Things You'll Need:
- Guitar
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Step 1
Hold an open-position Em chord in the left hand. Use the left-hand middle finger to play the note on the second fret of the fifth string, and the ring finger to play the note on the second fret of the fourth string. The right-hand thumb is indicated with a "P" directly below each note that it is meant to play.
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Step 2
Place the right-hand thumb on the top of the sixth string. With as little movement as possible, push the thumb down, through the string, until the note rings. Once the open string has been sounded, rest the thumb on the fifth string to prepare it to play the next note.
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Step 3
Push the right-hand thumb down through the fifth string until the note has been sounded. Try and use a short, quick movement in the thumb. This will help keep the thumb in position close to the strings and prepare it to play the fourth string.
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Step 4
Rest the right-hand thumb on the fourth string. Push the thumb through the fourth string with a short, quick stroke until the note has been sounded. This is the last string that the thumb will play, so you do not need to rest the thumb on the next string as was the case with six and five. Instead, bring it to rest on the sixth string, which will help prevent any sympathetic ringing from the other open strings while we pluck the top three strings.
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Step 5
Place the right-hand index finger under the third string. Have the string rest on the part of the finger where the flesh meets the nail. Pull the index finger up through the string until the note has sounded. The index finger is indicated with the letter "I" underneath any note that it is meant to play.
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Step 6
Rest the right-hand middle finger underneath the second string, again placing it where the flesh meets the nail. Pull the middle finger up through the string with a short, quick movement until the note has sounded. The middle finger is indicated by the letter "M" underneath any note that it is meant to play.
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Step 7
Place the right-hand ring finger underneath the first string. Pull the ring finger up through the first string until the note has sounded. The ring finger is indicated by the letter "A" underneath any note that it is meant to play.
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Step 8
Play all six strings in order from the lowest to highest string to sound the complete Em chord. Remember to use the correct fingers for each string as indicated in the music.
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Step 9
Play all six strings backward from the first string down to the sixth string. When moving down the strings, make sure that each string is played at the same volume. The thumb tends to be louder because of its size, so try and match the thumb volume to the level of the other three fingers.
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Step 10
Put these two steps together to play up and down the Em chord, from the sixth string to the first and back again. Watch the repeated E note on the top of the chord--it can be tricky to play two notes in a row with the same right-hand finger, so this may need extra attention during practice.
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Step 11
Play up and down all six strings of the of Em chord in reverse order, from the first to the sixth and back again. This time, the thumb plays a repeated note, sixth string E, that may require extra attention during practice.
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Step 12
Practice the above exercises on any open, or barred, minor or major chord. Remember to use the thumb for any notes that are finger-picked on the sixth, fifth and fourth string. The index finger will always play the third, the middle finger will play the second and the ring finger will play the first.
