It can be both fun and impressive to play a short Spanish guitar song, but there is just one problem, Spanish songs are often complicated to play.
I am going to show you an easy Spanish song that you can learn quickly, and it also happens to sound really cool! First, I'm going to show you the easy version, and then I will go over other ways to make it more fun- to jazz or should I say... Flamenco it up a bit!
This Spanish song involves using both chords and melody. I am going to show you 3 simple chords and then one more exotic sounding chord, that make up the whole song.
Spanish Chords to Learn:
1.) A minor Chord
2.) Open G Chord
This is a G chord but played a little differently. You start with the 3rd fret on the 6th string, then 2nd fret on the 5th string, and then strum all of the notes while leaving the high E open.
3.) E Chord
4.) Exotic F Chord - FM7(#11)
This is a F Bar chord, without a bar. What I'm doing is I’m first making an E chord without the first finger, using my 2nd, 3rd, and pinky finger, then sliding up one fret. Now stretching with the first finger to play the bass note, that's the first fret 6th string, the F note, and then leaving the high E open. Overall, this is pretty easy compared to playing an actual bar chord.
To summarize again we are playing 3rd fret with 3rd finger and pinky, 2nd fret with 2nd finger on the 3rd string, and 6th string low E put first finger on the first fret. Here is a link to see what the fingering is and to listen to how it sounds.
Next, we will add a simple melody or phrase to each of these 4 chords:
Phrase #1
Play the A minor chord, then play the phrase. (link to timestamp in YT video.)
Phrase #2
Strum the G chord, then play the phrase. (link to timestamp in YT video.)
Phrase #3
Now we will play the “exotic” version of the F Chord (with no bar) and then play the phrase (link to timestamp in YT video.)
Phrase #4
E Chord, Exotic F Chord, back down to E Chord. (link to timestamp in YT video)
Most Famous Spanish Guitar Song
Now if you want to kick the song up another notch we can add a tag to the end of it from the most popular Spanish guitar song of all time, and it also happens to be the most recognizable part of the song too. The song is called Malagueña, and it was originally written by Cuban composer Ernesto Lecuona. It has hundreds of interpretations in Flamenco, Classical, and other genres.
Here is how you can add it to the end of the song we’ve done so far:
From the E chord, with your thumb playing the bass note, and your first index finger playing the high E note, alternating each time. Using the E chord form, start on the 4th string bass 1st note, then high E, 3rd string then high E again, 2nd string then high E, and then repeat that whole phrase once more.
Now for the next part, move your 1st and 2nd fingers over to form a simple A minor chord. Click on this link to go to the section of my video for the full instructions on how to play this and to listen to how it sounds.
Spanish Guitar Vs Regular Guitar
A Spanish guitar is technically a type of acoustic guitar. It has nylon strings and a wider neck than what most people call a steel string acoustic guitar. The sound or tone of a Spanish guitar is also much mellower and warmer than that of a steel string acoustic guitar, and because the strings are nylon, they are easier on the fingers, which is a plus for beginner guitar players.
Is Spanish Guitar Hard To Learn?
To be good at any style of guitar playing takes practice and persistence. That said, it isn't difficult to learn a number of simple Spanish guitar songs and riffs that are impressive and fun to play. Mostly Spanish guitar songs sound exotic because of their use of non-traditional chords. But once you learn them, its a cinch!
Be sure to check out my entire YouTube video for this lesson, and don't forget to subscribe to my YouTube Channel if you haven't already, so you don't miss out on future guitar tips, lessons, songs, and more!
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