Efficient chord transitions

Slow changes usually come from moving too much, not from moving too slowly. This lesson teaches three ways to cut the distance: keep common fingers still, move fingers as one shape, and plan the first finger to land.

By the end of this lesson you will be able to:

• Spot the fingers that two chords share and leave them in place.
• Move a whole shape from one string set to the next in one motion.
• Name the first finger to land before every change.

Fast chord changes come from less movement, not faster hands. Three ideas help.

1. Anchor fingers. When two chords share a finger on the same string and fret, leave it there. Am to C is the classic case: fingers 1 and 2 stay put. Only finger 3 moves.

2. Move as one shape. If the shape is similar, slide it together. Em to Am is the same two-finger shape moved down one string, plus one extra finger.

3. Pivot and plan. Sometimes a finger stays at the same fret and just hops to the next string, like finger 3 from G to D. Before every change, decide which finger lands first. That finger guides the rest.

Keep your fingertips close to the strings during the change. A hand that lifts high has a long way to come back.

Am to C, slowly.

1. Form Am. Look at your first finger on the B string, fret 1, and second finger on the D string, fret 2. These are your anchors.
2. Keep both pressed. Lift only the third finger from the G string.
3. Place it on the A string, fret 3. You have just made C.
4. Strum. If it is clean, reverse the move.

Then try it without the anchors: lift everything and place everything. It will feel noticeably slower and less accurate. That is the difference this lesson is about.

Do these in order. Each one is small. Tick the ones you have practised.

• 1.Am and C: the anchor drill

  4 min

  1. Form Am. Notice that fingers 1 and 2 are on the same strings and frets in C.
  2. Keep those two fingers pressed. Move only your third finger between Am and C.
  3. Change without strumming, eight times in each direction.
  4. Now strum once on each chord, still keeping fingers 1 and 2 down.

  You have it when

  • Fingers 1 and 2 never leave the strings during the change.
  • Both chords sound clean after the move.
  I practised this one

• 2.Em and Am: slide the shape

  3 min

  1. Form Em: fingers 2 and 3 on the A and D strings.
  2. Slide the same two fingers one string lower to make Am (the D and G strings) and add finger 1 on the B string.
  3. Move as one shape, fingers close to the strings, six times each way.

  You have it when

  • You move both fingers together rather than one at a time.
  • Em and Am are both clean after at least 8 of 10 changes.
  I practised this one

• 3.G and D: the pivot

  3 min

  1. Form G with fingers 2, 1 and 3 (low E, A and high e).
  2. Look at your third finger: it sits on fret 3 of the high e string.
  3. In D, that same finger plays fret 3 of the B string. Pivot it across one string while the others rearrange.
  4. Change eight times each way, strumming once per chord.

  You have it when

  • Your third finger stays close to the strings in the move.
  • You can say which finger lands first each time.
  I practised this one

• 4.Plan the lead finger

  3 min

  1. Pick any two chords you find awkward.
  2. Decide which finger will land first, and where.
  3. Say its name aloud ('first finger, second fret'), then change.
  4. Repeat five times, then pick a new pair.

  You have it when

  • You can name the lead finger for each change before making it.
  I practised this one

Do not use a metronome yet. Work at the speed where you land cleanly every time, which is probably slower than you think. Then count to four on each chord, so there is a steady rest in which to change.

• Lifting every finger high off the strings. Keep fingertips within a few millimetres of the strings. The shorter the trip, the faster the change.
• Moving one finger at a time. Treat the chord as a single shape. Think of the hand as a stamp that moves and lands.
• Looking at the fretting hand and losing the beat. Look ahead to the next chord's first finger, not at the chord you are already playing.

Almost every open-chord song contains pairs like these. Brown Eyed Girl (G, C, D) and Knockin' on Heaven's Door (G, D, Am, C) are ideal places to spot anchors and pivots in real music.

Try it in: Brown Eyed Girl (chord version), Knockin' on Heaven's Door.

Short version (10 minutes)

Do the Am and C anchor drill, then the Em and Am slide, two minutes each.

Standard version (about 30 minutes)

Do all four exercises. Then choose one song from the library and mark, for every change in the chord chart, the anchor finger or the lead finger.

• Look for shared fingers and keep them down.
• Move the hand as one shape.
• Fingers stay close to the strings.
• Name the first finger to land.

You are ready to move on when you can honestly say:

• I can explain how Am to C, Em to Am and G to D are each efficient.
• I can change between any of those pairs cleanly at a slow, steady pace.
• I know which finger lands first on each change.