Chord & FretJazz · Electric guitar
Four-to-the-bar comping
Sound summary
For the electric guitar, Jazz uses a chord strum, in 4/4 straight (even subdivisions): the hand strums the chord (A) downward, and the muted hits (x) give it bounce. It sounds like this: (A↓) (A↓) (A↓) (A↓).
How to count it
There are 4 beats per bar (4/4), split into one strum per beat. Say the beats: 1 2 3 4. Keep the beat with your foot and follow the grid: each box is one beat.
The rhythm grid
A = chord · ↓ down-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). Every attack is down (↓), firm and even, one per grid cell. On the (x), lay the hand on the strings as you strike — that muted “chka” is what lets the groove breathe.
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. 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 C
With a C 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.
- 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.
- Keep the down-strokes level. Make sure each down-stroke has the same weight and the same gap.
- Add the mute. Bring in the x hits by resting the hand on the strings — that percussion is the bounce.
- Close with the metronome. Go slow first and raise the BPM only once the pattern comes out clean.
You already get the logic of the groove. Putting it in time is where it enters your fingers: hear the pattern, follow the count and practice with a metronome — slow first — until every stroke lands in its place without rushing. That’s what Chord & Fret does, with guided audio and an adjustable tempo.
Train with the metronome →Variations & related patterns
Once the strum is steady, play the same pattern over real Jazz progressions. That trains rhythm, chord changes and voice-leading in one exercise — the Progressions by Rhythm feature in Chord & Fret.
Apply to progressions →The page explains; the real practice — repeating, timing on the metronome, listening, applying to progressions and reviewing — is in Chord & Fret. Save this pattern in your study to pick it up later, play offline and watch your progress.
Open the trainer →