Exercise 2

Now that we understand the basic structure for the first 8 bars of Cooley’s Reel, we can fill in the silent pauses, 2 and 3, by using a standard 4/4 strum pattern across the 8 bars. A standard 4/4 strum uses a mixture of up and down strokes to create a fuller and more complete pattern across the bars.

One final detail we need to attend to is how we deal with the last bar (Bar 8). The A part of this tune is written over 8 bars but is played twice thereby giving a total of 16 bars. To preserve the continuity of the rhythm part and to enable the tune to turnaround naturally at the end of these 8 bars, we reverse the 4/4 strum pattern to match the ending of bar 8. This last bar is split between D and Em. We will call this a split bar. Pay particular attention to this as it is a common feature in many of the tunes we will come across later in the book. Practice this across the full 8 bars using the standard 4/4 strum pattern remembering to strum the Em chord using the full six strings starting on the bottom E (6th) string and the D chord using only the top four strings, starting on the D (4th) string.

Exercise 3

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