I’m a beginner, Grade 2. When changing between chords, it’s often nice to hear the chord being switched from continue ringing (sustaining?), giving a smooth transition to the new chord. But when I play songs that require switching from D to another chord ), I always get a hiccup - almost as if I’ve muted the chord. Is there anything I can do to overcome this? I’m getting this a lot with Heart of Gold.
Thanks!
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Hi, I think a lot of it is because D only has 1 open string so when you go to change you have to take your hands off the fretted 3 strings. So is pretty normal. I think the main thing is just to keep your rhythm going, if the chord is a bit rocky your ok for the next one, but if the strumming stops the music stops. And as you practice more the changes get quicker and smoother
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Any time you lift your fingers you will mute any fretted strings only the ooen strings will continue to ring out. Strumming the open strings after you life your fingers is a perfectly normal thing to do. It will take some practice it keep it in time.
Justin has a lesson on this on the web site.
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Thanks Jordan and Rick. That totally makes sense - only one open string to continue ringing. I recall Justin saying something about strumming open strings after lifting fingers…I suspect there will be more on this as I progress.
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With practice judi you’l fine you’ll naturally play that last note in some instance as your fingers move to the next chord i.e. unfretted. It’s purely lack of experience/practice that is making you “hear” the muted sound at the moment. Just keep on with the course and it’ll get better.
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Judi, when I play Heart of Gold, I sometimes add an up-strum on the open strings as I transition from the D to the Em. This fills in the sound a bit between the D chord and the Em chord.
To my ear, the sudden silence between the D and the Em helps to accentuate the transition, making it a bit more dramatic-sounding. I actually prefer it.
Remember, if it sounds good, it is good 
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I think when we’re beginners we aren’t used to playing, so we tend to be a bit more tense in chord grips. As you progress you’ll relax more and it will become second nature, and you can add those sort of dynamics easily without muted/dampened sounds. Just keep at it and it’ll come naturally as you gain comfort in playing!
A bit of advice I’d add regarding strumming the open strings: careful to not let it become habitual, but rather a controlled technique you use intentionally (I believe Justin mentions this in one of his video lessons that it can become a bad habit.) A bit of my reasoning as to why:
- Adding that sort of strumming dynamic to a song that doesn’t have it may change the feel to something different (could be good though, use your own discretion, you have creative freedom!)
- Theory based example: If you let the open strings ring out during during chord changes in an F Major song, the open B is not in key, so it’ll sound a bit jarring.
That said, I think it’ll sound great in Heart of Gold. Keep at it and it’ll come. Maybe try isolating and practicing the chord changes giving you trouble and it’ll speed things up 
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I agree with Ben on this one… creative freedom is a beautiful thing!!! Have you ever heard someone famous covering someone else’s hit but with enough variation in style that it’s almost a different song? Some people don’t like that but I find it fascinating (usually)!
For example, the first time I tried to do Brown Eyed Girl by Van Morrison, it was way too fast for me to keep up. So I cut the tempo almost in half, play it fingerstyle & sing it in a nearly falsetto… it’s recognizable but it’s MINE! Nobody sings it as almost a ballad that I’ve ever heard… now I’m working on Travis Picking & trying to apply it to spice up MY Brown Eyed Girl!!!
BTW - it was really important to me to play this song because my wife has brown eyes 
& I HAD to play it & sing to her!!!
Good luck,
Tod