Harpagan (the scout strum): one strum for the whole campfire
Play D-DU-UDU. The hand also travels through the empty slots. Start the chord change on the last “and”.
Adrian4 minupdated
The arrows and dots are in the lesson on strumming notation. Here we take a ready pattern and play it.
Ogniska już dogasa blask has Harpagan (scout strum) in the catalogue: D-DU-UDU. That is the same bar you see above.
One loop, including the dots
The right hand counts “one and two and three and four and”. On the numbers it goes down, on “and” it comes back. In two places the pick misses the strings. The hand does not stop.
The last “and” closes the loop and prepares the next one. Without it the next bar starts late.
Songbooks sometimes print a version without that last arrow. Keep it here. Under it the left hand has time to change.
The new grip before “one”
If the left hand only moves on “one”, the next bar starts with silence. The pattern can still be correct, and the song still tears.
Move on the last “and”. The pick goes up and only catches the thin strings. The thick, open strings may sound for a moment without a grip. That is not a mistake: the sound is short, and the firm downstroke on the next one already hits the new chord.
The right hand does not change its plan. It plays the last arrow, comes back down and opens the new bar. The whole change is in the left hand.
Run the lane and watch the last slot. When it lights up, release the grip, so the new chord is already standing on the first slot of the next bar.
| moment in the bar | right hand | left hand |
|---|---|---|
| from “one” to “four” | the pattern as usual | holds the grip |
| the “and” after four | upstroke, thin strings only | leaves the grip and travels to the next |
| “one” of the next bar | a firm downstroke | the new grip is already there |
Ogniska, with F or without
Ogniska has C, G and F. If F is not standing yet, play the pattern on C and G. Open the song to hear the same strum from the card.
A verse can be played shallower, a chorus deeper into the strings. The pattern stays the same.
Three is a different step
Harpagan (the scout strum) is in four. Carols in three take a waltz. Do not “fix” the hand when the time signature is different.
Play the pattern
Learn a strum, the Harpagan (scout strum) pattern, key of G.
The tutorial walks the pattern in steps. The tap result says where you come in early or late. That is a reading from the tool, not a ticket to the campfire.
Measure: the last “and” and the next one. If the left hand does not make it, slow down.
If the hand loses the last “and”, put the guitar down and tap the pattern with a finger.
Play this
Ogniska has this pattern in the catalogueOgniska już dogasa blask plays Harpagan (scout strum). Hej sokoły has half-bar in the catalogue (D-DUD-DU), Pije Kuba country (D-D--UDU). To hear Harpagan in those two, switch the Strum chip on the song page.