This is Part One of a two part lesson series that covers grooves which establish music’s, “foundation rhythms.” These include the rhythm duration’s of quarter and eighth-note feel. The lesson focuses on these rhythms along with strumming style and strum hand direction. Part two is available for purchase in the online store…
The basic ability involved with learning how to effectively perform rhythm guitar comes down to a combination of; chord knowledge, as well as, feel for duration. Once these are combined with solid left and right hand ability the strumming skill for good rhythm guitar becomes established.
Rhythm skill can be accomplished with the initial focus being directed toward gaining a feel for duration. Duration is the feel for the beat alongside the understanding of each note duration. These include two main categories:
LONG DURATION:
– Whole Notes (4 beats)
– Half Notes (2 beats)
– Dotted Half (3 beats)
– Quarter Notes (1 beat)
– Dotted Quarter (1 and a half beats)
SHORT DURATION:
– Eighth Notes (1/2 a beat)
– Dotted Eighth (3/4 of a beat)
– Sixteenth Note (1/4 beat)
– Eighth Note Triplets (1/3 of a beat each)
GAINING THE SENSE OF FEEL:
To attain a sense of feel for note duration you will need to work on both categories individually, as well as together (combined into rhythmic phrases). The more you develop your sense of feel and phrasing the more complex you should evolve these combinations of the categories.
CONCLUSION:
We are not born with a perfect sense of timing. It must be developed. Some players find it easier to develop than others. However, gaining an overall knowledge for good rhythm that includes knowing the note names, the length of beat in time and having options for how they may be combined is the key to overall rhythmic success.