Chord & FretForró · Guitar
Forró pé-de-serra (open first bass, accent on beat 2)
Sound summary
Forró is played with a bass-and-chord figure — 2/4, straight (even subdivisions) — for the guitar: the bass (B) comes from the thumb and the chord (A) follows. In practice it sounds: B — A B A — A B.
How to count it
In 2/4, each bar has 2 beats, counted in sixteenth-notes (four per beat). Speak the count: 1 e & a, 2 e & a. Keep the beat with your foot and follow the grid: each box is one subdivision.
The rhythm grid
B = bass (thumb) · A = chord block (i-m-a together, no sweep) · — = rest
The thumb bass and the i-m-a block follow the two-voice violão notation (Silva & Madeira 2021).
How to play it
Right hand
Split the right hand in two: the thumb drops the bass (B) on the pulse, then the chord (A) fills in — fingers or a down-stroke. It is a pinch: the thumb stays on the bass strings and i-m-a pull the three treble strings together — never sweep across all the strings. On the rests the hand stays put: the fingers hover over the strings, ready for the next block.
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 G
On G, the bass (B) lands on G on the low string, the chord’s root: sound it on the beat and let the G chord (A) complete right after. Use the diagram and the audio example.
Common mistakes
- Bass and chord landing together. The bass (B) comes first; the chord (A) answers after. If they collide the groove disappears — separate the two hands in time.
- Rushing. Fast subdivisions are easy to run. Start slow with the metronome and only speed up once the pattern is clean.
- Stopping the arm on the rests. The hand never stops — it keeps swinging in the air and only touches the strings on the next hit. That’s what holds the time.
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.
- 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 the bass and the chord sit apart in time — Chord & Fret runs that drill with an adjustable tempo.
Open the trainer →Variations & related patterns
Once the strum is steady, play the same pattern over real Forró progressions. That trains rhythm, chord changes and voice-leading in one exercise — the Progressions by Rhythm feature in Chord & Fret.
Train with 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.
Start training →