Chord & FretPartido alto · Guitar
Partido alto (guitar)
Sound summary
The Partido alto pattern is a bass-and-chord figure for the guitar, in 2/4 straight (even subdivisions): it alternates thumb bass (B) and chord (A), one answering the other. In practice it sounds: B A↓ — A↓ B — A↓ — B — A↓ — B A↓ — A↓.
How to count it
The meter is 2/4: 2 beats per bar, counted in 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
B = bass (thumb) · 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
Bass and chord take turns: the bass (B) on the thumb first, then the chord (A) answering — always in that order, never colliding. Don’t stop the arm on the rests — it keeps moving in the air, it just doesn’t touch the strings.
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 Am
Over an Am chord, the bass (B) is the note A on the low string — the chord’s root. Play that bass on the pulse and let the whole Am 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.
- 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
- 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.
- Put the hands together. Bass first, chord after — slowly, until the alternation is automatic.
- Take it up on the metronome. Start slow, keep the pattern clean, and add a few BPM at a time.
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 the bass and the chord sit apart in time. That’s what Chord & Fret does, with guided audio and an adjustable tempo.
Train with the metronome →Variations & related patterns
With the strum steady, take it to actual Partido alto progressions: rhythm, chord changes and voice-leading in one exercise. That’s the Progressions by Rhythm feature in Chord & Fret.
Apply to progressions →Understanding the groove is the first step; the full practice — repetition, metronome, audio, progressions and review — happens in Chord & Fret. There this pattern stays saved in your study, to revisit later, play offline and track your progress.
Open the trainer →