Chord and FretPartido alto · Guitar
Partido alto (guitar)
Sound summary
The Partido alto pattern is a bass-and-chord figure for the guitar, in 2/4 straight (even subdivisions): it alternates thumb bass (B) and chord (A), one answering the other. In practice it sounds: B A — A B — A — B — A — B A — A.
How to count it
The meter is 2/4: 2 beats per bar, counted in sixteenth-notes (four per beat). Count out loud: 1 e & a, 2 e & a. Foot on the beat, follow the grid above — each cell is one subdivision.
The rhythm grid
B = bass (thumb) · A = chord block (i-m-a together, no sweep) · — = rest
The thumb bass and the i-m-a block follow the two-voice violão notation (Silva & Madeira 2021).
How to play it
Right hand
Bass and chord take turns: the bass (B) on the thumb first, then the chord (A) answering — always in that order, never colliding. It is a pinch: the thumb stays on the bass strings and i-m-a pull the three treble strings together — never sweep across all the strings. On the rests the hand stays put: the fingers hover over the strings, ready for the next block.
Left hand
The fretting hand holds the chord firmly through the whole pattern — it owns the harmony while the right hand owns the rhythm. Change chords at the last instant of the bar, the hand already moving toward the next shape.
Example in Am
Over an Am chord, the bass (B) is the note E on the low string — the chord’s lowest note. Play that bass on the pulse and let the whole Am answer right after. Hear the example and follow the diagram.
Common mistakes
- Gluing bass and chord to the same instant. The B has to come first and the A answer — if they land together, the bass-chord bounce vanishes.
- Running the subdivisions. The faster the pattern, the easier to push ahead — lock the tempo on the metronome before speeding up.
- Freezing the arm on a rest. It should keep going in the air, off the strings, and land on the next hit — the continuous motion is what holds the time.
Guided practice
- Bass alone. Play only the B hits (thumb), very slowly, feeling each one land in time.
- Isolate the chord. Drop the bass and play only the A hits, feeling where they answer.
- Put the hands together. Bass first, chord after — slowly, until the alternation is automatic.
- Take it up on the metronome. Start slow, keep the pattern clean, and add a few BPM at a time.
You’ve got the theory; now the time has to enter the body. Play along with the audio, follow the count and raise the metronome bit by bit until the bass and the chord sit apart in time — Chord and Fret runs that drill with an adjustable tempo.
Train with the metronome →Variations & related patterns
Once the strum is steady, play the same pattern over real Partido alto progressions. That trains rhythm, chord changes and voice-leading in one exercise — the Progressions by Rhythm feature in Chord and Fret.
See the genre’s progressions →Understanding the groove is the first step; the full practice — repetition, metronome, audio, progressions and review — happens in Chord and Fret. There this pattern stays saved in your study, to revisit later, play offline and track your progress.
Open the trainer →