Information / Overload chord changes

[Westy]

Slowly man slowly.

I got a good tip early on and that was to learn American Pie for a couple of reasons firstly there is lots of chord swapping. Secondly you can play it slowly with one strum per chord change and everybody likes the song for when you get better at playing it.

[harmonics101]

Your next step is to learn progressions and grace notes,

Pentatonic scale (or any scale for that matter) doesn't hurt either,

H

Westy has good advice too, one strum per chord, that's a good rule

[EasyEd]

Hey All,

Yeah strumming is tough. Trying to figure out where the "one" is is tough. I have a teacher an sometimes I'm trying to figure out where I'm at in a song. I'm usually right on the beat but he says why did you say one when the music is on three? The beat and the counting isn't hard but finding the "one" is. Sometimes it's easy cuz the you know where the vocal starts but not always.

Then figuring out the strum pattern putting those little pauses, changes in volume and "phantom" strokes and the speed up slow downs all within a measure - jeez. I'm trying to ingrain a country feel to some songs right now and that has a little pause and change in volume - it is slow.

The whole ability to have left and right hands at different speeds is fundamentally hard - I can forget ever being a drummer where you add in feet! I'm near 60 and never ever before in my life have I ever tried moving two parts of my body at different coordinated speeds - wonder if kids get this easily? And I taught dance where it isn't needed - that is why the beat is so easy and speeding up and slowing down isn't real hard but try doing things with one hand at one speed and the other hand at another speed - not easy at all. Even right now if I tap at a steady rhythm with my right hand and try to tap with my left hand on the 1 and 3 I have to really focus and count out loud. Does this ever get easy?

One thing I have found. I tend to think then act so making a chord - if I look at my fingers I slow down because I instantly think ok this finger here first then this finger... I'm much faster no looking - wierd. Same with my right hand - if I'm looking I hit more strings correctly but I'm faster no looking and working to correct mistakes.

It would be so much easier if guitar were like playing chess but it isn't it's all feel and rhythm and building the ability to trust your muscles and instincts and feel. It ain't fair.

-Ed-

[The Growler]

Originally Posted by MikeBmusic

BTW, 30 chords is a start, but nowhere near 'all' the chords, but you do need to get your rhythm ability in order.

Only George knows all the chords.

[Matt.S]

I had the same problem before I began learning chords and played solely from tabs. When I started to learn how to quickly change I did so by strumming a rhythm and not stopping. Now when I hear songs I can imagine how its being strummed. I believe if you know how up and down sounds you can figure out the beat by that alone.

If that fails try to watch live, and better yet if your wife is really nailing it sit and watch her. I have only been playing a year but I sat with my uncle not long ago and he showed me a 3 chord progression version of Melissa and I was amazed with how fast I was able to mimic him. Apparently guitarists learn best by being in front of someone.

[FluffyDog6]

I have a metronome app called Tempo on my iPod Touch and iPhone. It is $1.99.

When I have strumming issues, I set it up as follows:



For a 4/4 song I set it to 8/4 time, place an accent every other beat, and flash the screen on "one".

I then wear headphones turned up fairly loud to "burn" the strumming beat into my head. This helps greatly, increasing 5 BPM up to original tempo once I'm perfect.

Other strumming patterns can be configured as needed of you are doing more stums per quarter note.

Try it, it really helped me.

[The Growler]

Originally Posted by FluffyDog6

I have a metronome app called Tempo on my iPod Touch and iPhone. It is $1.99.

When I have strumming issues, I set it up as follows:



For a 4/4 song I set it to 8/4 time, place an accent every other beat, and flash the screen on "one".

I then wear headphones turned up fairly loud to "burn" the strumming beat into my head. This helps greatly, increasing 5 BPM up to original tempo once I'm perfect.

Other strumming patterns can be configured as needed of you are doing more stums per quarter note.

Try it, it really helped me.

Good recommendation, FluffyDog6. I think this is one of the most versatile metronome apps out there, and as you pointed out, can be configured to do quite a bit. Good price too.

[rogthefrog]

Originally Posted by carpunky

lol...thats to funny

I can dance, have rhythm , I can clap to the songs , I can change the chords with the best of them.

It is definitely my rhythm . i wish that I could explain it better. I have a metronome and use it. I don't know what else to say , im just dumbfounded

Can you find the "one" in any song? Start there. Then find the time signature. In most cases it's 4/4. So clap ONE and two and THREE and four and for a while. When you have that down, do the same with your strumming hand across the strings, muted (ie don't play the chords). Then once you can do that, map out which chord goes on the one in every bar. Then play the whole song with just the one chord from every bar. Then do the same with the one and the three. Etc. You get the idea.

[Chin music]

Just curious - is your dominant hand doing the strumming or fretting? I'm naturally left handed but play right handed, and have always felt this has inhibited my ability to use faster strum patterns. Fingerpicking, I've felt no such handicap. But strumming at a fast rate...hmmm. I can reverse the guitar and strum faster with my left hand than I can with my right hand, despite years of practicing right handed strumming,.

Or I could be completely off base . Just a thought that popped into my head while reading this thread.

[Oldguy64]

Originally Posted by carpunky

lol...thats to funny

I can dance, have rhythm , I can clap to the songs , I can change the chords with the best of them.

It is definitely my rhythm . i wish that I could explain it better. I have a metronome and use it. I don't know what else to say , im just dumbfounded

You sound like my wife. She has a very pretty singing voice.
She is, unfortunately, Tune deaf.
It's a lot like being tone deaf.

She can't carry a tune in a bucket. She can sing along with others.

Perhaps you are a lead guitar player, and not a rhythm player...