The A major chord, which can be heard in innumerable songs of all genres, is one of the chords that guitarists employ the most frequently. The A chord is used in a number of songs, including "Desire" by U2, "Yellow" by Coldplay, "Hey There Delilah" by the Plain White T's, and "Everybody Hurts" by R.E.M. Simply told, you need to be able to play an A chord if you wish to advance in your playing.
We'll explain this important chord to you, offer you some pointers on how to master it, and show you a few other ways to play it. Despite having a seemingly straightforward shape, it does create some difficulties.
A CHORD PLAYING TECHNIQUE
The common way to play an A major chord in the open position is as follows:
- Middle finger on the G third string's second fret.
- Ring finger on the B (2nd) string's second fret.
Strumming the notes will cause them to ring out five strings below the A string. The only string not played is the low E sixth string, however if you accidently strum it when learning this chord, don't worry too much about it. Since the E note is a component of the A chord, playing it won't sound improper or unnatural. With enough practice, you'll be able to effortlessly hit only those five strings while maintaining the low A string's function as the bottom note.
A Chord Playing: Advice and Troubleshooting
Fitting three fingers together in the space of one fret is the main challenge for most players while playing the A chord, which might be challenging if you have huge fingers. Keep your fingers tucked in and press vertically on the strings so that just the tips and not the pads of your fingers touch the frets. You can play it more cleanly if you do this.
A CHORD CHANGES
The fingering described above can make you recognize that it is ineffective for you. There are numerous variations to this chord, therefore there is no one "correct" way to play it. It's totally acceptable to explore and discover a solution that works for you because varying guitar sizes, neck sizes, and finger and hand sizes all come into play.
You can also play the A chord by using just your index finger as shown in the example below:
- Index finger on the D (4th) string's second fret.
- Index finger on the G third string's second fret.
- Index finger on the B (2nd) string's second fret.
From the A string, strum down four strings. You don't have to worry about putting three fingers down when using this version, and fingering is done much more quickly. Additionally useful is using your thumb to muffle the sixth string by wrapping it around the top of the neck.
VERSION OF THE BARRE CHORD
A barre chord can also be used to play the A major chord. Many guitarists are intimidated by the term "barre chord" since it requires more finger dexterity and endurance. However, if you master it, it turns into a really handy (and portable!) tool.
Here is a 5th position rendition of the A barre chord:
- Index finger on the low E string's fifth fret
- Index finger on the B (2nd) string's fifth fret
- Index finger on the E (1st) string's fifth fret
- Middle finger on the G third string's sixth fret
- Ring finger on the A (5th) string's seventh fret.
- Pinky finger on the D (4th) string's seventh fret
From the low E string, strum all six strings. The good news is that you can easily slide this chord up and down the neck, so in addition to learning how to play the A chord with this shape, you've also learned how to play roughly a dozen other chords.
One of the fundamental chord forms in guitar playing is the A major chord. You must incorporate it into your toolbox. Work on switching between the A chord and either a D chord or an E chord as a simple approach to practice playing the A chord and get it under your fingers. Because of the relationship between these three chords in music theory, this maneuver occurs frequently in songs that contain an A chord.
By learning one of the most important and typical chords in guitar music, you've suddenly opened up a whole new universe of musical possibility.