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I have several types of chord exercises. About once a week, I'll just play several chords, to help remember them. I might play all of the major, minor, and (dominant) seventh chords – A, B, C, D, E, F, G; then Ab, Bb, Db, Eb, Gb; then Am, Bm, . . . etc. This takes a few minutes. If you've memorized a tremendous number of chords, it's not going to be feasible to play all of them during every warmup. But a professional might play all of the major, minor, and dominant seventh several times one day, then play all of the minor and major sevenths the next, then all of the suspended and fifth the next . . . you get the idea. A professional should probably also practice different forms for each chord. If you're learning some new chords, or if you're having trouble playing some chords, practice them regularly. Daily is good, but weekly is okay. Weekly is better than daily if your fingers get particularly tired from practicing the chords. When you're learning a new chord, first concentrate simply on playing it correctly, with no dead strings. After that's relatively easy, concentrate on getting your fingers in position quickly (as in a chord progression). Another chord exercise, which I usually do only once or twice a week, is to practice bar chords. These are the chords formed by using your first finger to hold down all six strings (the other fingers doing various things, depending on the chord). The bar F chord is formed by holding down all six strings on the first fret with the first finger, then holding down the third string on the second fret with the second finger, then the fourth string on the third fret with the fourth finger, and the fifth string on the third fret with the third finger. See the E form in the diagram. This form can be moved up the neck – one fret toward the body, and it becomes Gb; one more fret and it becomes G; one more it's Ab; and so on. I'm able to do these chords, but it's quite difficult. And once I practice a few of these (six or eight chords, up the neck), my fingers cramp and it's hard to play. So I usually practice this at the end of my session, and only a couple of times a week. A professional, of course, could do this easily, and would probably practice daily (BUT don't start out trying to practice bar chords daily, even if you're able to do them). Also, a professional would probably automatically play bar chords during the course of playing songs, and might not have to practice them specifically. |
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