finger up one string. This chord is also very close to A major – just move the B note from the second fret to the first. Minor chords have a morose feeling to them, which makes them great for breakup songs. The A chord really is a staple for beginners to learn!

7) B Minor

Moving on to barre chords is a big step when mastering the guitar, and the B minor chord is a good place to start. A barre chord involves placing your finger across several strings at once, as opposed to just using the tip of your finger to hold down a specific note.

Here’s how to play it:

• Rest your finger flat across strings 1 to 5 on the second fret

• Put your third finger on the fourth fret of the fourth string

• Your fourth finger goes on the fourth fret of the third string

• Your second finger goes on the third fret of the second string

• Strum all chords in unison without hitting the sixth string

8) C Minor

C minor is a popular chord for songs that want to tell a story with heartfelt emotion. It is both sad and meaningful, lingering long after it has been strummed. Unfortunately, it is also one of the hardest chords to play because it requires you to twist your hand awkwardly. To play it, put your pointer finger barred on the third fret from the first to fifth strings, while placing your second finger on the second string (B) on the fourth fret. Lastly, your third finger will need to go on the fourth string (D) and the fourth finger will go on the third string (G) – both on the fifth fret

9) D Minor

The D minor chord is almost exactly like its D major counterpart. However, you’ll need to move the high E from the second fret to the first fret. The fifth and sixth strings will need to be muted for the chord to sound correct. D minor sounds like you’re gearing up to deliver something impactful. It’s commonly used by musicians of all types, but it sounds especially at home in a good country or folk song

10) E Minor

If you’re looking for easy guitar chords, E minor is a good place to start. All you need to do is play an E major, except you remove the G string component.

Even novices can master the E minor chord in a matter of minutes.

11) G Minor

This isn’t a chord you’ll be playing much, but it can be a nice punctuation point to a song. G minor has a creepy sound if done right. To play, simply use the third fret and barre all six strings. Then place your third finger on the fifth fret on the fifth string. From there, you’ll use your fourth finger to hold down the fifth fret of the fourth string – also known as the D string. Then, strum with confidence.

Master Piano Institute Sydney guitar teacher will give you more tailored information: https://www.masterpianoinstitute.com/guitar-ukulele-lesson-private

How to Tune my Guitar?

How to tune a guitar in standard tuning

There are several different guitar tuning profiles, but the most popular one by far is ‘standard tuning’.

In standard tuning, the notes of the guitar, from thickest to thinnest are: E, A, D, G, B, E

How to remember the notes of the guitar strings

Here’s two useful mnemonics to help you remember the order “E, A, D, G, B, E”.

· Elephants And Donkeys Grow Big Ears

· Eddie Ate Dynamite Good Bye Eddie

Pick whichever one you like best, or make up your own. (The sillier the better.)

Now we know the notes we're aiming for we can tune the guitar

You’ve already learned the first half of how to tune a guitar, well done!

Now we need to look at how to tune a guitar to E, A, D, G, B, E.

How to tune a guitar to E, A, D, G, B, E

Look at your guitar’s headstock (the thin end of the guitar).

You will see small ‘keys’ that you can turn. We call these ‘machine heads’.

Each string is attached to a machine head of its own. When we turn a machine head we change the pitch that the string is tuned to.

How do we know what note the string is tuned to when we’re turning the machine heads?

Easy. We use a tuner to tell us! 🙂

If you’re wondering how to tune a guitar with what you have at hand there’s 4 methods (we’ll cover each one in turn):

1. How to tune a guitar using an electronic guitar tuner.

2. How to tune a guitar using a smartphone app.

3. How to tune a guitar using other instruments.

4. How to tune a guitar using its own strings (and your ears!)

How to tune a guitar using an electronic guitar tuner.

When people ask me how to tune a guitar I always say the same thing: All things considered, electronic guitar tuners are the best option.

They are fast and accurate. (When you have a decent electronic guitar tuner you simply won’t need to worry about how to tune a guitar again.)

The interface of ALL tuners is broadly the same.

You pluck a note and the tuner shows you the note you played.

The tuner shows you this in three ways:

· It will tell you the string it thinks you’re trying to tune.

· It will show you with an oscillating ‘needle’ how far away from the note you are.

· It will show you with a light whether the note is too low or too high.

You need to get the needle in the middle.

On the picture above the ‘needle’ is perfectly in the middle. (Can you see the thin, black vertical line?)

Because the needle is perfectly in the middle, the green light above it is lit. This note is perfectly in tune!

We can see it’s tuning the A string (the 5th string) because in the top left corner it says “5A”.

· If the needle was over to the left, the green light would not be lit. The red light to the left of it would be lit and this would tell us the note was too ‘flat’ (too low).

· If the needle was over to the right, again the green light would not be lit. The red light to the right would be lit and this would tell us the note was too ‘sharp’ (too high).

Got that? Ok, let's tune up!

1 – Turn the tuner on.

2 – If necessary, tell the tuner the string you want to tune. (Most tuners default to ‘auto-detect’ the strings, but some tuners need to be manually told what string you want to tune.)

Important! If your tuner is manual, then make sure your tuner is ‘listening’ for the correct string that you want to tune. If the tuner is set to ‘listen’ to a different string to the one you are tuning you may overtune the string and it will snap!

3 – Pluck a string.

4 – Look at the tuner. Is the needle in the middle? If not turn the machine head one way or the other.

5 – Pluck again. Which way did the needle go? If it went towards the middle, keep going! If it went away from the middle, turn the machine head in the opposite direction.

6 – Repeat the cycle of A) pluck string B) look at tuner and C) turn machine head until the needle is in the middle.

While tuning, pluck the string a LOT.

Most beginners are quite timid and pluck once and then wait for ages while the tuner ‘listens’ for a note that’s stopped ringing.

Don’t do this. You should pluck, pluck, pluck away!

The more your guitar is ringing out a note the easier it is for the tuner to hear, so pluck lots. (About once a second is ideal.)

Master Piano Institute provides guitar lessons for kids, adult guitar lessons, beginner guitar lessons. Our guitar teachers will give you more tailored information: https://www.masterpianoinstitute.com/guitar-ukulele-lesson-private

How to Choose Your First Acoustic Guitar?

1. Nylon String or Steel String?

For Nylon string acoustic guitar, it is also known as classical guitar.

Nylon strings are easier and softer on the fingertips, and has a wider fret board which is easier to adapt for beginner. Also they’re reasonably priced at beginners level, but please don’t go too cheap. However, classical guitar sound kind of dull, there’s a risk you’ll want something more pretty quickly if your interest is in popular modern songs.

For Steel String acoustic guitar, the “steel” strings (they come in all kinds of construction, not just steel) are louder and brighter, and a much more versatile instrument to play. Great for Folk, rock, jazz, pop, country music.

However, those steel strings also chew the ends off your fingers until eventually you develop hard calluses on the tips.

2. How Much Should You Spend?

There’s always a temptation not to spend too much money on your first guitar in case you change your mind and stop playing. However, budget guitars can be more difficult to play and you’ll begin to think it’s all too hard, when a better instrument will be easier and encouraging. Cheap guitars can have a high “action” (the distance between the string and the fret board) which makes pressing the string down tough work for novice players. The frets can be poorly set, meaning the strings rattle and buzz. The timber used is just standard factory sheeting. It all adds up to a cheap guitar. At the same time, I have to admit that in the crazy lottery of mass production and manufacturing, sometimes you’ll find a good guitar has been built.

A better idea is turning to established brands like Maton, Washburn, Epiphone, Fender… there’re plenty of respected manufacturers with long traditions in making guitars. No matter what type of guitar, all these companies have low-priced models that still benefit from the care and craftsmanship you’d expect from well-known brands. Prices start around $150 for basic types, then for $500-700 you’ll find an enormous choice.

3. Second-hand Guitar?

Unless you really know what you’re doing, buying a used guitar is a risky venture. Definitely, you shouldn’t buy a second-hand guitar without seeing or trying it out. Again, sticking with well-known brands is wise. Look carefully for worn fret boards (pitted holes under frequently-played notes) and grooves in the frets themselves. Check along the neck to see if it’s not too bent— it’s supposed to be slightly curved. Getting problems like these fixed professionally can be expensive and you might as well buy something new in the first place. The bottom line here is that high-quality instruments that have been properly maintained don’t lose any value. A good second-hand guitar should cost you as much as a good new one — but yes, those bargains are out there, too.

Master Piano Institute provides guitar lessons for kids, adult guitar lessons, beginner guitar lessons. Our guitar teacher will give you more tailored information: https://www.masterpianoinstitute.com/guitar-ukulele-lesson-private