Like so many others have posted, I have experienced lots of problems with the F to Fm transition in Greensleeves and getting a good tone. I had problems with my classical guitar, acoustics and both electrics. I finally gave up and tuned my main acoustic down a whole tone from EADGBE to DGCFAD and put a capo on the second fret and checked the tuning. Then I was able to lift to finger to go from F to Fm and not experience tone problems. I don’t have problems with the F#m, but the Fm gives me problems. Perhaps someday I will master this too.
UPDATE: I thought more about this. I am not actually playing the Fm chord, just lifting the finger on the 4th string E note of the F barre chord to form the Fm barre chord shape while playing one note - the D# note. Another way to approach this would be to release the F barre chord and slide the barre fingertip from the 6th to the 4th string to play the D#. I have a classic guitar version of this that only uses a two note implied F chord and plays the D# as part of a single line harmonized melody. So there are different ways to approach this.
EDITED UPDATE: (Cleaning up my sloppy post, thanks to @jjw). I thought more about this. I am not actually playing the Fm chord, just lifting the finger on the 3rd string A note of the F barre chord to form the Fm barre chord shape while playing one note - the G# note. Another way to approach this would be to release the F barre chord and slide the barre fingertip from the 6th to the 3rd string to play the G#. But on second thought that is a little awkward movement. I have a classic guitar version of this that only uses a two note implied F chord and plays the G# as part of a single line harmonized melody. So there are different ways to approach this.
In bar 7, beat 1 is the F chord, then you play a G# note, followed by an A note. If you play an F barre chord, you lift your middle finger on the G string, to play the G#. This is the Fm that people are struggling with.
I would actually recommend trying to play with the thumb over grip, as Justin does in the video. Note, you needn’t get the whole F chord, you can omit the 1st and 5th strings. See if you can manage that F triad (strings 2, 3 and 4) and add the thumb on string 6. It takes a bit of work, but it’s doable. It’s also the best F to play for fingerstyle.
John, you are absolutely right. Wow, I really was sloppy and careless on that post. That is what I get for typing on the go without having the guitar in my hand or checking what I posted against my actual chords or the TAB
I was thinking all morning how I could have made such a careless error, since I have played the F chord 1000s of times. I think my brain was on autopilot and thought E shape - fingers 1 2 and 3; F chord E shape pattern with fingers 2 3 4, so move up one string, which of course is totally wrong. Also I am in PMT grade 4 and the E note for the F major should have been another obvious error.
I know better and if I had double checked I would have seen my error. Thanks for checking so that I didn’t confuse others. I will edit my post (I would have made my edit more concise, but I couldn’t find a strike-through function in the edit window).
Thanks for the thumb over tip. I will give that a try.
Wonderful lesson, thanks Justin! Had a lot of fun with this one. I like when the tabs are included on the screen while playing, it allows me to keep playing while listening to the explanation which helps hammer it in better.
Well, if you’ve followed Justin’s course from the beginning up to this Grade 3 lesson, you’re not a beginner anymore. And, you’ve probably noticed that these more complex techniques take longer to master than the ones in Grades 1 & 2.
That being said, I feel your pain. The Happy Birthday Fingerstyle lesson previous to this was a real ball-buster too!
