16th-note funk scratching on E9
The picking hand moving down and up in 16ths the whole time over an E9, most strokes muted to a percussive scratch and a few let out as the chord: on 1, on the and of 2 and on the and of 3, with more of them at the end of the second and fourth bars. This is the engine of funk rhythm guitar: the hand never stops, and the groove comes from which strokes you let ring. It trains a loose, steady wrist and a fretting hand that mutes and frets in a split second.
Opens in the player looped and counted in, with drums playing along, and speeds up 5 % every 2 loops to 95 bpm. No account or microphone needed.
- Goal tempo
- 95 bpm
- Starts at
- 57 bpm
- Length
- 4 bars, looped
- Tuning
- E standard
- Time
- 4/4
- Level
- Beginner
- Plays with
- Drums
How to play it
Keep the fretting fingers on the chord but lift them off the frets for the scratches; press only for the accents.
The picking hand goes down on every beat and every 8th, and up on the 16ths between: sixteen strokes a bar, never stopping. Most are muted, an x on the tab: the fretting hand rests on the E9 shape without pressing, so the strings click.
The accented strokes are the E9 let out by pressing for a moment: on 1, on the and of 2 and on the and of 3 in every bar, with an extra pair at the end of bar 2. In bar 4 the hand misses the strings twice; it keeps moving, but the strokes don't touch the strings.
The E9 is played with the root at the A string's 7th fret. The low E and the high E strings are muted.
Mistakes to watch for
- Stopping the strumming hand for the chord hits, which throws off the 16ths that follow.
- Pressing too hard for the muted strokes, so they sound as notes.
- Playing too many strings: the E9's five strings at most, often fewer.
- A stiff wrist; funk strumming is a loose shake from the wrist.
A speed plan
The player starts at 60 % of the goal and plays each tempo twice before stepping up:
- 57
- 62
- 67
- 71
- 76
- 81
- 86
- 90
- 95
That's 16 loops and about 4 minutes before you're playing at 95 bpm. If it stops being clean on the way, stop the ramp there and loop that tempo until it is. With a microphone or an audio interface you can record while you play instead: Demiurg checks every loop and steps up only after two clean ones in a row, and back down after a poor one. Strums are checked for when they land, not for which strings rang.
Questions
How fast should I play 16th-note funk scratching?
The goal is 95 bpm in 16th notes, which is 6.3 strums a second. Start wherever every strum is clean: the player begins at 57 bpm. Signed in, you can set a goal of your own, slower or faster, on the Exercises page.
What does the x mean in funk guitar tab?
A muted, or dead, note: the string is struck while the fretting hand touches it without pressing it to the fret, so it clicks instead of sounding a pitch. In funk, rows of them make the rhythm.
Why an E9 chord for funk?
Ninth chords sound full without being heavy, and the shape is easy to mute and move. E9 at the 7th fret is the most used funk chord shape there is.
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