Steady strumming in eighth notes

Good strumming is a motion first and a pattern second. Your arm moves down on the numbers and up on the 'ands', never stopping; the pattern is just which of those strums touch the strings. This lesson builds that motion and the most useful pattern in folk and pop.

By the end of this lesson you will be able to:

• Count eighth notes out loud as 1 & 2 & 3 & 4 &.
• Keep a constant down-up motion in the strumming arm.
• Play the workhorse pattern D - D U - U D U over a chord change.

Eighth notes divide each beat in two. You count them 1 & 2 & 3 & 4 &. The numbers are the beats; the "ands" are the halves in between.

The secret of steady strumming is a constant arm motion: down on the numbers, up on the "ands", all the time, whatever pattern you are playing. The pattern is just a decision about which of those motions touch the strings.

The workhorse pattern D - D U - U D U (down, miss, down, up, miss, up, down, up) is eight motions with two misses. Counted out loud it is: 1, 2 &, & 4 &. It sits behind a huge amount of folk, pop and rock.

Upstrokes can be gentle and catch only the top strings. Keep the whole motion small and relaxed, coming mostly from the wrist.

Building the workhorse in three steps.

1. Strum all eighths: down, up, down, up, and so on. Count out loud.
2. Now miss the first "and": the arm goes up but does not touch the strings. You get D - D U D U D U.
3. Now miss the down-strum on beat 3 as well. The arm goes down and misses. You get D - D U - U D U.

If you lose the pattern, go back to step 1. The arm never changes. Only the contact with the strings does.

When you can play it on a muted chord at 70 BPM, put it on G and C, one bar each. Make the change on the last up-strum before beat 1.

Do these in order. Each one is small. Tick the ones you have practised.

• 1.Air strumming and counting

  3 min · 60 → 80 BPM

  1. Mute the strings by laying your fretting hand across them.
  2. Set the metronome. Say '1 & 2 & 3 & 4 &' out loud.
  3. Strum down on each number and up on each '&' for two minutes.

  You have it when

  • Your hand hits the strings on every down and every up, evenly.
  • Your voice and the metronome stay together.
  I practised this one

• 2.Build the pattern from all eighths

  4 min · 60 → 90 BPM

  1. Play all eight strums over a single chord.
  2. Remove the '&' of 1: your arm still goes up, but misses the strings.
  3. Remove the strum on beat 3: your arm goes down, and misses.
  4. You now have D - D U - U D U. Loop it for two minutes.

  You have it when

  • The pattern sounds the same every bar.
  • Your arm never stops moving.
  I practised this one

• 3.Pattern with a change

  4 min · 60 → 90 BPM

  1. Choose G and C (or Am and C).
  2. Play the pattern for one bar on each chord.
  3. Make the change on the last up-strum before beat 1.
  4. Loop for two minutes without stopping.

  You have it when

  • You complete two minutes without stopping the strumming hand.
  I practised this one

Start at 60 BPM and stay there until the arm moves without thinking. Go up in steps of 5 BPM only when the pattern feels relaxed. A comfortable range for songs is 70 to 100 BPM.

• Stopping the arm on beats you do not strum. A missed strum is the arm moving without touching the strings. If the arm stops, the timing falls apart.
• Strumming from the elbow only. Let the wrist do most of the work, with the forearm helping a little. Keep the motion small and loose.
• Hitting all strings with every upstroke. Upstrokes can be lighter and catch only the top three or four strings.

This pattern fits Knockin' on Heaven's Door, Brown Eyed Girl and Stand By Me. Choose one, play it at 70 BPM and keep the arm going throughout.

Try it in: Knockin' on Heaven's Door, Brown Eyed Girl (chord version), Stand By Me.

Short version (10 minutes)

Do 'Air strumming and counting' for two minutes, then play the pattern over G and C for two more.

Standard version (about 30 minutes)

Do all three exercises, then play a section of a song from the library using the pattern.

• The arm keeps moving: down on numbers, up on 'ands'.
• The pattern is which strums touch the strings.
• D - D U - U D U is one pattern that works for many songs.
• Count out loud until the rhythm is automatic.

You are ready to move on when you can honestly say:

• I can keep an eighth-note strum going for two minutes at 80 BPM.
• I can play D - D U - U D U over a chord change without stopping.
• I can say where each strum falls in the count.