Chord Basics, Pt. I

I’ve seen a good number of students get discouraged because of the way they are introduced to chords. For whatever reason, when learning chords many teachers start their students off with open position three-finger chords such as the “classic” E, A or D. It may be a bit much for those still developing finger independence to utilize three-finger chords, so I prefer to have students use one-finger open chords. 

The first open chords that I introduce to students to are the one-finger G7 and G. Although technically called G7/D and G/D, those new to the guitar are on a “need to know” basis and understanding chord inversions when you can’t play a chord is a bit much to ask.

Over the next few posts I’ll delve into strumming these chords and the mechanics of strumming.