There are many different opinions what exactly the basic guitar chords for a beginner are. But no matter what the definitions for these chords are, they all have something in common.
Basic Guitar Chords
There are many many chords that have these qualities. But in the following I wanna introduce you to only five of the easy guitar chords for guitar beginners.
We wanna focus our attention on the last point which is highly relevant. And this reduces the simple guitar chords to only five. Namely to C A G E D.
The CAGED Guitar Chords
If you haven’t heard of the term “THE CAGED SYSTEM”, then just know that it’s an awesome way of visualizing the fretboard through the chord shapes of these five chords.
I won’t explain the caged system here in detail, but keep this term in mind, because many guitarists are benefiting from this in many ways. It helps them play not only rhythm guitar, but is also very useful for guitar solo and improvisation. If you are interested in the details of this, then you wanna check out this lesson on the caged system here.
Having said that, the foundation for all this are the following five chord shapes. So make sure you learn them properly and keep in mind that you are learning the 5 chord shapes not only for rhythm guitar and playing chords.
Your are laying the foundation for something much bigger and important here.
Chord Shapes for the CAGED SYSTEM
The C Major Guitar Chord Shape
Notice here that you don’t play the low E string.
Just in case you need a video lesson for this shape. In this video I show you 4 shapes. Just make sure you learn the one that is displayed on the diagram above.
The A Major Guitar Chord Shape
Notice here that you don’t play the low E string as well.
Just in case you need a video lesson for this shape. In this video I show you 4 shapes. Just make sure you learn the one that is displayed on the diagram above.
The G Major Guitar Chord Shape
Just in case you need a video lesson for this shape. In this video I show you 6 shapes. Just make sure you learn the one that is displayed on the diagram above.
The E Major Guitar Chord Shape
Just in case you need a video lesson for this shape. In this video I show you 3 shapes. Just make sure you learn the one that is displayed on the diagram above.
The D Major Guitar Chord Shape
Notice here that you don’t play the low E & A String.
Just in case you need a video lesson for this shape. In this video I show you 3 shapes. Just make sure you learn the one that is displayed on the diagram above.
More easy guitar chords
This here is really a good start. Be patience, practice consistently and you should make good progress soon.
If you find these five simple basic chords still a little hard, then you might start with the easiest chords of all time. They are even easier than the five basic chords above.
But if you find that five chords are still too little and you need more, then check out my guide for simple and easy guitar chords for beginners. There you’ll learn many major and minor guitar chords.
And Make Sure You Go Through My Ultimate Guide On How To Play Guitar Chords Right. There You’ll Discover Many Awesome Tips And Tricks For Guitar Beginners Who Wanna Start With Playing Chords.
In this sense have fun and be your own teacher
Love the way u teach I think is amazing. I want to keep following you and love to learn
Triads from the beginning.
Great job! Keep it like this or better. Love the clear picture of the cameras over the fretboard .
Thank you for the kind words, Ismael!
You’re definitely on the right path! Triads are so important, yet so many guitarists neglect this topic.
You might wanna check out this guide on triads for guitar. It’s not complete yet, but you can start practicing some triads. There is enough material for some months of learning and practicing.
Stay tuned and have fun!