Your First 3 Chords: A - Family Chords

The chords that belong to the A-family are very popular because they are very easy to play. Also, the A-family of chords contain open strings - the strings that you play without pressing anything. Chords that contain open strings are called open chords or open-position chords.

The A-family of chords consists of the basic chords A, D, and E. These chords are known as major chords. When you see a chord that's named by a letter alone such as A, D, and E, you call it a major chord.

The following figures show the fingering of the chords in the A-family:

A Chord diagram and left-hand fingering:

D Chord diagram and left-hand fingering:

 

E Chord diagram and left-hand fingering:

 

In the chord diagrams above, the 5th and 6th strings on the D chord is marked with an X symbol as well the 6th string on the A chord. Always remember that you DON'T play any strings that are marked with an X symbol. That means you only need to play the top four strings in the D chord and the top five strings in the A chord. It may be hard not to play all of the strings at first but with regular practice, you'll eventually get the hang of selective strumming.

Try strumming these chords with your thumb, back of your fingernails, or a pick. Start with the thickest string of the chord and strum in a downward motion toward the floor.

Now lets try playing these in a progression as shown in the image below:

Progression in the key of A.

Technically speaking, a progression is a series of musical chords that aims to establish a tonality founded on a key or root chord. In simple words, a progression is simply a series of chords that you play one after the other. The image above instructs you to strum each chord four times starting from the left going to the right. For this example, you use only down-strokes for strumming all the chords.

The vertical line after the four strumming symbols is called the bar line. You don't play this one. Bar lines simply separate the music into smaller chunks known as measures or bars. Don't stop at the bar line and try to keep your strumming speed the same all throughout.

Practice this A-family chord progression as often as you can to develop the strength of your left-hand as well as the calluses on your fingertips. Start slowly as necessary and speed up as you become more confident and good in fingering the chords and switching back and forth.