Frevo · Guitar
Frevo guitar rhythm: thumb on every beat
The frevo guitar rhythm in 2/4: the thumb plays the bass (B) and the i-m-a fingers answer with the chord as one block (A). Beat by beat, one mark per sixteenth note, with · where there is no stroke: B··A B·A· | BA·· B···. 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 guitar, Frevo uses a bass-and-chord figure, in 2/4 straight (even subdivisions): the thumb plays the bass (B) and the chord (A) answers right after. It sounds like this: B — — A B — A — B A — — B — — —.
How to count it
The meter is 2/4: 2 beats per bar, counted in sixteenth-notes (four per beat). Say the beats: 1 e & a, 2 e & a. Foot on the beat, follow the grid above — each cell is one subdivision.
The rhythm grid
B = bass (thumb) · A = chord block (i-m-a together, no sweep) · — = no stroke
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. The chord (A) is a finger block (i-m-a), not a sweep: the thumb never plays the bass strings along with it. On the rests, let the thumb and fingers settle on their next strings — ready, without cutting the sound early.
Left hand
The left hand gives the harmony: hold the whole shape clean from start to finish, leaving the right hand to the rhythm. Make the change on the last beat, the hand already heading to the next chord.
Example in D
Over a D chord, the bass (B) is the note A on the low string — the chord’s lowest note. Play that bass on the pulse and let the whole D answer right after. Hear the example and follow the diagram.
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.
- Running the subdivisions. The faster the pattern, the easier to push ahead — lock the tempo on the metronome before speeding up.
- 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.
- Isolate the chord. Drop the bass and play only the A hits, feeling where they answer.
- Add the two voices. Bass then chord, always in that order, slow, until it plays itself.
- 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 the bass and the chord sit apart in time. The Chord and Fret Metronome is free and keeps that drill steady.
Open the trainer →Variations & related patterns
With the strum steady, take it to Frevo 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 →