Maxixe · Cavaquinho
Maxixe cavaquinho rhythm: syncopated pick pattern
The maxixe cavaquinho rhythm in 2/4: short pick strokes on the bass courses play the bass (B), the strum goes down (↓) and up (↑) and muted strokes (x) keep the groove. Beat by beat, one mark per sixteenth note: Bx(↓)↑ (↓)↑↓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
For the cavaquinho, Maxixe uses a bass-and-chord figure, in 2/4 straight (even subdivisions): the pick alternates short strokes on the bass courses (B) with the full chord (A). In practice it sounds: B↓ (x) (A↓) A↑ (A↓) A↑ A↓ (x).
How to count it
The meter is 2/4: 2 beats per bar, counted in sixteenth-notes (four per beat). Speak the count: 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
B = bass courses (a short ↓ pick stroke on the two low strings) · 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 short stroke on the bass courses (TU) follows Rego 2010. The muted and ghost strokes follow Cantalice 2022.
How to play it
Right hand
The low end comes from the pick itself: a short down-stroke on the bass courses (B), only the two low strings, and the full chord (A) answering on the other strokes. On the (x) hits, rest the hand on the strings as you strike: a muted low note with no definite pitch.
Left hand
The fretting hand holds the chord firmly through the whole pattern — it owns the harmony while the right hand owns the rhythm. Change chords at the last instant of the bar, the hand already moving toward the next shape. For the (x), loosen the fingers without lifting off the strings — they go silent but stay put, ready to ring again.
Example in G
Take a G: the bass (B) is the low D, and the G chord (A) answers next. Play it slowly, following the diagram and the sound.
Common mistakes
- Gluing bass and chord to the same instant. The B has to come first and the A answer — if they land together, the bass-chord bounce vanishes.
- Skipping the mute. The (x) hits aren’t chord, they’re percussion. Without them the bounce flattens into a lifeless strum.
- Up-strokes as hard as down-strokes. The up-stroke (↑) is lighter and catches only the treble strings — equal force thickens and drags it.
- Rushing. Fast subdivisions are easy to run. Start slow with the metronome and only speed up once the pattern is clean.
Guided practice
- Bass alone. Play only the B hits (thumb), very slowly, feeling each one land in time.
- Chord alone. Now play only the A hits, answering the bass, without the bass note.
- Put the hands together. Bass first, chord after — slowly, until the alternation is automatic.
- 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 already get the logic of the groove. Now put it in time: hear the pattern, follow the count and practice slowly until the bass and the chord sit apart in time. In Chord and Fret, the Metronome and the Rhythm Trainer help with that drill, free.
Practice in Chord and Fret →Variations & related patterns
Once the strum is steady, play the same pattern over Maxixe 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.
Apply to progressions →