Barre chords (bar chords), movable chords for the 6th and 5th strings.

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BARRE CHORDS (movable)

Some chords are only playable on the guitar with the use of the first finger pressed across the fretboard. These are called barre chords, and will take some getting used to! The good news is, once you have mastered barre chords, they are movable up and down the neck, so you only have to memorize a few chord shapes.

First, practice the following grip until all the strings ring out. This may take a while--hang in there:

Index finger 6th string barre chord hold position.

Most barre chord shapes are based on the “E” and “A” chords you are already familiar with. The goal is to tranpose those familiar shapes across the guitar neck.

E-shaped barre chords have the 6th (E) string in the bass (lowest sounding note). Similarly, A-shaped barre chords have the 5th (A) string in the bass.

Because these chord shapes are movable, the following diagrams do not indicate a specific fret position.

By learning the names of the notes on the 6th and 5th strings, you will be able to determine where to play a particular barre chord.

BARRE CHORD SHAPES (Movable)

The chords indicated below are in Root Position, meaning that the root of the chord--its letter name (for example B is the root of an B minor chord)--is always at the bottom (either the 6th or the 5th string, depending on the chord shape) and is the lowest pitched note of the chord.

The shapes below will be referred to as the “E” shape (left) and the “A” shape (right):

Major barre chord 6th string. Major barre chord 5th string.

EXAMPLE: On the 3rd fret, the above chords are G major and C major, respectively.

The shapes below will be referred to as the “Em” shape (left) and the “Am” shape (right):

Minor barre chord 6th string. Minor barre chord 5th string.

EXAMPLE: On the 5th fret, the above chords are A minor and D minor, respectively.

The shapes below will be referred to as the “E7” shape (left) and the “A7” shape (right).

Dominant 7th barre chord 6th string. Dominant 7th barre chord 5th string.

EXAMPLE: On the 1st fret, the above chords are F7 and Bb7, respectively.

The shapes below will be referred to as the “Em7” shape (left) and the “Am7” shape (right).

Minor 7th barre chord 6th string. Minor 7th barre chord 5th string.

EXAMPLE: On the 7th fret, the above chords are Bm7 and Em7, respectively.

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