Solving the A Chord Struggle

Posted on May 26, 2008 in Editorials

Solving the A Chord Struggle

I recently decided to take up guitar, something I have wanted to do for a long time, but never did until now. I knew it would be challenging to learn how to play the instrument, but I definitely didn’t expect some of the seemingly basic difficulties I’ve run into early on.

One of those difficulties was the A chord.

The A chord seems easy at first glance. You have to hold down the second, third, and fourth strings (B, G, and D, respectively) on the second fret. Doesn’t sound too hard, but for many guitar players, myself included, it’s a challenge.

Squeezing all three of those fingers on the same fret can be difficult in itself, then you’ve got to ward off the ever-dreaded fret buzz.

Most instructional sites and videos seem to prefer fingering the chord by placing the index finger on the fourth string, the middle finger on the third string, and the ring finger on the second string. That method causes the index finger on the fourth string to be all the way back next to the first fret, meaning you’ve got to press the string down extra hard to prevent fret buzz (especially on an acoustic).

Not satisfied with this method, I tried some other suggestions, including barring (to ‘barre’ means to hold down several strings on the same fret with one finger) all three of the strings, but I wasn’t a fan of having to avoid or mute the first string.

I finally found a workable solution in placing my ring finger on the second string, my middle finger on the fourth string, and sliding my index finger in between the two on the third string. Not only is this method the most comfortable one I came across, it also allows you to get all three fingers close to the front of the fret.

To see a demonstration of this fingering method, watch this video by Justin from www.justinguitar.com:

Hopefully this helps other beginning guitar players get past this early hurdle with ease.

Do you play an instrument? If so, did you encounter any challenges with seemingly basic skills early on?

If not, why not? There’s no time like the present.

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