e and f chords


Here are two more chords for you, the E chord and the F chord. If you are already familiar with the material in  Lesson Three,  Lesson Six, and Lesson Eight keep on reading. If not, get back there and return here when you are comfortable with them.



E & F



Having already learned the A Minor Chord back in Lesson Eight, the E Chord isn't going to be too tough. It's the same fingering on the next lowest string. Remember that on the guitar it is common practice to refer to going from the fourth to the fifth string going down a string. Because the fifth string has a lower pitch it is called going down a string even though your hand is moving up. Strange, I know, but get used to it. The F Chord on the other hand is always a handful for people starting out. It represents the first time you will be called upon to cover multiple strings with one finger. If you look at the diagram above you will notice that there is a "1" on both the first and second strings. This means that you are to play both of those notes with your first finger. We call this “barreing”.

You know how I've been harping on you up to this point about playing everything with your top knuckle bent away from the neck? Well now you're going to do the opposite, by letting your top knuckle bend backwards a bit so that the pad of your first fingertip covers both strings. While doing this it is more important than ever to get your second and third fingers all the way up on the tips, otherwise you're going to get a big puddle of mud. This is very challenging at first, but contrary to popular belief you don't have to be double-jointed, or a vulcan to play the F chord. You just need to practice it a lot.

Here's a fun chord progression. Strum each using the pattern from Lesson Eleven, and have a blast.

House Of Four


And here’s what it looks and sounds like. Dig in.