How do you know how many times you strum a guitar for each chord?

Question

I am a beginner and i dont know how many times you strum the guitar for each chord. is there a way to know for each chord? and how? thank you!

Answer 1

As you learn your chords the simplest method in strumming them is for four beats each. Try this method:

1. Strike the fundamental note of the chord. That is your first beat. Example: In the chord of G, the lowest note (sixth string) will be the one you strike.

2. Then strum down with your other fingers. This is the second beat.

Repeat steps one and two for the additional two beats. When I began my virginal chording I would strike the fundamental tone or note with my thumb and then, with my forefinger, strum down the strings for the second beat.

A full four-beat measure is usually adequate to form the chord and play it before moving on to the next chord.

Answer 2

You didn't really specify enough information. Are you reading notated music, or are you reading a chord sheet (possibly with chords listed over the words)? Maybe you're reading tab that only tells you when to play which chords, and where to place your fingers to play those chords.

The fact of the matter is, there are several ways to notate guitar music. There are only TWO ways to know how many times to play a specific note/chord:

1. Know the song well enough that you don't need music, or
2. Read the notated music.

There is one other option, but it's a poor one. There are some hybrids of tablature that try to mark slashes (/) where one would play the chord, with one slash indicating one strum. But if you don't know the song, this doesn't really help, either, because you don't know the meter or the beat that the strums fit into.

Basically, if you want to learn a song and get all the strumming right, practice with a recording of the song you want to learn. I personally practice in front of my computer, so I can pull up the songs that I want to play and easily track back to spots where I might be having trouble. Even if you learn to read music and have a copy of the music in front of you telling you everything you need to know, it still doesn't hurt to have a recording of the music to reference to.

Hope this helped. Good luck!

Answer 3

You must learn to read musical notes and cords. they will tell you if it is a whole note or half or tripplet and so on. Unless you develop and ear for music. Both are good, but playing by ear is much better. All in all, it will not hurt you to learn to read music.

Answer 4

Depends on the song!!!