• Registered: 2006-12-15
  • Posts: 8

Topic: B Chord - how to play

Chordie Rules! I've been playing guitar for years but have never mastered the standard b chord (when played near the head). I can play a Bm no problem. I've talked to fellow guitarists and everyone plays it differently. Some people seem to have really bendy joints, but my fingers (along with the rest of me) just don't bend. Here's the rundown:


If I barre it with my pinky, I can only get a clear sound on the ADG strings.


Despite all my finger exercises, if I barre it with my ring finger, I have to change the angle of the guitar, and I can still only get a clear sound on the ADG strings.


My best bet for sound is to barre with my index, and use one finger per string for the DGB strings. With some work I can get a nice clean sound but it's really awkward.


What does everyone else do?

  • Registered: 2006-12-09
  • Posts: 26

Re: B Chord - how to play

I barre a B chord with my index and ring, with the pad of my thumb pressing the back of the neck like a classical player, and play the A, D, G, and B strings, or play it on the D, G, B and E strings with individual fingers, depending on how much bass or treble I want out of the sound in that particular instance.


If you're comfortable, you can also throw your thumb over to catch the A string at the second fret on that last method.


But that having been said, I don't play a straight B-chord very often.  I'll usually go for some B-variant, depending on the "flavor" needed in a particular spot in a song.  Get a chord book and try out some of the various forms of B and see how they fit in a song.  You might find one that actually works better and is easier to fret.


I play a fair amount of jazz when I'm not playing rock or country, and I've been playing for over thirty-eight years, so I've got a rather large number of chord options floating around in my head.


It takes awhile, but learning how to construct chords can make life a lot easier, too.  I do that sometimes if I can't think of one I know that will work.  Theory isn't half as hard as a lot of people think it is.


Oubaas

  • From: Pico Rivera, Calif. U.S.A.
  • Registered: 2006-10-26
  • Posts: 785

Re: B Chord - how to play

<table border="0" align="center" width="90%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td class="SmallText"><b>Oubaas wrote on Fri, 15 December 2006 03&#58;10</b></td></tr><tr><td class="quote">
I barre a B chord with my index and ring, with the pad of my thumb pressing the back of the neck like a classical player, and play the A, D, G, and B strings, or play it on the D, G, B and E strings with individual fingers, depending on how much bass or treble I want out of the sound in that particular instance.


But that having been said, I don't play a straight B-chord very often.  I'll usually go for some B-variant, depending on the "flavor" needed in a particular spot in a song.  Get a chord book and try out some of the various forms of B and see how they fit in a song.  You might find one that actually works better and is easier to fret.


Oubaas
</td></tr></table>

I play it the pointer and ring finger on the 2nd and 4th fret or I barre it at the 7th and 9th fret. Good quote oubaas once again experience speaks. <img src="images/smiley_icons/icon_biggrin.gif" border=0 alt="Very Happy">


Bootleger.


p.s. you could also find a song in the songs tab with a B chord and click on the chord for variations of the chord.

  • Registered: 2006-11-24
  • Posts: 29

Re: B Chord - how to play

Glad someone else does not like playing the standard B's & Bb chord shape. I play it with a bar and the pad of my 3rd finger holding 3 strings. Yes sometimes it's a bit hit and miss if I don't get it right. Alternatively just a straight bar across all the strings and mute top E string can work. Other than that I go for a Gm7 shape. I find its easier.


As already said there are many varients and you will find one's that you can hit pretty well.


Adios


Shaun

  • Registered: 2006-08-15
  • Posts: 80

Re: B Chord - how to play

It's a wierd thing but I learned Bm and F as my first Bar chords. Eventually I became comfortable with these and then one day I could suddenly form a B bar chord "the proper way" using the index finger to bar the 2nd fret and the other 3 fingers on one string each. The wierd bit is that I now find this easier than playing a B minor and the only bar chord I struggle with to any great extent is the blinking F! Oh well, I guess it's all in our heads...

  • upyerkilt
  • upyerkilt
  • Unofficial king of Scotland
  • Offline
  • From: Balloch, Scotland, UK, Earth
  • Registered: 2006-03-04
  • Posts: 3,290

Re: B Chord - how to play

well,  I cheat!!


I find B hard too, it is also hard to cheat with too.

So I dont play it properly at all. I just hold down the D, G, and B string on the third fret and try not to play the dampened E string. I have tried fitting my three fingers on the DGB and holding the E on the second but it is only easy when I start to play a song in B ( which isnt very often) I cannot change from a chord and hold down the DGB and the E on the second. I have tried and tried and tried and failed for years, I still try it though.

My friend that has difficulties with it plays the bar chord B but it just does not fit in properly with songs that I do.

A song I love to do and has B in it is Creep by radio head. When we play it I play my cheat way and he plays the whole song with bar chords, together the two acoustic are not bad but on their own each is guff.


so, I would say just struggle on


Ken

ye get some that are cut out for the job and others just get by from pretending
  • Registered: 2006-12-15
  • Posts: 8

Re: B Chord - how to play

Well it's quite a relief to know that the so-called "standard" way of playing a B chord is anything but! I'm trying out all the options, but I think that I have to give up the idea of the "perfect" B chord for now and concentrate on a really good workaround.


Thanks!!!

  • Registered: 2006-03-04
  • Posts: 7

Re: B Chord - how to play

Try playing with a full barre with your index finger, use your ring finger to play  D & G with your pinkie playing B.

I learned to play it this way until I became comfortable playing D, G & B with my ring finger.

I now use a short barre with my index finger with my thumb curling over to play E & A. Using this kind of barre helps me change faster.

Hope this helps.

  • Registered: 2006-03-04
  • Posts: 20

Re: B Chord - how to play

I'll play a B chord differently depending upon what song I'm doing and what sound I want.


There are sometimes I play a B chord with the Index finger bar and using middle (m), ring (r) and pinkie (p) for each D G & B strings.   This is especially useful if I'm going to use a sus4th chord along with the B chord form.  And if I'm arpegiating the B chord, I'll use this form.


I've just started (after 40 years) to use my ring finger to bar across the D G & B strings.  This is quick when you change from an F chord form to the B chord form and useful if you are moving that bar form up the neck.  Yeah the high E string is a little muffled, but moving


When I'm doing some fingerstyle blues, use my index finger across the 4th fret and mute the Bass note in the chord form.  All I'm really interested in when I do this is getting some melody and passing notes off the E and B strings with my pinkie and ring fingers...  This works good when you use the heel of your strumming hand to mute the base notes...  And like all of these chord forms, they are moveable up and down the neck....


<font size="1">"Good luck and good licks..."

<i>"Boredom is a personal defect.</i>

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