Master the Art
  • Music Theory
    • Grade 1 - Writing notes lessons 1-34
    • Grade 1 - Rhythms Lessons 35-64
    • Grade 1 - Basic rhythms and musical alphabet lessons 65-95
    • Grade 1 - Scales Intervals and Chords lessons 96-125
    • Grade 1 - Musical Terms and Signs lessons 126-147
    • Grade 1 - Practicing your knowledge of level 1 148-181
  • Guitar
    • Teachings and Tutorials >
      • The Parts of The Guitar >
        • Electric Guitars
        • Steel String Acoustic Guitars
        • Nylon String Guitars
      • Strumming
      • Guitar Repairs
      • Free Song Riffs >
        • 0-9
        • A >
          • Apache - the Shadows
          • Are You With Me - Lost Frequencies
          • Autumn Leaves - Ed Sheeran
        • B >
          • Black Night - Deep Purple
          • Bloodstream - Ed Sheeran
        • C >
          • Chasing Cars - Snow Patrol
          • Check Yes Juliet - We The Kings
          • Clocks - Cold Play
          • Come As You Are - Nirvana
          • Crazy Train - Ozzy Osborne
        • D >
          • Dammit - Blink 182
          • Day Tripper - The Beatles
          • Don't Speak - No Doubt
        • E >
          • Enter Sandman - Metallica
          • Every Morning - Sugar Ray
          • Everybody Hurts - REM
          • Eye Of The Tiger - Survivor
        • F >
          • Far Away - Nickelback
          • Foot Tapper - The Shadows
          • Freak - Silver Chair
          • Free Fallin - Tom Petty
        • G >
          • Georgia - Vance Joy
        • H >
          • Hanging By A Moment - Life House
          • Heart Shaped Box - Nirvana
          • Here Without You - 3 Doors Down
          • Hey Soul Sister - Train
          • Hey There Delilah - Plain White T's
          • Hit Me With Your Best Shot - Pat Benatar
        • I >
          • I'm Yours - Jason Mraz
          • Iron Man - Black Sabbath
        • J >
          • James Bond Theme
        • K >
          • Killing In The name Of - Rage Against The Machine
          • Kryptonite - 3 Doors Down
        • L >
          • Lego House - Ed Sheeran
        • M >
          • My Friends - Red hot Chili Peppers
          • My Sharona - The Knack
        • N
        • O >
          • One - Metallica
          • Original Prankster - The Offspring
        • P >
          • Paranoid - Black Sabbath
          • Peter Gun Theme
          • Pretty Woman - Roy Orbison
        • Q
        • R
        • S >
          • Savin Me - Nickelback
          • Seven Nation Army - The White Stripes
          • Smoke On The Water - Deep Purple
          • Sunday Bloody Sunday - U2
          • Sweet Child O Mine - Guns N Roses
        • T >
          • Teenage Dream - Katy Perry
          • Titanium - David Getta
        • U
        • W >
          • Walk This Way - Aerosmith
          • Wanted Dead Or Alive - Bon Jovi
          • We Are Done - The Madden Brothers
          • What Makes You Beautiful - One Direction
          • Whats My Age Again - Blink 182
          • Why Georgia - John Mayer
          • Wonderful Land - The Shadows
        • X
        • Y
        • Z
      • Free Songs
      • Free Drum Loops >
        • Crotchet (Quarter Note) Based Drum Loops
        • Quaver (Eighth Note) Based Drum Loops
        • Quaver Triplets (Eighth Notes) Based Drum Loops
        • Semiquaver (Sixteenth Note) Based Drum Loops
    • Ensemble Charts
    • Current and Past Students
    • Equipment used by Peter >
      • Guitar Collection >
        • Electric Guitars
        • Acoustic Guitars
        • Bass Guitars
      • Effects and Pedals
      • Amplifiers
      • Accessories and Other
  • Singing
    • Choir Charts
    • Concerts
    • Current and Past Students
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Strumming and Rhythms

Strumming is the art in playing chords. I do call it an art, as you can be as creative or technical as you choose with strumming and achieve results that are as personal as your finger print.  There as many basic principals, but everyone will have their unique sound when it comes to rhythm and chord playing.  Trying to replicate the sound of someone will take much practice. I would encourage you to also seek out your own sound, develop your own voice as you practice your way through the strumming.
Strumming will require practice to learn, but passion to master.  There are unlimited rhythms and sounds that will come from your instrument as you play.  As you practice, try to replicate the examples in every detail, but once you master the exercise, make the rhythm your own by experimenting with the ideas presented. 

Symbols used for Strumming Patterns

So that you can learn to strum with consistency, you need to learn the symbols used with strumming. In this video you will learn the basic symbols used for strumming patterns, how to follow them on a rhythm chart.

Basic Strumming Techniques

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To be able to play all the strumming patterns effectively, there are many techniques used to play correctly. They are all fairly simple in themselves, but to get them all correct at once will take some practice. This video will explain and demonstrate what you need to know in order to strum consistently.

Strumming Patterns Exercise 1 to 10 - Semibreves to Crotchets

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These exercises use Semibreves (Whole Notes), Minims (Half Notes) and Crotchets (Quarter Notes). All of the strumming in this section either plays on the beat or doesn't, there is no off beats or in-between beats. This keeps this a simple place to start.

Strumming Patterns Exercise 11 to 20 - Semibreves to Crotchets

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These patterns still only use Semibreves, Minims and Crotchets, but get a little more complex to build your coordination. 

Strumming Patterns Exercise 21 to 30 - Basic Quavers

Now we divide the beat down further into halves. These rhythms are often referred to as quavers or eighth notes. This lesson looks at the basics of quaver subdivisions.
  • Music Theory
    • Grade 1 - Writing notes lessons 1-34
    • Grade 1 - Rhythms Lessons 35-64
    • Grade 1 - Basic rhythms and musical alphabet lessons 65-95
    • Grade 1 - Scales Intervals and Chords lessons 96-125
    • Grade 1 - Musical Terms and Signs lessons 126-147
    • Grade 1 - Practicing your knowledge of level 1 148-181
  • Guitar
    • Teachings and Tutorials >
      • The Parts of The Guitar >
        • Electric Guitars
        • Steel String Acoustic Guitars
        • Nylon String Guitars
      • Strumming
      • Guitar Repairs
      • Free Song Riffs >
        • 0-9
        • A >
          • Apache - the Shadows
          • Are You With Me - Lost Frequencies
          • Autumn Leaves - Ed Sheeran
        • B >
          • Black Night - Deep Purple
          • Bloodstream - Ed Sheeran
        • C >
          • Chasing Cars - Snow Patrol
          • Check Yes Juliet - We The Kings
          • Clocks - Cold Play
          • Come As You Are - Nirvana
          • Crazy Train - Ozzy Osborne
        • D >
          • Dammit - Blink 182
          • Day Tripper - The Beatles
          • Don't Speak - No Doubt
        • E >
          • Enter Sandman - Metallica
          • Every Morning - Sugar Ray
          • Everybody Hurts - REM
          • Eye Of The Tiger - Survivor
        • F >
          • Far Away - Nickelback
          • Foot Tapper - The Shadows
          • Freak - Silver Chair
          • Free Fallin - Tom Petty
        • G >
          • Georgia - Vance Joy
        • H >
          • Hanging By A Moment - Life House
          • Heart Shaped Box - Nirvana
          • Here Without You - 3 Doors Down
          • Hey Soul Sister - Train
          • Hey There Delilah - Plain White T's
          • Hit Me With Your Best Shot - Pat Benatar
        • I >
          • I'm Yours - Jason Mraz
          • Iron Man - Black Sabbath
        • J >
          • James Bond Theme
        • K >
          • Killing In The name Of - Rage Against The Machine
          • Kryptonite - 3 Doors Down
        • L >
          • Lego House - Ed Sheeran
        • M >
          • My Friends - Red hot Chili Peppers
          • My Sharona - The Knack
        • N
        • O >
          • One - Metallica
          • Original Prankster - The Offspring
        • P >
          • Paranoid - Black Sabbath
          • Peter Gun Theme
          • Pretty Woman - Roy Orbison
        • Q
        • R
        • S >
          • Savin Me - Nickelback
          • Seven Nation Army - The White Stripes
          • Smoke On The Water - Deep Purple
          • Sunday Bloody Sunday - U2
          • Sweet Child O Mine - Guns N Roses
        • T >
          • Teenage Dream - Katy Perry
          • Titanium - David Getta
        • U
        • W >
          • Walk This Way - Aerosmith
          • Wanted Dead Or Alive - Bon Jovi
          • We Are Done - The Madden Brothers
          • What Makes You Beautiful - One Direction
          • Whats My Age Again - Blink 182
          • Why Georgia - John Mayer
          • Wonderful Land - The Shadows
        • X
        • Y
        • Z
      • Free Songs
      • Free Drum Loops >
        • Crotchet (Quarter Note) Based Drum Loops
        • Quaver (Eighth Note) Based Drum Loops
        • Quaver Triplets (Eighth Notes) Based Drum Loops
        • Semiquaver (Sixteenth Note) Based Drum Loops
    • Ensemble Charts
    • Current and Past Students
    • Equipment used by Peter >
      • Guitar Collection >
        • Electric Guitars
        • Acoustic Guitars
        • Bass Guitars
      • Effects and Pedals
      • Amplifiers
      • Accessories and Other
  • Singing
    • Choir Charts
    • Concerts
    • Current and Past Students
  • Store
  • Hair Design
    • Gallery
  • About
    • Peter Howlett
    • Jenny Howlett
  • Photography
  • Contact
  • Blog
  • Frequently Asked Questions
    • Terms and Conditions for Lessons
    • Terms of Service
    • Privacy Policy