Music Lessons

How to Learn Guitar: Your First Four Chords

Learn G, C, D and E minor. These four beginner guitar chords unlock hundreds of songs. Includes a daily ten-minute practice routine for steady progress.

You do not need to know theory to start playing songs. You need four chords.

The four chords

• G major
• C major
• D major
• E minor

These belong to the key of G, and an enormous number of pop, folk, OPM and worship songs use only these four, in different orders. Look up a chord chart for each one. They are shown as a small grid: vertical lines are strings, horizontal lines are frets, and dots show where your fingers go.

How to learn each chord

1. Place your fingers one at a time, using your fingertips, close to the fret.
2. Strum slowly, one string at a time.
3. If a string buzzes or is silent, adjust that finger and try again.
4. Lift off, shake your hand, and place the chord again. Repeat ten times.

Start with E minor. It needs only two fingers and it sounds good immediately.

Changing chords

Changing is the real skill. Practise in pairs:

• E minor to G
• G to C
• C to D
• D to G

Set a timer for one minute and count how many clean changes you make. Write the number down. Try to beat it tomorrow.

A ten-minute daily routine

1. Two minutes: tune, then play each chord once.
2. Four minutes: one-minute changes for two pairs.
3. Four minutes: strum a four-chord song slowly. Four down-strums per chord.

Keep a small practice log. A line a day in a notebook is enough, and seeing the streak helps.

When your fingers hurt

Stop for the day. Short sessions build calluses. Long painful ones build excuses.

Play with someone

The fastest way to improve is to play along with another person, even another beginner. Come to a jam session for shy singers, or ask about a casual beginner guitar session at our studio.