How to Strum a Guitar

Strumming a guitar may seem easy, but it actually needs proper skills to do. Anyone can strum a guitar, but it takes a serious hobbyist to find the right ways how to strum a guitar.Remember that the way you pluck the strings matters, and it makes a huge difference in the sound you produce.

Tips for strumming the guitar

Let us check out the important tips for strumming your guitar. The following methods can be your basic foundation for your strumming process.

Proper posture

Before you can learn how to strum, know how to hold your guitar properly first. Start by sitting down on a chair, and ensure that your guitar is balanced carefully on your thigh. Keep your instrument near your body, but in a loose manner. Make sure that your strumming elbow does not get near the strings, but rather keep it close to the base of your equipment. Use your fret hand to take care of the guitar’s neck. And then your strumming thumb must be located way beyond the middle of the neck.

Know the tunes first

The biggest mistake of rookie guitarists is they focus solely on how their hands move to handle their guitar. Strumming is an action that goes up and down the strings, but it takes more than the ability to pluck the strings to create beautiful music. You need to know the tunes first before you play. Sing the rhythm in your mind, sing it out loud, and just say the tune out of your mouth. Once you know the tune by heart, you can easily play it using your guitar.

Loosen your wrist

The proper way to strum your guitar is to let your wrist do most of the movements, instead of making your whole forearm move. Loosen up your wrist, and strum the strings with your wrist rotating loosely, with a minimal movement from your whole arm.Practice rotating your wrist when you have no guitar practice, and try to use your wrist only when playing. You will get the hang of it soon, and you will realize that it is much easier to pluck your guitar this way.

Keep strumming hand moving

When you strum your guitar, keep your hands moving, even when there is no need to pluck the strings. Doing so will not put you in a position to consciously remember when to move your hands again. When you move your strumming hand continuously, you can keep up with time. If you are not strumming the strings, simply move your hand by tapping lightly at the side of your guitar, or simply moving it any way you like. But never stop moving.

Do not strum all strings

You need to remember that not all strings in your guitar needs to be hit. Typically, you only need to strum three or four strings in order to accomplish a note, and the strings to hit depends on the chords or song you play. However, the usual rule of thumb is to strum the lower strings during your first and third beat, and on the second and fourth beat, hit the high strings.

Choose your flat pick wisely

It is absolutely fine to pluck your guitar with your bare thumb, but as a beginner you need to use a flat pick. Flat picks are different from thumb picks, which offers low give. A flat pick is your ticket to an excellent strumming sound. It is ideal to purchase more than one flat pick, so you can practice and see what thickness you are more comfortable with. Get flat picks in different thickness, but be sure to get a pair of each. It is common knowledge that guitarists are always losing their flat picks. So always keep an extra or two whenever you play. Buy flat picks that are made from a trusted and reliable brand. Take note that the way you strum your guitar is greatly influenced by the durability of the flat pick you use.

Proper use of a pick

The strumming of your guitar will never be successful if you do not learn how to use a pick properly.Holding the pick contributes greatly to the mastery of your strumming, so learn how to hold this small item perfectly. Use your index finger and thumb to tightly hold your chosen pick. Make sure that the end of the pick points towards your chest. Keep a tight grip of the pick, and experiment on how to hold it with comfort, and strum away.Also, you can choose to keep the pick pointed towards to floor, if that is more comfortable for you. Many guitarists are known to angle their picks to the ground, but as a beginner, point the pick to your upper body. After all, you can learn tricks later on when you are already an expert guitarist.

Observe other strummers

One of the best methods to learn how to strum properly is to observe other strummers do their thing. You must have favorite guitar players, right? Download their videos and watch how they strum their guitar, and learn from their techniques. Commit their moves to memory and try to do the same ways with your own guitar. Practice their moves and see for yourself the benefits of what the techniques bring.

Final say

Strumming a guitar is not difficult to do, but you must learn a few tricks in how to properly do it in order to become successful in this field. There are so many ways to perfect the strumming process, and you can even gain perspective from various online tutorials and guitar apps. However, nothing can truly beat the actual practice of strumming your strings. Give yourself enough time to master this craft, and practice strumming every day. Learn from popular guitarists, and experiment on your own style. You can even hire a guitar instructor. But, whatever you choose to do, do it with strong commitment and patience.