Xote · Cavaquinho
Xote cavaquinho rhythm: muted lead-ins
The xote 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↓↑. 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 Xote pattern is a chord strum for the cavaquinho, in 2/4 straight (even subdivisions): the hand strums the chord (A) down and up, with muted hits (x) driving the groove. In practice it sounds: (A↓) (x) A↓ A↑ (A↓) (x) A↓ A↑.
How to count it
There are 2 beats per bar (2/4), split into sixteenth-notes (four per beat). Count out loud: 1 e & a, 2 e & a. Foot on the beat, follow 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 chord (A) swings: down (↓) with weight, up (↑) light, catching only the treble strings. Keep the arm loose, oscillating without stopping. On the (x) hits, mute: rest the hand on the strings at the attack for the percussive “chka” that gives the groove its bounce.
Left hand
Keep the chord well pressed through the whole pattern — the left hand rules pitch, the right rules the bar. Only release the shape at the end of the bar, moving the hand ahead to the next one. For the (x), loosen the fingers without lifting off the strings — they go silent but stay put, ready to ring again.
Example in G
Grab a G and play the full strum over it: each stroke is the same chord. To carry it into any song, change only the shape in the left hand — the right hand’s rhythm doesn’t change. Listen below.
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
- Start all down. Strum the chord down (↓) on every stroke, one direction only.
- Add the up-stroke. Let the arm come back (↑) between hits — lighter, catching the treble strings.
- Bring in the (x). Lay the hand on the strings on those hits so the percussive “chka” enters the groove.
- 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.
Practice in Chord and Fret →Variations & related patterns
With the strum steady, take it to Xote progressions, putting rhythm and chord changes together. In Chord and Fret’s Progressions by Rhythm, the progressions come with diagrams and audio, free.
See the genre’s progressions →