strumming how do you do it/how to learn?

sev112

Strumming is not about the pick, but getting fixated about the pick can cause you longer term problems.  Everyone is right, it’s about feel, about groove, and walking down the street subconsciously, absolutely, 
but some people need the rhythm text books and patterns to help them learn to understand that by coming from a more mechanical way  I certainly did when learning the various Latin, boss nova , fun etc styles - couldn’t “feel” it at all, but could play the rhythms on the staves and that was my way in for that. You might be one of them, if it doesn’t come / feel automatically.

back to picks, I’d encourage you to use BOTH a thin pick and a thick one, and intersperse them, that way you will build a feel for when you want to “hit” the strings and when you want “brush” them, and more importantly how to make the up strokes work, which is usually one of the challenging bits.  Sometimes just practising up strokes can be very worthwhile.  

Remember you don’t have to strum all 6 strings.  I usually am strumming 3 as a norm, sometimes more, sometimes less. 

Mellish

@ditchboy ; - there's nothing wrong with a thin, flexible pick for acoustic strumming (I use a Tortex 50).practice slow strumming. You can always speed it up later. Go slow and get the patterns right is the key. Don't practice mistakes - they're difficult to unlearn  

BigPaulie

Don't think about it too much.

There's nothing more un-musical than slavishly following a prescribed strumming pattern.

Start simple and get a feel for the beat. Learn to count the rhythm and understand where the beats are.

Just hold your guitar and mute the strings and strum along focusing on timing. It's all about timing, but it has to have feeling; avoid roboticism.