The essential technique which expands on what most acoustic guitarists may already use, adding a deeper percussion tone to the well used snare-like chop.
Whilst the chop is already commonly used, this clip demonstrates the variations possible to add greater options into your grooves.
Once comfortable with the Kick Drum Chord, this version starts homing in on accuracy to be able to apply the technique for single note picking together with the deep percussion tone.
Another technique which is used by other percussive acoustic players, however just like our Snare Chop, the Beat Strum versions introduces using the free fingers of the picking hand whilst maintaining close to the strings. This opens up potential for later with more complex combination phrases.
Hybrid picking is also not a new technique, so this technique forms part of the Beat Strum toolkit as the difference between the pick and fingers gives many forms of tones and hence greater phrasing opportunities.
As a beginner riff, especially since it will take some practice to play a Kick Drum Chord, a great confidence booster is this riff which actually gives the illusion of a full 4/4 straight rythm section using the sustain and overlay of the chords played normally throughout.
Once the Kick Drum Chord is comfortably performed, we can then play the 4/4 beat properly. It will also allow us to introduce some percussive drum like fills as transisions between rounds of chord progressions.
Having secured a straight rhythm, many grooves comes from swing time and written in normal timings, 12/8 is a great starting point to consider a Beat Strum groove with that additional edge.
As we explored Beat Strum techniques first starting wide and then homing in for more accuracy, the same applies here. By the time we start learning to perform this riff, we are no longer just thinking of chord progressions but rock like riffs and melodies.
And lastly, we come full circle blending the pick and finger picking with percussive tones, thereby creating a rhythm section groove with the ability to play subtle notes in between for greater phrasing options and more dynamics in our playing.
There was a time when mouth based Beat Boxing was popular and for live performances, I've found making cymbal like sounds whilst my hands are Beat Strumming away at times adds a very effective dynamic when needed to lift a section of a song.