how long does it take to learn barre chords

How Long Does It Take To Learn Barre Chords On Guitar: Bar Chords

Barre chords are one of the most commonly used types of guitar chords, and are important for every beginner to learn.  

How long does it take to learn barre chords? Will I ever be able to play barre chords like a pro?  

Barre chords are a very important part of learning guitar.   

These chord shapes can be moved all over the fret board to establish nearly every chord you could need.  This is why it’s important to learn barre chords.  

Learning barre chords completely depends on how much you’re willing to practice. Getting the basics down will take at least a couple weeks of practice. After a year of playing guitar you will wither not have difficulty with barre chords, or will need to increase your practice.

Should beginners learn barre chords

The sooner you get to learning barre chords the better, however, they are not the first sets of chords you should learn on guitar.

Yes, the sooner you start learning, the sooner you’ll master them, however, they are just one type of chords.

You’ll be better off learning the basic open chords first, then once you’ve moved onto the minor chords, it is time to start throwing  in some barre chords.

Beginners should learn barre chords, but only after they’ve gotten the basics of the open major and minor chords down first.

What is the easiest barre chord to learn first?

The easiest barre chord is what’s called power chords. If you fret the low E sting on the 3rd fret, and use your ring and pinky finger for the 4th and 5th string on the 5th fret, you’ll be playing a G power chord.

G power chord on guitar

Now I can already hear someone say “pOwEr ChoRds ArEn’t BaRRe ChOrDs”, so ya you’re right, however, power chords are a god first step into the world of barre chords.

Just like how you should learn a simple scale before you start riffing through modes, you want to start off with the easiest skill, and work up from there.

Power chords are commonly used in rock and punk, and with them you can play any major chord, sharpe or flat.

It’s a versatile way to get into barre chords.

Once you’ve gotten power chords down, I’d recommend moving on to traditional barre chords.

Is it hard to learn barre chords

Barre chords are one of the first, and most challenging chords for amatuer guitarists to learn. 

They require a lot of finger strength and muscle memory, which most beginners are still working to develop.

Nonetheless, every seasoned guitarist can play barre chords with ease and no one has a traumatic story about their time learning barre chords.

How long does it take to learn barre chords? However long you’re willing to put off learning them, plus 2 weeks.

Barre chords are a get tool to have when playing guitar, you won’t want to put off learning them.

Do you have to learn bar chords

No, you do not have to learn bar chords, however, they certainly help you develop overall guitar skills.

It would be a significant disadvantage to ignore or delay learning bar chords.

Everyone has to learn them eventually, my recommendation would be to pick up a chord progression, with two chords you know really well, a new open chord you’d like to work on, and a simple power chord.

This way you’re dipping your toes into  the bar chord pool, and will be working on various skill at the same time.

tossing in a bar chord here and there is a good way of building up basic muscle memory, without hating the practice session.

I can’t play barre chords

If you’re having trouble learning or playing barre chords, and you’ve been trying for more than a couple weeks you may want to reassess your approach.

How long does it take to learn barre chords? How long are you willing to practice them each day?

Let’s look at your approach.

Are you attempting to play barre chords with your pointer finger barring the full fret, and then adding the fingers below?

Using your pointer finger as a capo is not the way to go about learning barre chords.

Yes, you’ll want to get there eventually, however, you don’t need to start there.

Use your pointer to get the top string of the barre chord, and then apply the rest of the finger where they need to be.

The high E and B string are often left out of the barre chord altogether.

Of course there are instances where you need to use your finger as a capo, and you’ll reach that point with practice, it just isn’t the right place to start.

Not all 6 strings need to play loud and clear to play barre chord, at least initially.

How do I strengthen my hands for barre chords

You can use hand exercises to strengthen your hands, but let’s get something out o the way.

Raw finger and hand strength isn’t as important as muscle memory, they are two different things.

While it feels a little silly, I can play full barre chords without using my thumb to apply pressure from behind.

That’s right, you don’t need to attack the strings like you’re in a war, you just need to apply just enough pressure, in the right spots, in the right way.

At first you won’t know where or how to do this, that’s why practice is important.

If you watch a beginner play a barre chord, they’ll likely apply a ton of pressure to the strings, as compensation for not having muscle memory of the chord.

A professional guitarist will just simply and easily play the barre chord, it won’t look like a struggle.

That’s muscle memory meets skill.

Yes, the experienced guitarist’s hands and fingers are stronger than the beginners, but it isn’t solely about raw strength.

It’s more important in how you apply the strength you have, although when learning you can certainly compensate, with extra strength.

So, you don’t need to start going to the gym to workout your hands, just continue learning and working on learning barre chords.

How to train barre chords

A good exercises for training barre chords is similar to learning open chords.

Pick a few chords in a progression, and play one of them as a barre chord.

Once you’ve gotten that chord progression down, make 2 out of the 4 chords barred.

Get the basics of bare chords down, then start playing along with songs that use barre chords.

Once you’ve mastered training barre chords you’ll open up a lot of possibilities on guitar.

What should I learn after barre chords

Barre chords are a good mid stage skill of beginner guitar playing.

If you’re looking for the next step after learning to play barre chords, I’d recommend learning the 7th chords.

7th chords nicely compliment barre chords, as you’ll be able to take the same patterns and concepts of 7ths and apply them within a barre chord.

From there, you should move onto 9ths, then dable a bit in the augmented, diminished or 5th chords.

How many days does it take to learn barre chords?

You can get the basics of barre chords down in about 14 days or two weeks of daily practice, even with 15 minute sessions.

However, you’ll need to be diligently practicing barre chords the entire session.

After the two weeks, with regular practice you can expect to master barre chords within 120 days (about 6 months).

If you’re not regularly practicing, or being intentional about it, it is entirely possible for guitar students to play for more than a year, and still not play barre chords well.

How long does it take to learn barre chords? However much effort you’re willing to put into learning and practicing!

How long does it take to learn barre chords? Will I ever be able to play barre chords like a pro?  

Barre chords are a very important part of learning guitar.   

These chord shapes can be moved all over the fret board to establish nearly every chord you could need.   This is why it’s important to learn barre chords.  

Learning barre chords completely depends on how much you’re willing to practice. Getting the basics down will take at least a couple weeks of practice. After a year of playing guitar you will wither not have difficulty with barre chords, or will need to increase your practice.

Should beginners learn barre chords

The sooner you get to learning barre chords the better, however, they are not the first sets of chords you should learn on guitar.

Yes, the sooner you start learning, the sooner you’ll master them, however, they are just one type of chords.

You’ll be better off learning the basic open chords first, then once you’ve moved onto the minor chords, it is time to start throwing  in some barre chords.

Beginners should learn barre chords, but only after they’ve gotten the basics of the open major and minor chords down first.

What is the easiest barre chord to learn first?

The easiest barre chord is what’s called power chords. If you fret the low E sting on the 3rd fret, and use your ring and pinky finger for the 4th and 5th string on the 5th fret, you’ll be playing a G power chord.

Now I can already hear someone say “pOwEr ChoRds ArEn’t BaRRe ChOrDs”, so ya you’re right, however, power chords are a god first step into the world of barre chords.

Just like how you should learn a simple scale before you start riffing through modes, you want to start off with the easiest skill, and work up from there.

Power chords are commonly used in rock and punk, and with them you can play any major chord, sharpe or flat.

It’s a versatile way to get into barre chords.

Once you’ve gotten power chords down, I’d recommend moving on to traditional barre chords.

Is it hard to learn barre chords

Barre chords are one of the first, and most challenging chords for amatuer guitarists to learn. 

They require a lot of finger strength and muscle memory, which most beginners are still working to develop.

Nonetheless, every seasoned guitarist can play barre chords with ease and no one has a traumatic story about their time learning barre chords.

How long does it take to learn barre chords? However long you’re willing to put off learning them, plus 2 weeks.

Barre chords are a get tool to have when playing guitar, you won’t want to put off learning them.

Do you have to learn bar chords

No, you do not have to learn bar chords, however, they certainly help you develop overall guitar skills.

It would be a significant disadvantage to ignore or delay learning bar chords.

Everyone has to learn them eventually, my recommendation would be to pick up a chord progression, with two chords you know really well, a new open chord you’d like to work on, and a simple power chord.

This way you’re dipping your toes into  the bar chord pool, and will be working on various skill at the same time.

tossing in a bar chord here and there is a good way of building up basic muscle memory, without hating the practice session.

I can’t play barre chords

If you’re having trouble learning or playing barre chords, and you’ve been trying for more than a couple weeks you may want to reassess your approach.

How long does it take to learn barre chords? How long are you willing to practice them each day?

Let’s look at your approach.

Are you attempting to play barre chords with your pointer finger barring the full fret, and then adding the fingers below?

Using your pointer finger as a capo is not the way to go about learning barre chords.

Yes, you’ll want to get there eventually, however, you don’t need to start there.

Use your pointer to get the top string of the barre chord, and then apply the rest of the finger where they need to be.

The high E and B string are often left out of the barre chord altogether.

Of course there are instances where you need to use your finger as a capo, and you’ll reach that point with practice, it just isn’t the right place to start.

Not all 6 strings need to play loud and clear to play barre chord, at least initially.

How do I strengthen my hands for barre chords

You can use hand exercises to strengthen your hands, but let’s get something out o the way.

Raw finger and hand strength isn’t as important as muscle memory, they are two different things.

While it feels a little silly, I can play full barre chords without using my thumb to apply pressure from behind.

That’s right, you don’t need to attack the strings like you’re in a war, you just need to apply just enough pressure, in the right spots, in the right way.

At first you won’t know where or how to do this, that’s why practice is important.

If you watch a beginner play a barre chord, they’ll likely apply a ton of pressure to the strings, as compensation for not having muscle memory of the chord.

A professional guitarist will just simply and easily play the barre chord, it won’t look like a struggle.

That’s muscle memory meets skill.

Yes, the experienced guitarist’s hands and fingers are stronger than the beginners, but it isn’t solely about raw strength.

It’s more important in how you apply the strength you have, although when learning you can certainly compensate, with extra strength.

So, you don’t need to start going to the gym to workout your hands, just continue learning and working on learning barre chords.

How to train barre chords

A good exercises for training barre chords is similar to learning open chords.

Pick a few chords in a progression, and play one of them as a barre chord.

Once you’ve gotten that chord progression down, make 2 out of the 4 chords barred.

Get the basics of bare chords down, then start playing along with songs that use barre chords.

Once you’ve mastered training barre chords you’ll open up a lot of possibilities on guitar.

What should I learn after barre chords

Barre chords are a good mid stage skill of beginner guitar playing.

If you’re looking for the next step after learning to play barre chords, I’d recommend learning the 7th chords.

7th chords nicely compliment barre chords, as you’ll be able to take the same patterns and concepts of 7ths and apply them within a barre chord.

From there, you should move onto 9ths, then dable a bit in the augmented, diminished or 5th chords.

How many days does it take to learn barre chords?

You can get the basics of barre chords down in about 14 days or two weeks of daily practice, even with 15 minute sessions.

However, you’ll need to be diligently practicing barre chords the entire session.

After the two weeks, with regular practice you can expect to master barre chords within 120 days (about 6 months).

If you’re not regularly practicing, or being intentional about it, it is entirely possible for guitar students to play for more than a year, and still not play barre chords well.

How long does it take to learn barre chords? However much effort you’re willing to put into learning and practicing!

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