The Art of Guitar Strumming

Muramdamus · Jul 16, 2005

strumming

im no guitar expert but i started on an acoustic. i feel my strumming is pretty good if i may say so myself but for the most part, wen i was just begining it was more fun to mess around with the chord.
mess around and make news way to play certain songs, most of the time it'l sound better. naturally ul develop the ear for lisening out to the struming pattern. its one of those things which takes time.

Siddi · Jul 16, 2005

this helps alot
thank you!

prags1309 · Aug 1, 2005

strummin' pattern

hey ..bandbaaja..yur posts are awesum..hats off :rock:

well i wanted to understand - the guy had learnt from had taught me to count like 1-down and 2-up , the way of strumming ,now mostly i can strum 1121122.. , or 1,12,212..

Keeping this in mind , how do i learn more strumming patterns ??

cheerio
pragz

vishwa_81us · Aug 1, 2005

Hey Bandbaaja... Really Nice and a very helpful thread for me... I am really struggling with strumming esp. for some songs... Duur by Strings is one of them...

Can u help me in that ..?

vishwa

shantanukr · Aug 2, 2005

Superb content. 'Reps' to you for that ..........

Keep Playing ..

Bandbaaja · Aug 2, 2005

thank you all for the wonderful response.
hope it really helps
i just browsed thru and there are questions on specific songs that people have asked
can you guys send a Private Message on those?
its pretty difficult to read every thread from the start and see what questions are lined up

slashboyin · Aug 14, 2005

heres some more rhythms. posted it elsewhere but no one viewed it. so i put it here.

D = Downstroke
U = Upstroke
X = don’t play the stroke
L = Laggato (let ring)
S = Staccatto (mute strings with fretting hand)

1. Play slowly
Timing : 3/4

1 &….2 &….3 &…..1 &….2 &….3 &
DX….DX…..DU…..DU….DX…..DU
L……..S…….L……..L……S……..L

2. Play normally
Timing : 4/4

1 &….2 &…..3 &…..4 &…..1 &…..2 &…..3 &…...4 &
DX…...DX…...DX…...DU……DX……DX…...DX…...DU
L……..L……..S…….L……..L……..L……...S……..L

3. Play little bit fast
Timing : 5/8

1 &….2 &…..3 &…..4 &…..5 &…..1 &…..2 &…..3 &…..4 &…..5 &
DX……DX…..DX…..DU…..DU…..DX…..DX…...DX…..DU…..DU
L………S…….L…….L……..L……..L…….S……..L……..L……..L

4. Even faster!
Timing : 6/8

1 &…..2 &…..3 &…..4 &…..5 &…..6 &….1 &…..2 &….3 &…..4 &…..5 &……6 &
DX……UX…..DX…..UX…..DX……UX….DX…..UX…..DX….UX……DX….. UX
L………L…….S……..L…….L………L……L…….L……..S…….L……..L…….L

5. FASTEST
Timing : 7/8

1 &...2 &....3 &....4 &.....5 &....6 &....7 &.....1 &....2 &…3 &….4 &....5 &…6 &….7 &
DX…DX....…DX…..DX…....DU..…DX…..DU…...DX...…DX…..D X….DX..….DU….DX….DU
L……L….......S……..L…....…L……..S…....L……….L…......L… …..S……L…......L…….S…….L.

knopfler · Oct 24, 2005

would be easier to follow with sound clips...

Cool Kish · Oct 25, 2005

Hi thats gr8 guys keep it up

Kshitij · Nov 5, 2005

hey
thnx alot bro!!!!...
nice stuff u got thr..
cud u show this wiv sum definite songs like allah ke bandhe or mayb even halka halka????? its easier to understand

devgenes · Jan 13, 2006

great work

thanks very much man you have done a great job here.all beginers will find it very useful :nw:

Bandbaaja said:

Was actually replying to a query posed by Madhura, and thought this could be a part of a Beginner's Tutorial.
While learning the guitar and the notes, and chords, some students find it difficult to actually play the chords of a song in a basic strumming pattern.
Of course some take up strumming very easily and it also sometimes comes naturally.
I had to go thru major patience levels to grasp chord positions, but I got thru with the STRUMMING barrier quite naturally.
So this post here is not for the naturally gifted strummers, but for people who find problems in the DOWN UP MOVEMENT of strumming.

FIRSTLY,
While learning strumming, u have to be conscious of your hand movement to match the counts etc. HERE you will find your hand moving more like a mechanical robot. BUT the art of strumming begins with having your right hand low down and up in a smooth natural movement.

SECOND:
STRUMMING is an ART based on a simple DOWN-UP movement of your hand. So your hand should ALWAYS move down and up,
and based on the pattern that you are playing you either choose to HIT or MISS the strings while going down or HIT or MISS it while coming up.

For example some basic strumming patterns to Practice are as follows:

NOTES BEFORE YOU BEGIN

1) First divide the basic counts into a pattern like this: 1 & 2 & 3 & 4 &

2) Move your hand down on ONE and UP on the AND (&) and keep this going on continuously.

3) Wherever in the examples there is an X mark, you DO NOT stop your hand movement, but you simply DONT play on that X.

Example 1:
Hitting all the counts:

1--&--2--&--3--&--4--& | 1--&--2--&--3--&--4--& |
D--U--D--U--D--U--D--U | D--U--D--U--D--U--D--U |

Example 2:
Hitting on 1-2&3-4&

1--&--2--&--3--&--4--& | 1--&--2--&--3--&--4--& |
D--X--D--U--D--X--D--U | D--X--D--U--D--X--D--U |

Example 3
Hitting on 1-2&-&4&
This pattern if played at a moderate speed can be used for Papa Kehte Hain type of songs:

1--&--2--&--3--&--4--& | 1--&--2--&--3--&--4--& |
D--X--D--U--X--U--D--U | D--X--D--U--X--U--D--U |

Example 4
Hitting on 1&-&-&4&

1--&--2--&--3--&--4--& | 1--&--2--&--3--&--4--& |
D--U--X--U--X--U--D--U | D--U--X--U--X--U--D--U |

ALL THESE STRUMMING PATTERNS are OPEN PATTERNS where you can let EACH OF YOUR BANG to RING...

APART from these strumming patterns there are quite a few complicated ones, - some which require you to MUTE the strings after you BANG on it ONCE. - some which require you to HIT the strings hard with your right hand, but completely MUTED by your LEFT hand.

Like the BOSSANOVA pattern, if you remember George Michael's Faith, or Allah Ke Bandhe the pattern doesnt let the strings RING
Basically the sound shouldn't be CHANNNNGGGGGG it should rather be CHANK!

THE PROs HERE CAN ADD ON TO THIS............?
Click to expand...

f2@hotmail.com · Feb 11, 2006

yar what is &.

bjr · Feb 11, 2006

f2@hotmail.com said:

yar what is &.
Click to expand...

The & refers to the offbeat....it goes: 1 and 2 and 3 and 4

mathai007 · Feb 14, 2006

Helo ...i am mathai...i need a help from u guys..i have learned guitar during my child hood and then stopped.(Even today i blame for myself for what i have done).Ok ,so i want to learn this Guitar..I already knows the basic notes..basic chords and i am able to play by ear ,whatever song i hear.I have already started with this notations..but i dont feel any advantage from it...and pleze someone help me in strummin patterns..since whenever i strum it always ends up in the same rythm.But i want to get out from it...What u say guys?

Cheers Mathai....

bjr · Feb 15, 2006

mathai007 said:

Helo ...i am mathai...i need a help from u guys..i have learned guitar during my child hood and then stopped.(Even today i blame for myself for what i have done).Ok ,so i want to learn this Guitar..I already knows the basic notes..basic chords and i am able to play by ear ,whatever song i hear.I have already started with this notations..but i dont feel any advantage from it...and pleze someone help me in strummin patterns..since whenever i strum it always ends up in the same rythm.But i want to get out from it...What u say guys?

Cheers Mathai....
Click to expand...

Could you post a small recording of a couple of songs that you usually play? That could help me figure out if there's something that you should be doing differently.

varad_daniel · Mar 13, 2006

dude.. 5 from me too..

I'm Danny, n I've been playing for a little over 2 yrs now.. was taught from a friend a little .. n since then its all been my effort.. so I have no training ..

there one problem I face n its very bugging..
though strumming comes naturally to me.. but there are songs when I find it very hard to strumm n sing along..
Allah ke bande being a classic case.. I can play the song.. I can sing it too.. but I find it hard to do both at the same time..

even 2 steps behind.. I find it hard to play n sing..

so normally I end up making acoustic versions of these songs..
what should I do.. ?

varad_daniel · Mar 17, 2006

I'm Danny, n I've been playing for a little over 2 yrs now.. was taught from a friend a little .. n since then its all been my effort.. so I have no formal training ..

there one problem I face n its very bugging..
though strumming comes naturally to me.. but there are songs when I find it very hard to strumm n sing along..
"Allah ke bande" being a classic case.. I can play the song.. I can sing it too.. but I find it hard to do both at the same time..

even "2 steps behind".. I find it hard to play n sing..

so normally I end up making acoustic versions(plucking ) of these songs..

what should I do.. ? how to get over this hurdle..

pls advice

cooljoy · Apr 1, 2006

hey guys.. i'm knew to dis.. can anyone plz temme wht's strummin?.. n hz it done..?
wud b rlly grateful if u give a pictorial representation..
'thnx
jay

aquries · May 2, 2006

hi, how r u everybody. i am new guy. i am learning guitar. i had just completed basic and started learn to play songs.

i will need u r help.

thanks

DJnu · May 14, 2006

this info is very useful thnx guys

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