[John A]

Hey, Jonathan,

Hope you and the family are well. Quite the storm on the Eastern Seaboard. I hope everyone is safe.

I’m having a bit of a problem during chord transition. I am able to make the transition successfully, but on the up-strum I am getting a bit of a buzz on the E string as I relax the pressure and start to take my index and middle finger  and move them to form the G chord. It happens when I am forming the D/F#add 11  chord Any suggestions?

John A

[Jonathan]

Hey John, sorry I’m just seeing your question, as it was not in the usual “questions & struggles” thread.

Are you talking about the low E string? If so, that string should not be plucked on an upstrum. When you do the upstrum, you should only be hitting the bottom three or four strings (high E, B, G, and D), not all 6.

But if ever this situation happens on a different transition, where you have to remove your fingers from the higher pitch strings, like from C to G (in the C chord family), it’s all in the timing. Your fingers should be completely off of the string when your upstrum hits the string. If your string is buzzing, that means your finger is still on it, or, you have a problem with the “action” on your guitar. If the action is too low, your strings will raddle or buzz when they are strummed open. In that case, you need to adjust the truss rod, or bring it in to a shop for someone to do it.

I can go over this in next week’s live class for you.

You never fail until you quit!