2 replies to this topic

[Rowlie]

Hi
I’ve been play guitar for a few years and it’s my favorite pastime.
However it’s a real struggle and it’s not coming easily.
I found programs like Guitar Pro a real help, however there is one thing that I can’t quite get my head around.
Weather to strum up or down. I have had guitar lessons and be spent some time on note values and if it’s 4 or 8 beats I can usually work it out but if there are a few different value notes or rests, by the end of the bar I’m thinking is this a up or down stroke.

Is there are way to work this out?
Sometimes I can find music that has the up or down strokes already mark and I use this as a guide.
If there is an easier way please could you tell me?
Thanks for your help Andrew

[Stu74]

Im sorry i cant be much help.You are probably a more advanced player than me.My only advice is if it is a song you have heard a lot then just experiment until you get the rythm sounding like it should.
I did this with 3 songs.All i had was the chords for the songs and nothing told me how to strum them(very frustrating) But because i had heard these songs a million times before i just kept on strumming away until i got the feel for the songs
Bad Moon Rising,Maggie May and Crazy Little
Thing called Love are the 3 songs i did this with.
Hopefuly someone can answer your question.Good luck.

[Scotty Burford]

HI
A general principle is to strum down on the beat and up off the beat. When you start adding in semi-quavers (or 16th notes) this doubles up so you would play down, up, down, up in one beat. Rests correspond to the same thing. Hopefully that makes sense.