Rhythm and Timing

Rhythm and Timing Lessons

Rhythm and timing are arguably the most important core skills for musicians. They are, however, often overlooked. The timing matters just as much as the choice of the notes and chords themselves. Even if all the notes and chords we play are correct, if they are not correctly in time, then they are effectively all wrong!

The Basics of Rhythm

In the beginning, you will be taught all the fundamentals of rhythm. You’ll learn how to read rhythmic notation; the set of symbols that indicate rhythms and time in the world of music.
Every song or piece of music will call for focus and understanding of rhythm and timing.

Alongside rhythms you will also learn about picking and strumming directions, which are often determined by the relationship of rhythms to the underlying beat of the music.

Advanced Timing Work

With the fundamentals of rhythm and timing in place, you will learn to correct imperfections in your time, and to play with greater precision.
This will mean developing sensitivity to ‘pushing’ or ‘sitting back’ when playing.

Further work will include developing the ability to switch instantaneously between different subdivisions, without needing time to reconnect with the beat. This is a powerful skill and a very effective upgrade to rhythm playing, improvising, and performing more advanced classical pieces.

Rock solid timing and the ability play a full range of rhythms is integral to being a competent guitarist.

“Timing is something that most guitarists have to keep coming back to. The job is never completely finished; there’s always more room for improvement.”

– Stuart Bahn

Rhythm and Timing