In my opinion, you should try to make the chord and then pick the strings one by one. Try doing that slowly so you'll get used to making chords and picking. It may take you some practicing before it becomes easier.

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Originally posted by Texasbanjo

In my opinion, you should try to make the chord and then pick the strings one by one. Try doing that slowly so you'll get used to making chords and picking. It may take you some practicing before it becomes easier.

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Thank you, I'll be putting in extra work on my chord changes from now on

You should eventually get to the point where you make the chord and pick the strings with no noticeable slow down or stopping, just almost simultanious, but that may take a lot of practice!

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Originally posted by Texasbanjo

You should eventually get to the point where you make the chord and pick the strings with no noticeable slow down or stopping, just almost simultanious, but that may take a lot of practice!

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 I can only switch between some similar chords without any noticeable pause ,like C?Am?Em. But most other chord still with noticeable slow down?Especially F to other chords.?. I'll put in plenty of practice. Thank you for your guidance!

When practicing placing fingers on the next chord during chord changes, press hard into the fretboard for a few seconds, release & repeat a few times - it will help with your “muscle memory”.

I dunno what research or conventional methodology might say, or might not say, and it's not specific to HOTRS, but I broke chord changes into "pairs" for practice ... separate from, and prior to, applying them to songs.   

Eg. If the song/tune calls for 1/4/5 I'd do a slew* [and maybe then some] of 1,4,1,4,1,4,1,4,1,4,1,4, etc.; then 1,5,1,5,1,5,1,5,1,5,1,5, etc.; then 5,4,5,4,5,4,5,4,5,4,5, etc.

* But, but, but, it's been my experience that "slew" comes 'w-a-y  before "eventually."  

I can't believe I don't have a video example, but I don't.
(I've got an open G guitar version)
@Chuckv97 has to have one. No sense reinventing the wheel.

A good practice for learning to change chords is:

Start with the full 4 finger chord at 5, 3, 4, 5 then switch your index and middle fingers, go up one fret and play the next chord without lifting your ring or little pinkie off the strings, then change index and middle and continue going up the neck. Then go back down the same way. That will get you used to changing chords without lifting all your pinkie or ring.

Another good practice for changing chords is to make that G chord at 5, 3, 4, 5, flatten your ring finger over the strings at the 5th fret which will make the barre C chord, then lift up your index finger, switch index and middle, move down one fret to the D chord at 4, 2, 3, 4. This is often used when going from the G to the C to the D chords and can be moved up and down the neck.

youtu.be/cZMTuipV3YY?is=ecLiQ0Uao8bnoCvI

Mark the time of my 1st posting. Serves as an easy example. Key of Em, not Am. 

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Originally posted by Nopix

I can't believe I don't have a video example, but I don't.
(I've got an open G guitar version)
@Chuckv97 has to have one. No sense reinventing the wheel.

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Working on it,, but at 0:40 Bill Emerson rips it off

https://youtu.be/DBtksj0w1BM?si=cS2AjuMOmm4mKiFA

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Originally posted by carrot

 I can only switch between some similar chords without any noticeable pause ,like C?Am?Em. But most other chord still with noticeable slow down?Especially F to other chords.?. I'll put in plenty of practice. Thank you for your guidance!

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Then keep at it. The goal is to eventually do chord changes with no pause or break in tempo. That means in as little as half a beat (if you're playing as if in 4/4 with eight 8th notes per measure).

As often as we can arrange it, an open string gives us time to make this chord change. That is, we pick an open string on one eighth note, let it sound a bit, then fret as many notes of the next chord as we need, sometimes all at once.

Sometimes, as in this tab, the chord change follows a fretted note. But this song is not too fast. So the fretted note will get to sound a bit before you have to kill it with the move. 

Truth be told, I think whether you fret all the notes of a chord at once or individually as they're needed depends on context. If you're playing fast, you almost have to form the full shape at once. If you're playing at a slow to moderate pace, you have enough time to fret all the notes at once but also the luxury of not having to. At the end of banjo camp this summer I was part of a 100-banjo orchestra playing Beatles' songs arranged in five parts. My section's part on "Because" was the continuous arpeggiating played on the record by a harpischord (I think). Because of the key, the chords, the shapes, and the tempo, forming the shapes as they were needed worked for me. I've been playing for over 50 years. I can change chords as quickly as I need to. In this specific context, rolling my fingers into position felt and sounded better.

Final thought: Only fret as many notes as you need. This particular tab pretty much demands fretting full shapes. Not all situations do. So don't fret full chords -- especially F and D shapes -- if you won't be playing all the fretted notes.

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Originally posted by chuckv97

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Originally posted by Nopix

I can't believe I don't have a video example, but I don't.
(I've got an open G guitar version)
@Chuckv97 has to have one. No sense reinventing the wheel.

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Working on it,, but at 0:40 Bill Emerson rips it off

https://youtu.be/DBtksj0w1BM?si=cS2AjuMOmm4mKiFA

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I can get close with a capo on 2. But my keyboard says it's Bm, D, F#m. 

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Originally posted by Old Hickory

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Originally posted by carrot

 I can only switch between some similar chords without any noticeable pause ,like C?Am?Em. But most other chord still with noticeable slow down?Especially F to other chords.?. I'll put in plenty of practice. Thank you for your guidance!

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Then keep at it. The goal is to eventually do chord changes with no pause or break in tempo. That means in as little as half a beat (if you're playing as if in 4/4 with eight 8th notes per measure).

As often as we can arrange it, an open string gives us time to make this chord change. That is, we pick an open string on one eighth note, let it sound a bit, then fret as many notes of the next chord as we need, sometimes all at once.

Sometimes, as in this tab, the chord change follows a fretted note. But this song is not too fast. So the fretted note will get to sound a bit before you have to kill it with the move. 

Truth be told, I think whether you fret all the notes of a chord at once or individually as they're needed depends on context. If you're playing fast, you almost have to form the full shape at once. If you're playing at a slow to moderate pace, you have enough time to fret all the notes at once but also the luxury of not having to. At the end of banjo camp this summer I was part of a 100-banjo orchestra playing Beatles' songs arranged in five parts. My section's part on "Because" was the continuous arpeggiating played on the record by a harpischord (I think). Because of the key, the chords, the shapes, and the tempo, forming the shapes as they were needed worked for me. I've been playing for over 50 years. I can change chords as quickly as I need to. In this specific context, rolling my fingers into position felt and sounded better.

Final thought: Only fret as many notes as you need. This particular tab pretty much demands fretting full shapes. Not all situations do. So don't fret full chords -- especially F and D shapes -- if you won't be playing all the fretted notes.

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Thank you so much! When I practice at home, I always try to play chords in the most standard way. But when I play with a few experienced players in person, in order to keep up with their tempo, for chords like F, I often just press F, A, C — I'll skip one of the F. I've always felt like this was a bad habit. But after reading your reply, it seems like this isn't something that's completely forbidden?

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Originally posted by carrot

...when I play with a few experienced players in person, in order to keep up with their tempo, for chords like F, I often just press F, A, C — I'll skip one of the F. I've always felt like this was a bad habit. But after reading your reply, it seems like this isn't something that's completely forbidden?

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More important than not completely forbidden, it's not bad form.

You don't have to fret notes you're not going to play.

Because after playing all these years I can form 3- and 4-finger chords quickly, I do sometimes find myself fretting notes I don't need. But better to let that just happen because your hand can do it than to slow down your playing trying to do it.

If there's one benefit to fretting 4-finger chords even when not needed, it's that a string you hit by accident will sound a note that fits. But in general you should focus your practice on making only the shapes and fretting the notes you need for the music you're trying to play. I believe, but don't know for certain, that as you get better and proficient at doing that, you might find the extra finger sometimes going along for the ride without you intentionally doing it or slowing down to let it on board.

Keep at it, and good luck.