Below is the lesson for “Fingerpicking Etude no. 19.”

Helpful Tips

This etude will help you conquer two types of chords that are difficult to play: barre chords and stretch chords. This etude has 4 Themes. The first three focus on barre chords, while the last is dedicated to stretch chords.

I think the most exciting thing about this piece are the barre chords that you’ll encounter. Almost all of them are unique shapes, some of which require your middle finger to act as the barre. This is exciting, because it will challenge you to move beyond playing basic barre chord shapes (for example, D7: 2223). Before you embark on this etude, take a second to make sure that you have developed proper form for fretting barre chords.

Just as we saw unique shapes for barre chords, the stretch chords you’ll encounter in Theme 4 will challenge you in an unconventional way. Most of the time, when we work to increase the reach of our left hand, our goal is to increase how far our pinky can stretch (for example, Am: 2007). But sometimes, chords will require our index finger to be the gymnast.

Part 1 – Performance & Free Lesson

Part 2 – For Premium Members

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