BC-111 • The D Chord

[mike42]

Seth-

I just had a quick look at the lesson on the D chord (I did the beginner's course a couple years ago before Justin released the new one. Good stuff this is!) and Justin recommends that you place your thumb about 3/4 of the way up the neck, which you said you have gotten down. No need to have it right in the middle, anywhere behind the neck without your palm touching the neck at all is good.

Also, turning your thumb to the left a little bit is what you should be doing, imo. It feels a little odd to me trying to play the chord with my thumb straight up and down, and when I play it my thumb is naturally at maybe a 30 degree angle from vertical. It makes the fingering a lot easier and puts less strain on your wrist.

The last thing I would suggest you try is to move your fingers slightly toward the nut to get that 2nd finger off the fret. Place your first two fingers kinda towards the middle of the fret, and then when you go to put that 3rd one down on the second string and your 2nd finger slides over, it'll still be behind the fret.

But don't give up! If you find yourself getting too frustrated then go ahead and work on the E or A chord some. I remember the D chord being a little $#@! to get down right off the bat, because your fingers are forced into a confined space and it really just isn't natural. But keep tweaking things until you get it sounding smoothly, and before you know it you will have it down and won't even realize why it was such a pain in the first place!

If none of this stuff works for you then feel free to keep asking questions, as I'm sure someone will be able to point you in the right direction

[Seth A]

Mike,

I really appreciate you taking the time to respond. I promise I won't quit. I think in the morning I was just in a bad mood. I've been obsessing about it at my office all day. Picking up the guitar every fifteen or twenty minutes and just working on it for a minute or two.

Ok I do have one more question and I assure you this one isn't nearly as bad I hope, lol. When I'm playing the D-Chord my palm is not touching the guitar at all but part of my 1st finger like just below the last knuckle. It's barely touching but it is. Is this a problem. Should I try to go higher?

Maybe I am getting to anal about this stuff. I just want to do things right and move onto the next level. I total have to work on stretching that 3rd finger socket. The 2nd and 3rd love each other too much and I think they need a divorce at least for this chord.

Thanks again for the encouragement.

Seth

[mike42]

I really don't think that will be much of an issue. The main thing is to be able to play the chord accurately, and having good enough technique to where it is easy enough to switch to and from the chord.

I think twisting your thumb to the side a little bit could help to keep that finger from touching the neck, but if it doesn't help I wouldn't worry about it. Just focus on getting that chord sounding clean, and then do the same for the other chords you're working on. If there is a problem that really hinders your technique I think you will figure it out pretty quickly when you start trying to play some songs, and it really shouldn't be too hard to fix: just a tweak here and there and you'll be set.

The most important thing is to get these chords sounding decently clean, and starting to play a few simple songs. The best feeling is when you can finally strum that song you've learned along to the record, and you can finally see that all the hard work is paying off and getting you somewhere. So don't fret (no pun intended) over every little issue. Most of these things will work themselves out over the next few months, but if you're worried that something is wrong go ahead and ask and you will get the help you need here. Cheers!

[rb30999]

Hello

I'm a relatively new learner from India. Basically i'm an amateur singer but tend to pick up instruments relatively well.
I'm pretty proficient at playing the keyboard without chords (somehow never got the hang of them). I actually started trying to learn the guitar by myself abt 5 yrs ago.
I was able to pick up most of the beginner's chords A, E, C, Eminor, Aminor, G, D, Dsus4 and F.
Now picking things up again after a gap of about 3 years of not playing at all, I found Justin's site and thank God for it.

Turns out my technique was quite wrong. Also I used to tune my guitar at a lower scale...was easier to play actually (didn't hurt the fingers much)

Anyways one of my problems then and even now is the D chord. I am able to play it pretty well in isolation but when I start strumming continuously, it gets a little flat.
Also I've tried all the things that Justin has recommended in the video but can't get the slight buzzing in the 1st string to go away

Also when I tried keeping the thumb as Justin recommends, I've noticed that I tend to put a lot of pressure on it..enough to blanch it. Is that normal during initial stages or should I check it.
If I try to release that pressure, 2nd and 3rd finger also get a li'l relaxed, flattening the chord.

Would really appreciate the help

[anthonya1g]

Just a couple of minutes ago I was going to ask how do you avoid muting the high E string with your third finger, but just moments ago I got it right! I don't even have to look at the guitar to play it right. Just practice, it will come to you guys!

[singergalguitar]

i cant do it. im trying and doing exactly what you said but its mute!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! it wont play and its really frustrating!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! btw im 13. and its the D scale!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1

[close2u]

i cant do it. im trying and doing exactly what you said but its mute!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! it wont play and its really frustrating!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! btw im 13. and its the D scale!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1

what is your question?

[40sumthin]

Hi all, not a response to any particular post, just some advice from a newbie.  I started these lessons 2 weeks ago, and seemed to be making progress until last night when I just couldn't hit the D, A or E chords at all.  After a very frustrating 1/2 hour, I remembered reading somewhere or getting some advice to keep my fretting hand fingernails trimmed.  After trimming said fingernails, I tried again and it was like the light shone on me and I was a guitar god (well at least my dog wasn't whining anymore about the sounds coming out of the guitar).  I was getting most of the chords right most of the time versus missing each one before.  Sometimes it's just a simple adjustment that can make the difference.

[shadowscott007]

I find short nails on the fretting hand a must.

Shadow

[reg1965]

Hi

It would seem to me to be impossible to fret the notes with only one's fingerTIPS if your nails are not CUT BACK enough.

As for the D chord....It is just a matter of practice....I would jump ahead in the beginners course to lesson 153 (Air Changes) and use this technique for every new chord you learn...You'll have to do it sooner rather than latter...so I would start now. Sorry Justin.

Also check out Pebber Brown's chord memorisation video's...first one here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eGke17Rzn7U

But be warned...If you are of a delicate persuasion he may cause offence :-)

I would also start implementing the idea in lesson 145 (Forcing the Changes).

I think really using the Air Changes and Forcing the Changes will improve playing quicker than anything else and get you playing songs in no time.

Steve

[reg1965]

Part 2 of Pebber Brown's chord memorisation video is here:

http://www.youtube.com/user/pebberbrown?feature=watch#p/search/1/xgpYwsP_6OI

Great stuff...the bloke is a real treasure.

Steve

[AndrewBW]

After trimming said fingernails, I tried again and it was like the light shone on me and I was a guitar god (well at least my dog wasn't whining anymore about the sounds coming out of the guitar).

I've often found that if I'm having a rough practice session it turns out that it's because my fingernails are just a hair too long. For me it's especially noticeable on the C chord, I think because my fingers are parallel to the neck. With something like a D my fingers are more perpendicular to it, and it's easier to get therm down. If I have trouble with a C I run for my clippers.

[JustinOLone]

This may sound weird but here it goes. I am having trouble tuning so I am using a tuner that came with my set. My question is this: when I tune the guitar at the beginning, the tuner reads the correct note...when I make the D chord and strum, the tuner doesn't read D everytime. Am I doing something wrong or am I worrying about silly stuff? It sounds right to my ears. I am just wanting to start out the right way. Should I not worry about the tuner once I have the guitar tuned at the beginning?

[jacksroadhouse]

A (regular) tuner tells you single notes, not chords. So it's single strings only.

Apart from that, when you fret a string, the story is a little different on account of equal temperament. This is nothing you need to worry about at this stage.

In short: a fretted string will often appear out of tune, and that's alright.

In really not short at all: if you're interested, check this out:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Equal_temperament

There's also some stuff about it on this forum (might be easier to digest ), just search for it.

[JustinOLone]

Awesome. I thought I was just being paranoid but I want to get things right from the beginning. Thanks for the help.