Chord & FretReggaeton · Electric guitar
Reggaeton (dembow)
Sound summary
For the electric guitar, Reggaeton uses a chord strum, in 4/4 straight (even subdivisions): the hand strums the chord (A) downward. To the ear: A↓ — — A↓ — — A↓ —.
How to count it
The meter is 4/4: 4 beats per bar, counted in eighth-notes (two per beat). Count out loud: 1 e, 2 e, 3 e, 4 e. Tap your foot on the strong beat and read the grid above: each cell is one subdivision.
The rhythm grid
A = chord · ↓ down-stroke · — = rest
The ↓/↑ direction follows the bowed-string arcada convention (ᴨ down, V up; Ribeiro 2017).
How to play it
Right hand
The chord (A) is strummed down only (↓): keep the arm level, each down-stroke the same force and spacing. On the rests the arm keeps going: it stays in motion in the air and lands again on the next hit.
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.
Example in Am
Grab an Am 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
- Rushing. Fast subdivisions are easy to run. Start slow with the metronome and only speed up once the pattern is clean.
- Freezing the arm on a rest. It should keep going in the air, off the strings, and land on the next hit — the continuous motion is what holds the time.
Guided practice
- Down-strokes only. Strum the chord on every down-stroke (↓), no up-stroke yet.
- Even the strokes out. Focus on keeping every down-stroke the same force and spacing.
- Close with the metronome. Go slow first and raise the BPM only once the pattern comes out clean.
You’ve got the theory; now the time has to enter the body. Play along with the audio, follow the count and raise the metronome bit by bit until every stroke lands in its place without rushing — Chord & Fret runs that drill with an adjustable tempo.
Practice in Chord & Fret →Variations & related patterns
Once the strum is steady, play the same pattern over real Reggaeton progressions. That trains rhythm, chord changes and voice-leading in one exercise — the Progressions by Rhythm feature in Chord & Fret.
See the genre’s 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 →