guitarist-l  

[GUITARIST-L] some questions from a beginner

Matthew Bullis
Fri, 15 Jan 1999 18:47:01 -0500

well, I am a guitar player who has been playing for about eight months now.
However, I am still into chords. I think that I enjoy playing rhythem rather

than lead. I cannot, however, sing along with my playing. Is this normal
progress after eight months? Also, I am getting used to playing bar chords,
and I am enjoying the smooth transitions between the chords, rather than the

choppy space between chord changes. I play the bar chord by barring with my
first finger and using my ring finger to press down and do whatever the
other part of the bar chord is called. I read in an article that playing
guitar can sometimes cause carpal tunnel syndrome. Since I am blind and I
rely on reading braille and since I type a lot for my computer work on
school assignments, I can't afford to get that. Should these bar chords feel

painfull after playing a song? If not, please suggest another form or
another idea. I have already tried switching from the ring finger to the
middle finger to complete the non-bar part of the chord, but it does not
feel comfortable. What do they call that part of the chord where you maybe
press down on the second three or the third three strings?
Thanks a lot.
Matthew
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