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Basic Barre Chords

The first moveable forms that most guitarists learn are the 'E form' and 'A form' barre chords. Form names are taken from the open position chords of the same fingering - the first major chord shown below would be the E-form, because if you moved it down the neck to the point where the barre was no longer needed, you'd have the open E chord. Many rock guitarists never move beyond these two forms, E and A - they simply move them up and down the neck.

Unlike the open position chords, the names of barre chords aren't fixed. The G major barre chord will become Bb major if it's played three frets higher, or E major if it's played three frets lower. It's the key note of the chord that determines the name - the squares shown in the diagrams are key notes. If you want to play a G chord with a key note on the fifth string, that finger will have to line up with G - the 10th fret of the fifth string.

Major chords

Minor chords

Seventh chords

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