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4th, 5th, and 6th Strings

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<span class="text">[[Guitar Parts and Functions|Parts]]</span>

<span class="text">[[Holding the Guitar and Pick|Playing]]</span>

==Intervals==

<span class="text current">[[#Intervals|Intervals]]</span>

<span class="text">[[#Power Chords and Riffs|Pwr Chds/Riffs]]</span>

<span class="text">[[#Rhythm|Rhythm]]</span>

<span class="text">[[#C Major on the 4th String|C Maj - 4th Str]]</span>

<span class="text">[[#C Major on the 5th String|C Maj - 5th Str]]</span>

<span class="text">[[#C Major on the 6th String|C Maj - 6th Str]]</span>

</div>

The 4th, 5th, and 6th strings are all tuned in 4ths, like all pairs on adjacent strings, except for the 2nd and 3rd. All the interval shapes that worked between the 1st and 2nd strings will work between the 3rd and 4th, 4th and 5th, or 5th and 6th strings. Let's put this to action:

Play that nice and slow. Now instead of simply moving up or down the fretboard (towards the bridge and nut respectively - in relation to the ascending and descending fret numbers), we can stay relatively close to a single position. Ultimately, music is not about learning scales. Real life melodies will usually be more "vertical" than "horizontal", and visualizing the intervals for a particular key will likely be easier to incorporate into playing around a certain position.

== Power Chords and Riffs ==

<span class="text">[[#Intervals|Intervals]]</span>

<span class="text current">[[#Power Chords and Riffs|Pwr Chds/Riffs]]</span>

<span class="text">[[#Rhythm|Rhythm]]</span>

<span class="text">[[#C Major on the 4th String|C Maj - 4th Str]]</span>

<span class="text">[[#C Major on the 5th String|C Maj - 5th Str]]</span>

<span class="text">[[#C Major on the 6th String|C Maj - 6th Str]]</span>

</div>

Remember those "power chords" we played on the 1st and 2nd strings which sounded familiar but a little wimpy? Let's try them on the 4th, 5th, and 6th strings:

There's something new in the tab above you may not have initially noticed. The double dots right after the bar that begins the first measure and before the final bar of the last measure. This indicates to repeat. When reading music, you ignore the initial "|:" and play until you hit the ":|". That means go back to the "|:" and repeat that part. Notice the "x3" above the tab. This means repeat 3 additional times (so 4 total). If there is no indication of how many times to repeat, it implies a single repeat.

== Rhythm ==

<span class="text">[[#Intervals|Intervals]]</span>

<span class="text">[[#Power Chords and Riffs|Pwr Chds/Riffs]]</span>

<span class="text current">[[#Rhythm|Rhythm]]</span>

<span class="text">[[#C Major on the 4th String|C Maj - 4th Str]]</span>

<span class="text">[[#C Major on the 5th String|C Maj - 5th Str]]</span>

<span class="text">[[#C Major on the 6th String|C Maj - 6th Str]]</span>

</div>

What really nails the above riff home is the rhythm. Notice the first block of power chords in each measure starts on the 1st beat, but every other set starts in between beats. This is quite difficult to get at first, especially when you are playing with a metronome. Your natural inclination is to hit the strings every or every other time you hear a click. Playing off the beat is called "off-time" or "off-beat". Also, the first beat of each measure is called the "down beat" and usually features the strongest accent of a rhythmic cycle. We clearly see that hear, more particularly in the first measure than the second. Beats that lead up to the down beat are called "up beats".

Here's some quick practice to master playing on and off beat. Play this to a metronome and count every beat. It is more difficult than it looks. Just keep at it. Start slow. If you can't get it, go even slower.

=== Accented Downbeat ===

This is a simple rhythm that accents the downbeat but plays every beat.

=== Accented Downbeat and Backbeat ===

Same thing but also accenting the 3rd beat, so this accents the on-beats - it's a classic on beat rhythm, reminiscent of the common "boom ssss taah ssss" drum pattern. The accent on the 3rd beat is called the ''backbeat''.

=== Accented Downbeat w/ Upbeat ===

Here we are accenting the down beat and using the up beat to enhance anticipation of the down beat.

=== Accented Downbeat and Backbeat w/ Upbeat ===

Kind of combines the above. We aren't simply accenting the on beats but using the up beat to enhance the down beat. Notice how the 1st beat has a bit more emphasis than the 3rd.

=== Off-Beat Accents ===

Classic off-beat rhythm. Reminiscent of some ole west or folk music.

=== Odd-time Feel ===

Time signatures can switch in the middle of a song; however, this is generally reserved for when the change is either permanent or endures for a long period of time. Or if doing so makes understanding the music more clear. So if you had a musical phrase with 4 notes in 4/4 time than the next phrase is the same thing but with one extra quarter note, then it repeats, it would be favorable to switch to 5/4 for that second measure then switch right back to 4/4.

=== Counting Odd-time Feel ===

This is the same as the first odd-time tab above, but now we're not playing anything in between the accented power chords. Also, we're using eighth notes instead of quarter notes, so we have to play between the beats. But we're not getting too difficult yet.

=== Rhythm Master ===

''Note: we are sticking to using only down strokes at this point. I recommend that - get the idea of counting and playing off-beat engrained in your head before trying to worry about whether you should be down or up picking any particular note(s). Later when we get into strumming, we'll see this gets even a bit more complicated.''

== C Major on the 4th String ==

<span class="text">[[#Intervals|Intervals]]</span>

<span class="text">[[#Power Chords and Riffs|Pwr Chds/Riffs]]</span>

<span class="text">[[#Rhythm|Rhythm]]</span>

<span class="text current">[[#C Major on the 4th String|C Maj - 4th Str]]</span>

<span class="text">[[#C Major on the 5th String|C Maj - 5th Str]]</span>

<span class="text">[[#C Major on the 6th String|C Maj - 6th Str]]</span>

</div>

D-0--2--3--5--7--9--10-12-

D E F G A B C D

== C Major on the 5th String ==

<span class="text">[[#Intervals|Intervals]]</span>

<span class="text">[[#Power Chords and Riffs|Pwr Chds/Riffs]]</span>

<span class="text">[[#Rhythm|Rhythm]]</span>

<span class="text">[[#C Major on the 4th String|C Maj - 4th Str]]</span>

<span class="text current">[[#C Major on the 5th String|C Maj - 5th Str]]</span>

<span class="text">[[#C Major on the 6th String|C Maj - 6th Str]]</span>

</div>

A-0--2--3--5--7--8--10-12-

A B C D E F G A

== C Major on the 6th String ==

<span class="text">[[#Intervals|Intervals]]</span>

<span class="text">[[#Power Chords and Riffs|Pwr Chds/Riffs]]</span>

<span class="text">[[#Rhythm|Rhythm]]</span>

<span class="text">[[#C Major on the 4th String|C Maj - 4th Str]]</span>

<span class="text">[[#C Major on the 5th String|C Maj - 5th Str]]</span>

<span class="text current">[[#C Major on the 6th String|C Maj - 6th Str]]</span>

</div>

This string has the same notes as the 1st string, only here they are 2 octaves lower in pitch.

E-0--1--3--5--7--8--10-12-

E F G A B C D E

== Homework ==

<span class="text">[[Guitar Parts and Functions|Parts]]</span>

<span class="text">[[Holding the Guitar and Pick|Playing]]</span>

[[Category:Intervals]]

[[Category:Rhythm]]

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4th, 5th, and 6th Strings

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