Baião · Cavaquinho
Baião cavaquinho rhythm: zabumba figure
The baião cavaquinho rhythm in 2/4: the strum goes down (↓) and up (↑) and muted strokes (x) keep the groove. Beat by beat, one mark per sixteenth note: ↓x(↓)↑ (↓)x↓x. Play the audio here in your browser, set the tempo anywhere from 50 to 200 BPM and follow the grid, which marks every subdivision.
Sound summary
The Baião pattern is a chord strum for the cavaquinho, in 2/4 straight (even subdivisions): the chord (A) swings back and forth, down and up, and the muted hits (x) give it bounce. It sounds like this: A↓ (x) (A↓) A↑ (A↓) (x) A↓ (x).
How to count it
There are 2 beats per bar (2/4), split into sixteenth-notes (four per beat). Say the beats: 1 e & a, 2 e & a. Tap your foot on the strong beat and read the grid above: each cell is one subdivision.
The rhythm grid
A = chord · ↓ down-stroke · ↑ up-stroke · x = muted · (x) = ghost (light graze)
The ↓/↑ direction follows the bowed-string arcada convention (ᴨ down, V up; Ribeiro 2017). The muted and ghost strokes follow Cantalice 2022.
How to play it
Right hand
The hand strums the whole chord (A). The arm swings down (↓) and up (↑) in constant motion — the up-stroke catches the treble strings and is naturally lighter. On the (x), lay the hand on the strings as you strike — that muted “chka” is what lets the groove breathe.
Left hand
The left hand gives the harmony: hold the whole shape clean from start to finish, leaving the right hand to the rhythm. Make the change on the last beat, the hand already heading to the next chord. On the muted hits (x), ease the finger pressure without leaving the neck: the strings stop ringing but stay under the fingers, ready for the next chord.
Example in D7
With a D7D7D7D7 held, let the same chord ring under every stroke — close your eyes and follow just the right hand’s rhythm. Then change only the left-hand shape to take it into any song.
Common mistakes
- Letting the (x) ring like a note. It is percussion, not chord — if you don’t mute, the groove loses the “chka” that drives it.
- Weighing down the up-stroke. The up (↑) should just graze the thin strings; matching the down-stroke’s force thickens it and drags the time.
- Running the subdivisions. The faster the pattern, the easier to push ahead — lock the tempo on the metronome before speeding up.
- Letting the tempo drift. Without a firm pulse the strum leaks — count along and hold the same time from the first bar to the last.
Guided practice
- Down-strokes only. Strum the chord on every down-stroke (↓), no up-stroke yet.
- Add the up-stroke. Let the arm come back (↑) between hits — lighter, catching the treble strings.
- Add the mute. Bring in the x hits by resting the hand on the strings — that percussion is the bounce.
- Take it up on the metronome. Start slow, keep the pattern clean, and add a few BPM at a time.
You’ve got the theory; now the time has to enter the body. Play along with the audio, follow the count and raise the tempo bit by bit until every stroke lands in its place without rushing. The Chord and Fret Metronome is free and keeps that drill steady.
Open the trainer →Variations & related patterns
Once the strum is steady, play the same pattern over Baião progressions: rhythm and chord changes in one exercise. In Chord and Fret, Progressions by Rhythm plays progressions from many styles, with diagrams and audio, free.
See the genre’s progressions →