This Is Why Famous Guitar Players NEVER Have Sloppy Chord Changes
This Is Why Famous Guitar Players NEVER Have Sloppy Chord Changes
Hey guys, Brad Litton from SimpleGuitar.com. This blog post transcribes my YouTube lesson on the isolation drills and super-slow synchronization exercises that turn chord changes from clunky to smooth.
Same chords, same guitar, same pick. The only difference: your two hands finally decide to dance instead of wrestle.
Picture your fretting hand as the architect — it has to place each finger exactly on time. Your strumming hand is the drummer — it has to hit on the beat, every beat. When they operate on different clocks, you get buzzes, muting, and that awkward pause.
The fix isn't to practice faster. It's to practice synchronized. Most players isolate each hand and then skip putting them together. That's the part we're going to work.
I'm using G to C as the example. You can do this with any pair you're struggling with.
Step 1: Isolate the Fretting Hand
Make G. Lift all your fingers off at once. Hover just a little above the strings. Change to C in the air. Hold them there. Land them all together.
Do it with a metronome: one change per click. Start at 40 BPM. Fingers come off, arrive together, stay relaxed. Not too much tension.
Bonus: once you're comfortable watching your fingers, close your eyes. That forces muscle memory. If a finger lags, slow the metronome.
Keep your wrist as straight as you can. Tuck your elbow into your body a little. Motion comes from the fingers, not an arm swing.
Step 2: Isolate the Strumming Hand
Mute all the strings with your fretting hand. You don't want to hear pitches.
Pick the strum pattern you're struggling with.
First: just down on the beat. Relaxed wrist. Pick glides over the strings. Do this at 40, then 60, then 90, then 120. You have to feel that the beat is always there. You can play the right directions in the right order and still be wrong if you're not on the beat. The beat is the heartbeat of the song.
Then add a tiny upstroke on just the top two or three strings. Slow: 1 and 2 and 3 and 4 and.
Pick angle: about 15 degrees toward the floor. Flat snags. A little angle glides.
Step 3: Sync — Down, Lift, Up, Squeeze
This is the exercise we do in coaching (private and group). Assuming both hands are decent on their own:
- Down — strum the first chord (G)
- Lift — fingers come off, strings open
- Up — strum the open strings (two or three strings like a normal upstroke, or all of them — I don't care for the exercise)
- Squeeze — finger the second chord (C) and put pressure on
- Repeat: down, lift, up, squeeze...
Why hit open strings in between? You hear that in real songs. It gives you more time to change. You can barely tell, but it smooths the transition.
Practice with a metronome: one action per beat. Squeeze, down, lift, up. If the strum happens before your fingers land, slow down. Perfection at 40 before 50. Perfection at 50 before 60.
Step 4: Advanced Sync — Land With the Pick
When I say down, finger the chord and strum down at the same time. When I say up, lift fingers and strum up at the same time. Next down: change to the second chord and strum together.
The downstroke is the anchor. Fingers have to arrive with the pick, not after it.
Step 5: Put It on a Real Pattern
Classic down, down, up, up, down, up. Change on beat 1 of every bar. Metronome at 80 BPM. You'll hear me open up on the and of 4 of that last upstroke, then start the next measure on C.
You can also do two measures each.
Once it feels automatic: 90, then 100. The ceiling is whenever the buzzes return because you're missing changes. Back off 5 BPM and stay there until it's automatic. Then bump it up.
This Week's Challenge (7 Days)
- 5 minutes isolation on the chord pairs you're struggling with
- 5 minutes muted strumming patterns
- 5 minutes the first sync exercise (start at 40 BPM)
- Then play your favorite song at half speed using the downstroke anchor
If your hands can agree at 40, they'll agree at 140. If you want a simple place to start, grab my free Top 10 Things to Learn on Guitar First at http://simpleguitar.com/top10.
And hang out with other adult guitar players in the Simple Guitar Facebook group: http://facebook.com/groups/simpleguitar.
About the Author
Brad from Simple Guitar helps adult learners play the songs they love without the frustration. Visit simpleguitar.com for more free resources and lessons.
