STRUMMING MADE EASY Everyone knows that strumming is an absolutely essential ingredient to playing guitar. Yet, many beginners struggle with such issues as timing and chord changes. Does that describe you? If so, read on... The most basic strumming technique is the "Quarter note" strum. Quarter note strum pattern: It's very common for people to experience difficulties when it comes to coordinating left hand and right hand guitar techniques simultaneously. Add singing to the mix and it really gets mixed-up! The solution is to simplify the entire process in order to focus in on the problem. I like to have my students play very easy rhythmic patterns while holding only one chord.. Here is an example: The first thing you need to do is establish a pulse or beat. If you have a metronome handy, set it at 60 BPM (beats per minute). Hold an Em Chord and begin strumming the quarter-beat rhythm shown below...
Play the strings with a downstroke and strum lightly. Stay relaxed as you count each down-strum (Em = down-strum): 1 2 3 4 Em E |--0------0-------0------0---| Be sure to keep your arm and wrist straight as you let your strum follow through- moving across the strings. A common mistake beginners make when strumming is to stop short of playing all the treble (high) strings. When you are able to keep a steady rhythm, try adding a simple chord change from Em to Am. Your goal is to land on the Am chord in time to make the first strum of your quarter-beat pattern. You need to anticipate this change before you reach the fourth beat so that you are prepared mentally. If you miss the first beat, don't be discouraged, just slow everything down and try it again. Find the speed that you can be successful at and build from there. Once you are able to make the chord change while keeping your steady quarter-beat rhythm, you can try the same sequence again using an eighth-beat pattern. Begin with the Em Chord as you did before, but strum this pattern instead...
This time you will strum down (D) and up (U) while counting the beats like this...
This simple pattern is very helpful in developing a smooth even tempo. Try playing these strumming patterns with different chords too. Always start with a simple chord change (using only two chords) until your rhythm is well established, then gradually add more chords. It won't be long before you're playing hit songs just like a pro! To learn more about strumming Click Here...
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