How to Play the G Chord on an Electric Guitar
There are a number of ways to play a G chord on electric or acoustic guitar, but the simplest form is the "open G" chord. The G chord is one of basic beginner guitar chords, along with C, E, D and A, and will be used throughout your guitar-playing life. Like all chords, G is made up of a particular group of notes (in this case G, B and D) taken from a major scale. Even though you will playing six guitar strings, the notes remain the same (GBD) with some repeated for the full chord sound the guitar is noted for.
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Instructions
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Tune your guitar with the pitch pipe by blowing into the labeled section for each string, and turning the corresponding string's tuning key up or down to match the sound of the pipe. The tuning notes are 6E, 5A, 4D, 3G, 2B, 1E from the lowest to highest strings (thick to thinnest strings), and will be clearly marked on the pitch pipe.
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2
Place your second finger on the third fret of the low E (sixth or thickest) string and play the note. This is the low G note.
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3
Place your first finger on the second fret of the A (fifth) string and play the note. This is the low B note.
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4
Play the fourth string (D) open (don't place any finger on any fret). This is the low D note.
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5
Play the third string (G) open (don't place any finger on any fret). This is the middle G note.
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6
Play the second string (B) open (don't place any finger on any fret). This is the high B note.
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7
Place your third finger on the third fret of the high E (first or thinnest) string and play the note. This is the high G note.
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8
Strum all six strings while keeping your fingers in position. This is the full open G chord.
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Tips & Warnings
An alternate fingering used by some guitarists is the place the second finger on the third fret of the low E (sixth) string, the first finger on the second fret of the A (fifth) string and the fourth finger on the third fret of the high E (first) string. Learning both fingerings will allow easier switching to different chords as your playing ability advances.
Keep your thumb positioned on the back center of the guitar neck. This thumb positioning will allow free hand and finger movement, and will help with most beginner chord playing and fretting problems.
Don't hold the guitar neck as you would a baseball bat, but as you would holding a ball in an upright position with your thumb and forefingers on either side. Improper hand position will cause arm, hand and wrist cramps, and inhibit your ability to fret notes properly.
If your guitar is difficult to play, have a repair person set up the guitar by installing extra-light guitar strings, and adjusting the neck and action for easier playing. Playing a guitar that is not properly adjusted not only reduces your enjoyment and learning progress, but will cause arm, hand and wrist cramps and make the normal formation of finger callouses more painful.
References
Resources
- Photo Credit electric guitar image by Jeffrey Zalesny from Fotolia.com
