Week 17 of 27
Goal: You pick chords with your thumb and three fingers and play a calm song in 6/8.
Review
Last week: the capo. Play G, D7 and C once without capo – today we pick them.
Step by step
- Your thumb plays the bass: the lowest string of the chord, the root. For G it’s the low E string, for C the A string, for D7 the D string.
- Index, middle and ring fingers rest on the G, B and e strings. Each finger has its own string.
- The pattern for 6/8: thumb – index – middle – ring – middle – index. Six notes, nice and even, like a wave.
- To get a feel for 6/8, use the rhythm tool with “Rocking (6/8)”. More in Fingerpicking.
- Then: Stille Nacht in G, picked very calmly.
Time to make music: your piece
Stille Nacht in G, picked: once per bar thumb – index – middle – ring – middle – index. G, D7 and C – soft and beautiful.
Practise rhythm Pattern: Rocking (6/8)
Homework for next time
Five days, about ten minutes each:
- Tune first every day.
- Days 1–2: the pattern on open strings, thumb on the low E string.
- Day 3: the pattern on G, C and D7 – the thumb finds the root.
- Days 4–5: pick Stille Nacht in G.
- Fun: pick a goodnight song for someone in your family.
Done when …
- the pattern’s six notes sound even
- your thumb finds the right string for each chord
If you get stuck
- Fingers getting tangled? Start with just thumb and index alternating, then add middle and ring fingers.
- Too quiet? Pluck with your fingertip slightly into the string rather than away from it. Keep your hand still above the strings.
For teachers: lesson plan
- ≈ 10 min Warm-up: “assign the fingers” – everyone places thumb, index, middle and ring on their strings and plucks each on cue.
- ≈ 15 min Practice: the pattern slowly on open strings while the teacher counts “1 2 3 4 5 6”.
- ≈ 20 min Together: Stille Nacht – one group picks, one strums softly “Only down”, everyone hums the melody.
Differentiation: those who are confident play the piece with down-up or help a partner; those who need more time strum only on beat one of each bar.
For the board: openstring.de/gitarre/en/lesson/17/