Bar chords and left hand strength

[knucklebrain1970]

Any secrets here? My hand kills and I can barely do a complet F chord. Unacceptable. Should I use a hand spring exercizer, or just practice F-chords more? I do a little exercize where I alternata from fret 1 to fret 5 using I,M from the 6th string up to the 1st string and back down again. After about 10 of these, I'm rendered useless as far as playing for the evening. What's the quickest way to strengthen the hand short of taking steroids? :lol:

Kevin

[brian richardson]

knucklebrain1970,
bummer.
1. is the action o.k.
2. is your position o.k.

if 1 and 2 are correct; how long have you been playing?
tip-when something hurts-stop.

the hand is designed more for grabbing and making fists, than for squeezing a chord. let the muscles build up slowly.

i played a guitar for 6 months with a bowed neck-had tendonitis for about 9 months(the pain was brutal) have recovered but, never 100%. would never wish that on anyone.

remember the finger tendons connect at the elbow so a straightish arm/wrist plane is best. hope it helps a little.
then again i'm not a doctor 8)

[jjoel84]

actually I find playing Just nylon strings has realy weekend (If thats the word) my hands, so I now Practice on steel strung martin to keep In shape. It make playing nylon strings a breeze,

[deAlmeida]

what kind of guitar do you have? the action (especially at the nut) might just be terribly high. the first fret is the hardest fret to bar in general.. anyways, it just gets better with time and practice... I use a gripmaster, though not as often as I should, but I started using it many years after I started playing guitar, and had no problem playing barre chords, so there's really no reason one of those would be necessary.. I think they are useful..and very portable, so you can work out those flexor muscles whenever you want. just be careful if you get one..as with working any muscle, it is easy to over-do it. used correctly though, they should never injure your hands in any way.

good luck with the barre chords

[Sandra]

I have to agree with deAlmeida about checking the action at the nut, and the first fret being the hardest one to bar.

There are all kinds of hand exercisers designed to build strength. When I was in therapy after surgery for severed tendons in my left hand, they gave me a blob of institutional grade putty to squeeze. But you can squeeze just about anything to build strength.

[daniel711]

One of Sor's rules - avoid barring whenever possible. Never pactice bar chords using brute strength. Instead, practice trying to make the notes ring with as little pressure as possible. Search for the proper position/angle that will allow the notes to ring with the least pressure. With practice the correct position will come naturally...

[knucklebrain1970]

I have a kenny hill almeria model. it's basically kenny hills japanese imports. it's a torres design, you know with the ugliest headstock in the world, but besides that it was purchased from larry cooperman in CA who is friends with Kenny and such, so I guess he knows what he's doing. Now do I know about action and what it's supposed to be? no idea, I've been playing all my life but only classical for the past 4 months or so. I'll post some pics of this thing. Anybody who has any rules of thumb regarding action, throw them my way. Thanks, Kevin

[Libre]

Knuck -
When you play a full bar chord, DO NOT attempt to, well, fully bar the chord. What I mean is, you have more than just the 1st finger involved in the chord, although it is the 1st finger doing the barring. THere is no necessity for the first finger to exert even pressure on all 6 strings. In the case of a F major at the 1st fret, the 1st finger only needs to apply pressure to the 6th, 2nd and 1st strings. It should be curved, not straight, to accomplish this. Try that. If you need a fuller explanation, ask.
THe same holds true for other bar chords. And play half or 1/3 bars whenever possible.

[cdikland]

Any secrets here?Kevin
Yeah. relax!!!! Since my instructor "show me the light" on barre chords, I can play/hold them for an eternity. Ok well maybe not that long but when I concentrate on what I am doing and stay relaxed, practicing barre chords requires only slightly more effort. This is not to say I can always play a barre correctly but my mistakes are always due to incorrect finger placement NOT the amount of presuure I apply. When I do make a mistake and the string(s) buzz there is a tendency to apply more pressure. Dont!!!! Instead, stop and look at your position. That is the secret. Try playing barre chords without using your thumb.

Again, I point you to: "The Principles of correct practice for guitar" at http://www.guitarprinciples.com
No, I am in no way affilated with the author of this book

[deAlmeida]

another tip...and a good tip in general for guitar playing, that is helpful in many instances... use gravity to your advantage. let the weight of your arm help in holding the bar

[keith]

knuckles: i studied with a russian who had short fingers but who could out reach me--i have long thin fingers. the secret? making shapes with the hand and then applying it to the fret board. here is an example using the barre f chord:

fingers 2-4 form the shape of an e chord and then are placed on the fretboard. now you lightly lower finger 1 (index) across the strings with the bottom of the neck resting in your palm. what you will find is that you do not need the extreme pressure of finger 1 therefore you will not be squeezing the neck to death--which is a very common practice for beginners.

try this method--it does work. try it with difficult fingerings. the key is to let fingers 2-4 go first and then finger 1 last. you will find that you do not need the extreme contortions or pressure. to this day when i play the opening chord of alhambra i put fingers 3 and 4 down first and then put finger 1 down--out of habit, but a good one i must say.

[knucklebrain1970]

knuckles: i studied with a russian who had short fingers but who could out reach me--i have long thin fingers. the secret? making shapes with the hand and then applying it to the fret board. here is an example using the barre f chord:

fingers 2-4 form the shape of an e chord and then are placed on the fretboard. now you lightly lower finger 1 (index) across the strings with the bottom of the neck resting in your palm. what you will find is that you do not need the extreme pressure of finger 1 therefore you will not be squeezing the neck to death--which is a very common practice for beginners.

try this method--it does work. try it with difficult fingerings. the key is to let fingers 2-4 go first and then finger 1 last. you will find that you do not need the extreme contortions or pressure. to this day when i play the opening chord of alhambra i put fingers 3 and 4 down first and then put finger 1 down--out of habit, but a good one i must say.

Thanks keith, that's what I do to but don't realize it, the fingers first then the bar last, however I was putting too much pressure, but not in the proper place.
Kevin