B and B flat chords on the Guitar - Tips and Hacks

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• published: 09 Oct 2015
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If you would like to gain full access to all our Guitar Teaching Materials please visit the Secret Guitar Teacher Site and take a free tour: http://www.secretguitarteacher.com/youtube/ssb.php?lp_id=441 Here's the video transcript: You're halfway through learning to play a song you really like and you stumble on a B chord or maybe a Bb chord! So you whip out your trusty chord shape reference book, or consult a guitar chord shape app of some description, and it shows you the following options. For the B chord or the same shapes moved down a fret for the Bb. The problem is that none of these shapes are all that easy for beginners! Let's start with the first chord shape shown for the B chord. I think that this shape is the best one to try to master first because, it works well in almost all applications in terms of its sound and also allows a number of different fingering possibilities For those with fairly long and slender fingers I advise first trying to use this fingering first finger on the root note here at fret 2 5th string then each of the remaining fingers taking one string each here at the fourth fret. This shape has a few inherent problems for most guitarists, which I'll just point out briefly. The main issue is normally getting a big enough gap between the first and second fingers. Pushing your wrist forward by dropping your shoulder and rotating your arm so that the elbow comes into your midriff makes a surprising difference to your ability to stretch. Also, it is worth experimenting with the order you put the fingers down in. Ideally you want the root note down first...but if this is a struggle, then try it the other way round, putting these three fingers down first then adding the first finger like this. This second finger is, of necessity some way from its optimum position right next to the fret wire, so to clean this note... ...you may need to press harder with this fingertip than normal. Finally for this shape, you want to make sure you are muting out both the top and bottom strings. Luckily, this more or less takes care of itself but if you hear this sound then pay some attention to exact position of your first finger For many guitar players, trying to fit all three fingers next to each other behind this fourth fret just seems impossible due to the size and shape of their finger tips. Luckily, players with stronger fingers are probably going to find the alternative fingering easier anyway. Here I'm holding down all three strings with one finger - you'll sometimes hear this called a mini-barre or half-barre. And there are a number of ways to approach this fingering, again depending on your particular finger size and shape. The ideal aim is to curl this finger so that these three strings are clean but the top one is completely muted . To get the best contact on the strings you do want to hold down, you may find it helps to roll the finger slightly onto its outer edge like this. Notice that in this case my elbow goes out to help me stretch my first finger. Most of what we have just been over on the first shape applies equally to the second shape shown here. This is not a true root position chord shape so has a weaker sound, but I know that some beginners find it easier to hold down than the first shape. Again, you have the option of using three fingers or just one to hold down the three strings at fret 4. The last two shapes are really barre chord options. Either five strings as a root position chord - ideal in most circumstances or all six strings - which again some people, especially those with larger hands, actually find easier. On the Secret Guitar Teacher site there are a couple of lessons all about barre chords that cover those options in great detail. For now I'll just say, give these shapes a try, but there's no rush to master them, if you find one of the first two shapes easier to hold down and get clean. By the way, everything we have mentioned here about B chords applies equally to Bb chords as well . Just move the whole shape down a fret. Most of us will find Bb chords a bit harder as the fret spacing is slightly wider and the string tension tighter as we near the nut of the guitar. So working on the B chords first makes good sense. In the next Sound Bite I'll cover a few lesser-known workarounds of interest to anyone who, in spite of the tips above, still finds B or Bb chords a struggle.