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Effective Exercises To Make Barre Chords Sound Clean

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May 14, 2019 by Klaus Crow

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Getting a barre chord to sound good is a real struggle for many guitar students, especially on an acoustic guitar.

It takes a while to really get a barre chord to sound clean and clear. Let’s be honest here, barres are nasty pain in the &ss and can be pretty frustrating at first.

It almost feels like impossible to apply the amount of pressure on the fingers to get them sound smooth.

But don’t worry, if you follow the tips and exercises in this post, it’s gonna get better, a lot better. If fact, you’re gonna do great!

The trick is not just about pressing hard. There’s more to it. Yes, it is important to press your index finger firmly down on the strings in order to make it work, but then again, you don’t want to push too hard either. You need to find the right balance. Whatever you do, do not strain! Don’t be a wimp, but if you’re feeling cramps just let go for a minute.

Watch the positioning of your fingers. Alter the positioning of your index finger slightly up or down to see if you can fix some of the buzzes and mutes. Try rolling it to the sight a bit. Make sure your thumb is right behind the neck to give it enough support. Observe all your fingers and hand position carefully.

Don’t expect your barres to sound great in the beginning, it’s part of the process. Your fingers need to build strength but also learn to shape the right way. It takes some time for your fingers to find the right placement onto the strings. So it’s not just a matter of strength but also technique and the latter takes practice and patience.Continue Reading

The Best Acoustic Guitar Songs

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May 12, 2025 by Klaus Crow

Top 50 of all Time

50 best acoustic guitar songs

There’s this one thing that is so great about the guitar. I love the fact that you can choose to be in two complete different worlds.

One moment you plug in your electric guitar and make it rock, scream and tear up the place. The other time you indulge yourself in beautiful acoustic guitar songs and get swept away by good melody and harmony. It’s the best of both worlds. Obviously today were gonna look at some of the best songs of all time on acoustic.

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Give Your Kids the Gift of Music

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March 29, 2021 by Klaus Crow

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If your kids show any interest in playing an instrument, then I can’t tell you enough to encourage them to go for it.

You probably have no idea how much of a difference you’ll be making in their lives by letting them explore and develop a talent that will do more for them than you think.

Playing the Guitar Changed My Life
When I first picked up a guitar in the seventh grade, little did I know that my life would never be the same.

My Dad was a guitarist and he couldn’t wait until his son got old enough for him to jam with. He bought me my first real guitar for Christmas: A sweet blood-red Peavey electric bass. It was a great beginner bass guitar that played just as smooth as anything twice its cost. Plus it sounded twice as great too.

It was only a few months of practicing before I was in high school and the my guitar playing really changed my life. When you’re young, you seek out other people who are like you. So naturally I became friends with pretty much any other musician I could find. Before long my evenings and weekends were filled with more band practices and good times than I would have ever predicted. Everywhere I went, we all went as a group.

At a time when most other teenagers were being loners or just plain awkward, being in a band gave me the opportunity to hit the stage at the local talent shows, dances, and other hot spots around town. And with every performance I became more and more adventurous about performing live in public and meeting other people.Continue Reading

The Eight Amazing Spider Exercises for Dexterity

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May 14, 2019 by Klaus Crow

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The spider exercises are one of my favorites. The spider is a cross string picking exercise that is designed to develop dexterity in both hands.

If you’re having trouble with either your right hand or left hand coordination and you want to see real improvement then these are the perfect exercises.

Do you think your hand coordination is superb then try the exercises below to confirm your assumptions or go back to your room to practice some more. :)

Depending on your skills the spider is not exactly for the faint hearted. It can be quite challenging but careful once you get the hang of it, it’s a really addicting exercise that won’t get rid of you.

How to practice
Start out slow, real slow and play through each exercise a couple of times until it feels comfortable. Once you can play the exercises slowly without faltering try playing along with a metronome. Again begin real slowly and gradually increase the tempo of the metronome.

Pay attention to the quality of the exercise. Make sure all the notes sound clean and clear. Apply alternate picking technique with your right hand (down,up,down,up).

Focus fully on the exercise. Observe your left and right hand while playing and see if there’s anything that needs to be corrected or improved. The slightest change can make a huge difference.Continue Reading