The timing element, or as some call it, rhythm, is one of the most important parts about playing guitar. It does not matter how good your voice is if you cannot get into time!

In this article we will discuss how different artists use rhythm to help develop players’ skills. We will also look at some easy ways to improve your sense of timing on your instrument.

This article will be focused more on conceptual understanding than technique. That means we will talk about what things mean while timing, but not how to do any specific exercises.

When reading this article make sure to check out the linked blogs for more detail. They include:

How to practice with a metronome

Become a 'Drummer 4/4 Life' with our exclusive JA t-shirt!

Show your dedication to rhythm with our unique 'Drummer 4/4 Life' t-shirt. Proudly display a music staff with the 4/4 time signature, the heart of most popular music beats. This piece of Jam Addict attire not only makes a bold statement about your passion for drumming, but it also lets you be a part of the JA community, a team dedicated to fostering musicians for years.

General tips for practicing

Practice routines for beginners

The importance of practice strategies

Why practicing should be fun

Reading music is another way to learn about timing

Artists such as David Guetta, Taylor Swift, Ariana Grande, John Legend, Adele, Justin Timberlake, Rihanna, and many others have made their fame by incorporating rhythm into their craft.

They are all very talented musicians who know how to play an instrument well, but they all agree that practicing rhythm was the key to improving their skill.

Look for a guitar in the art

The most basic element in music is rhythm. When you learn how to play an instrument, such as the violin or the piano, you start off by learning the notes (what key it is in) and what strings they are played on. You then use those tools to create rhythms!

The same goes for playing the guitar. Once you have learned your scales and chords, you can begin creating rhythmic melodies and bass lines.

But while there are many ways to teach people about theory (the study of concepts related to music), none seem to emphasize how to apply that knowledge in terms of rhythm very much.

This article will go into more detail on some different types of guitars and their uses in music. But first, let’s look at some basics on how to recognize a good rhythm.

Rhythm is not just something you do with your hands

Most musicians agree that one of the hardest things to learn is how to make sound effects with your voice or hand claps.

These sounds definitely help add texture to a song, but they are not essential for being able to identify a good rhythm.

For example, when someone says “dah dum da-da DUM DAH DAAAH!,” they are using a kind of quick tempo pattern that has a lot of emphasis on the downbeat. This is called a syncopated rhythm.

The guitar may be displayed playing the rhythm

A lot of artists display their guitars differently, how they place the instrument can make a difference in how it is interpreted. Some put the pick down by the index or middle finger to create more space for hands to work with, while others stick them under their strap so that they are never seen.

Some play just using the first position, which is picking with either your left hand’s thumb or right hand’s pointer finger. Others use both positions at once, creating music!

The placement and style of how an artist displays their guitar really does affect what people take away from the piece. For example, if someone saw a picture of me playing my guitar, they might assume I was trying to find the best way to silence it, which is false.

The guitar may be displayed separately

In other cases, the guitarist will use their instrument to create rhythm by themselves! This is typically done through striking or rubbing different parts of the body with a pick or using fingers to tap across the strings. Some even scrape their nails along the frets to add some effect!

This can be done manually or electronically via devices such as the Metronome, which helps in creating a steady pulse for practicing repeated notes or scales.

These types of practices are very important for guitarists who want to learn how to read music and/or improve their rhythm skills.

The guitar may be displayed with the musician

A guitarist can put their instrument away or take it out at will, aside from when they are performing. When they are not performing, the guitar usually is set up so that you have to turn around or move sideways to access the strings. This way, the guitarist does not need to constantly look down at the instrument while playing, which helps them focus more on what they are doing.

By having the instrument where you cannot easily access the strings, the guitarist has to play without knowing if there are any loose strings until after they start playing. This could potentially distract them or even hurt them because they might hit a string accidentally before they are able to fix it.

The guitar may be displayed with the instrument

A beginner might assume that the rhythm section is just using the picking strings as part of the rhythm, but this is not quite right!

The bass string can also be considered to have its own role to play when it comes to creating rhythmic notes. When playing the bass string as a drum hit, it creates an accented sound which some refer to as a “chime” or a “tinkle.” This tingle effect adds depth to the music being played and contributes beautifully to the overall melody.

When performing pieces that use only one chord, such as the piano solo from Beethoven’s Sonata No. 9, you will notice that there are no accents made while playing the chord.

The guitar may be displayed with the artist

An important part of how the guitarist is depicted in art is their position within the music they are creating. If the musician is standing or sitting, that is typically what the audience will see. If they are lying down, then perhaps that was intentional to emphasize relaxation or sleep.

The way the instrument is proportionally sized also makes a difference. A violin that is very thin and tall looks different from one that is thick and short.

A bass guitar is an excellent example of this! They are not as noticeable until you add some weight to it. A cello has quite the opposite- he or she must remain light and airy to sound good.

In terms of style, there are many types! Technically speaking, any type of string instrument can be called a “string” instrument (think guitars, violins, etc.). But for practical purposes, we use the term “classical” to describe instruments that have strings made of metal (like a bass) or nylon (violin). These heavier metals and synthetic materials help create deeper tones.

The guitar may be displayed with the location

A very important part of how to play the guitar is where you place your hands when playing the instrument. This is what we refer to as your position!

As you can probably tell, there are two main positions for holding the guitar: one at the first position or index position and the other at the second position or middle position.

The first position requires that you hold the strings closer together than if you were holding the guitar at the second position. You also must press down harder on the top string (usually the bass string) to get the same tone as if you held the guitar at the second position.

The guitar may be displayed with the time period

The way that artists organize their guitars is very different from how musicians display them when they play. In fact, it’s quite opposite!

When an artist creates a piece of art, they don’t typically use the same guitar twice. Even if this was done for artistic purposes, it would look weird because you wouldn’t know which one goes with what.

Instead, the guitarist uses the same model or even several similar models to represent each song. This is called using the instrument as a metaphor for the music itself.

For example, if the song is about love then your musician might use a double-strand steel string acoustic guitar. If the song is about anger then they could use a bass guitar. And if the song is something funny then they could use a ukulele!

This isn’t too bad, but it does get kind of repetitive after a while.