Folk on guitar

Folk on guitar: the strumming patterns “boom-chuck” (4/4) and “3/4 waltz” (3/4), and the progressions three chords (I–IV–V) and pop axis (I–V–vi–IV), each with audio on its own page. Folk, country and Celtic songs are built on the acoustic guitar; in reggae it chops the off-beat, and Hawaiian slack-key is its own gentle guitar tradition.

Folk thrives on simplicity: songs meant for singing together, with direct melodies and lean harmony that put the story front and center. This page collects the style's classic progressions, like the three-chord one — the trio behind countless songs — and the pop axis, a four-chord loop heard all over popular music.

Grooves

Progressions

My Chords & Scales: Build the genre's repertoire: saving chords and scales to the Notebook is part of Pro · try it in Chord and Fret

Updated October 20, 2026