Area of Expertise : Ragtime

Ragtime is a precurser to Jazz and is known as a syncopated style whose name is short for ‘ragged time.’ To earn your AE Ragtime patch demonstrate four of the strums on this page. At least one strum should be demonstrated in the context of a song. The other three patterns may be demonstrated with a chord progression of your choice. You may also demonstrate all four strums in the context of one song. Demonstrated strums should keep a consitent beat with no noticeable pauses between chords. Please refer to the strumming shorthand guide for any unfamiliar symbols.

Basic Strokes

Π P V Π P V Π V (Ragtime stroke)
Π x x Π x x Π x (Ragtime scratch)
Π 1 T Π 1 T Π – (3+3+2 Split-stroke)
Π 1 T Π 1 T Π V (3+3+2 Split-stroke variation)

Sproat Strokes

Thanks to Steven Sproat for collecting these.

Π – Π 1 T Π 1 T (Sproat Split-stroke)
Π – Π V Π Π V Π (Sproat Split-stroke simplified)
Π – Л P V Л P – (Sproat Fan-stroke)
Π – Π P V Π P – (Sproat Fan-stroke simplified)

Fan Strokes

ЛPV ЛPV ЛPV ЛPV (Fan-stroke triplets)
Л P V Л P V Π V (3+3+2 Fan-stroke)