Jazz Rhythm Guitar Lesson 2: Drop 2 Chords Rooted on the Fifth-String

To expand our harmonic vocabulary, we now move to the fifth string. While the drop-3 voicings we used in the previous lesson can be played from the fifth string, it is far simpler and more comfortable to use drop-2 voicings which do not require us to skip a string. Continue to use the “four-to-the-floor” pattern rhythmically, this time making beats 2 and 4 staccato by releasing the strings with your left hand after strumming. The left hand should remain in contact with the strings to keep the muted, but refrain from applying enough pressure to sound a note. Apply these new chords and rhythmic techniques to the following examples.