• jnra1
  • Junior Member
  • Offline
  • Registered: 2007-05-29
  • Posts: 1

Topic: BEGINNING

Hi folks,
I am new the site and am a complete novice. I want to start with easy stuff that I can sing along to. I know there are thousands of songs on this site alone but my problem is this. RYTHM ! I have a beginners book where it says it´s " down, down, up, down, up, down " or "1- 2-and 3-and 4". Thats fine for the songs in that book, but I would also like to try some on this site.
Please help ( and be gentle )

" Let the music keep our spirits high "................ Jackson Browne

  • From: Renfrewshire, Scotland
  • Registered: 2006-03-04
  • Posts: 1,359

Re: BEGINNING

A friend of mine has just started and has the same problem. It's hard to explain but if you listen to a song you can tap out the rythm. I caught my mate recently tapping out a beat with his hands as if they were drum sticks. What I told him to do was forget his left hand and tap out the beat with just his right. Generally, what you are tapping with your right hand are the down strokes and what you are tapping with the left are the up strokes. So if you sit on your left hand and let your right do all the work you should be pretty close to it.

I know this sounds crazy but it helps to get yourself into the rythm of the song. When you are strumming out a song the guitar is, basically,  the rythm section.

I hope this helps because explaining rythm is always going to be hard.

I'll now sit back and let my little theory be torn to shreds.

Keep at it!

Al V

Is anything really made up of zeros and ones??

alvee33's Website

  • From: Starkville, Mississippi USA
  • Registered: 2006-03-04
  • Posts: 2,069

Re: BEGINNING

Hello jnra1 and welcome to chordie's forum!  Rhythm is one of those things that comes with experience (practice practice practice).  Don't be afraid to just thrash away at it and experiment boldly.

If you get too hung up on making it sound exactly like a particular recording, then you will always be a little too timid to have fun.  Chordie's transposing tool is very good for moving songs into a comfortable key - so use it whenever you can.

Here is songbook that has several really fun & easy songs.
"3-Chord Rock & Roll Relics" might suit your needs:
http://www.chordie.com/publicbooks.php? … ngid=56812

James

"That darn Pythagorean Comma thing keeps messing me up!"
[url]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pythagorean_comma[/url]

James McCormick's Website

  • From: Orpington London
  • Registered: 2006-10-22
  • Posts: 390

Re: BEGINNING

posted some thoughts on strumming patterns just below

http://www.chordie.com/forum/viewtopic. … 228#p10228

johncross21's Website

  • Kahuna
  • Kahuna
  • Senior Member
  • Offline
  • Registered: 2006-07-12
  • Posts: 290

Re: BEGINNING

If I can advise one thing for a beginning player to practice, it would be to work on your timing with a metronome! Strumming is about timing, but in order to get that timing down, a help from a metronome is needed!

There are several brands of metronome that are very good and very inexpensive.  Pick yourself up one and practice to it!  You'll be surprise how quickly your strumming improves!

  • Registered: 2007-04-26
  • Posts: 28

Re: BEGINNING

One thing I found is that certain songs are easy to strum along too, the beatles In my life is one. Tracy chapmans Baby can I hold you, Brown eyed girl Van Morrison.... there are many more of course.
The other thing I found is to listen to the song you are trying to play over and over if you have an MP player have a section just for the songs you intend to learn (be realistic dont fill it up too much) and listen to em over and over, it works for me...
Dont miss a day of practice.... even if its 10 minutes... just dont miss day.
The other thing is to remember that your fingers are not the wrong shape !!

If its too loud yer too old.
  • From: Nottingham, UK
  • Registered: 2006-08-08
  • Posts: 690

Re: BEGINNING

As a beginner look to just do a basic down up down up rhythmn at first, concentrate on getting the chord changes right. Then as you progress you'll find you start to naturally vary the rythmn making some strokes stronger or lighter, like DOWN up down up. That'll give you an empthatic 1 beat which works on a few songs etc.

Beware players who hand out rythmns like they are magic keys to playing. There are some rhythmns that are really ear-catching but if you use them for every song your playing will lack variety. Hence some players who sound great but everything they do is the same kind of great.

'The sound of the city seems to disappear'
  • Registered: 2007-01-29
  • Posts: 533

Re: BEGINNING

A good exercise for rythym and pick control is to simply start at the top...low E string and do 1 downstroke...then proceed down each string to the High E. Do this slowly and make each note ring and count as you do this...when you can do this smoothly at the same rythym then try it with 2 downstrokes each...then maybe a downstroke and upstroke. Then do the same while playing scales...when you can do this smoothly and accurately then get a good seat and turn out the lights and do it in the dark! Sounds silly but after 45 years of playing, I do this regularly for discipline and control...then practice strumming with chords...downstrokes/upstrokes...remember that many chords do not require all strings being strummed...

If you listen to some bluegrass/flatpickers like Tony Rice and Jim Hurst you'll see an amazing ability to pick notes and strum chord very cleanly, accurately and at lightning speed. That's a result of lots of talent and a tremdous amount of practice....

Middleaged Redneck sorta guy who refuses to grow up...passion for music, especially Southern Rock but like bout everything cept Gangsta/Hip Hop. Collect guitars, mandolins, and love to ride Harleys.