How to Not Suck (at Irish rhythm guitar)

Are you a tune player hoping to draft a "great guitar player friend" who doesn't already play Irish music? Or are you a guitarist looking for a quick primer on Irish style? Here are some succinct thoughts from in-house guitarist Matt Heaton on basic right and left hand approaches.
For more left hand goods, you could START with Matt's partial chords vid: • Backer Corner with Mat...
And for further right hand stylings, consider some palm muting: • Backer Corner with Mat...
Learn more about Matt at mattandshannonheaton.com

[@CVMoser]

So concise and useful. I'm crash coursing for my first Celtic music gig and this video provided the best advice.

[@ShannonHeatonMusic]

Hope it's a fun gig, Charles! And welcome to the world of Irish backing.

[@anemandaane5183]

Me too thanks for the great vid

[@doodeen]

Brilliant lesson!

[@franckmedrano-irishmusic]

Good video, love your guitar playing , keep on it 😊

[@Melvorgazh]

Hi Matt! Always a delight to enjoy your lessons ☺️👍🏻

[@MattHeatonMusicForKids]

thanks!

[@harpbaby1]

I'm so glad I found this series of instruction. If I can't find a decent backing track, I have to provide my own. Now, my guitar and mandolin playing will be sooooo much better. Thanks Matt!

[@user-bm5xv9qz9v]

Great tutorial. Thanks.

[@vankerckhovenfilip5101]

I've been searching the right chords for years. Thanks a lot for those lovely sounds!

[@ShannonHeatonMusic]

Yay! So glad this can be useful.

[@johntait491]

Very nicely and concisely explained. Thank you. ;-)

[@GraeneyMac]

Good selection of the fundamentals vividly put over with imaginative examples, comparisons of style and sounds effects. Very engaging. Thanks Matt.

[@ShannonHeatonMusic]

So glad you enjoyed! Matt is a master. And also pretty hilarious.

[@strummer6642]

Thanks for those great tips. Working on the rhythms and new chords, it like discovering a new guitar language

[@ShannonHeatonMusic]

Hey, that's cool! Love that you can hear the distinct language in here.

[@daviemoloney6670]

That’s a great intro to Irish music accompaniment. Well done

[@ShannonHeatonMusic]

So glad you enjoyed it, Davie!

[@mccypr]

Awesome! Thanks! ✌️😎🌞🎻

[@pgpagaia]

You guys are the best. Just teaching what matter in direct fashion.The part of keeping it smooth and making everyone happy, cracked me up. 😂 This video is exactly what I needed for my backing tracks.

[@ShannonHeatonMusic]

Keeping humor alive.... AND keeping it smooth... we humans are capable of great things!

[@matojorodante7737]

very very useful, thank you very much!

[@leverbart]

Matt, this playlist is so helpful. Please keep adding to it! You've really changed my backing. Thanks a million from co. Clare

[@ShannonHeatonMusic]

So, so glad to have Matt weighing in here. And I'm delighted to hear that his ideas are helpful for you in Clare!

[@tradballads558]

At least I have the exact same pick, that‘s a good start. Off to cure my elephants. Really useful concise guide, thanks Matt!

[@ShannonHeatonMusic]

hahaha! Well, it's all subjective, and it's all a work in progress (for all of us). But the pick is a really good place to start. Be kind to the elephants.

[@eamonnobrien1410]

Thanks for a great lesson 👍

[@ShannonHeatonMusic]

Thanks for stopping by! Glad you enjoyed Matt's presentation here. And I'm glad to offer his wisdom on this channel.

[@jimokearns]

I've been looking for an Irish guitar video and was pleasantly surprised to find this. Coincidentally, I worked at KAFM Radio Room in Grand Junction for a few Siucra shows many moons ago and had the pleasure of meeting you and Shannon. I look forward to getting more into Irish guitar stuff. Loving your videos!

[@ShannonHeatonMusic]

Awww, KAFM. Amazing that we got to see you back in the Siúcra days. And so glad you stumbled on Matt's videos. Happy to have you playing more Irish guitar, Jim!

[@markskywalker71]

Ciao Matt, what a great quick start guide to Irish guitar...I will try the pink elephant parade rhythm for sure :)

[@ShannonHeatonMusic]

hahaha! Good for you on Pink Elephants, Marco. So horrific...

[@geconucd]

Love this video! Thank you! 🙏 🎶 👏

[@ShannonHeatonMusic]

Hooray! Glad you enjoyed. And I think Matt has such great ideas. Honored to be able to share them.

[@devinvanhine5122]

This is So helpful, thank you!

[@ShannonHeatonMusic]

Great that you could get some use out of it, Devin!

[@mollycarlson9715]

This is a brilliant video! You broke all the concepts down into very understandable bites--I think the hardest bit is going to be getting in enough practice to bring all those elements to life on my guitar! Thanks so much for the de-mystification!

[@ShannonHeatonMusic]

So glad you found the video. Best of luck with your Irish guitar journey!

[@amcmanusmusic]

OK, so this is the playlist I'm looking for!! Great!! Thank you ahead of time for the massive dive I'm about to take through your videos 😂

[@ShannonHeatonMusic]

Yay! Glad you found us. And please let us know how your journey goes.

[@andorrasrevenge1683]

That’s a cool guitar man!

[@PaulrRogers]

How good is this? Just fantastic thank you so much! As a singer songwriter and specialist acoustic guitar finger picker for many years. This has always been a mystery to me . Best guitar lesson I have ever had!

[@ShannonHeatonMusic]

That is so great to hear! So fun to get to demystify, so you can see that you already have all the skills you need. Just a little translating..

[@terry4372]

Hi from Australia,thanks so much Matt i just turned 75 and have bought small body guitar made in Northern Ireland as i love Celtic music and would like to learn some simple Jigs and Reels.This video is great,you explain everything clearly and simply.After seeing this i think i can manage this so thanks so much for excellent tutorial.You have motivated me to start regular 30 minutes a day this very morning🎸

[@ShannonHeatonMusic]

Wonderful, Terry. Keep us posted on the daily practice. We've enjoyed sharing practice videos and keeping one another motivated at the VirtualGuidedSession FB group... or just post here and let us know how it's going!

[@raymondlenihan7431]

Very helpful thank you very much ☺️

[@ShannonHeatonMusic]

So glad it was helpful for you, Raymond! Thanks for stopping by.

[@coffeeandkeys1980]

Thank you for such a great video. My daughter has been playing classical violin for 4 years now. We found an old ceilidh fiddle book with accompaniment chords in a charity shop……took it home and within minutes she had the bug. I couldn’t get her to put the violin down. I’ve played guitar for years but have neglected it for several years…..so here I am, watching your amazing advice. Thank you so much!

[@ShannonHeatonMusic]

I'm SO excited for your daughter (and you)! Wishing you lots of enjoyable playing together... no matter how you approach things on the guitar.

[@justjames1111]

Great, thanks.

[@derry3344ii]

Well explained sir Thankyou ❤

[@ShannonHeatonMusic]

yay! Thanks for checking out Matt's vid. He's a good player AND teacher.

[@ruthrappaport1097]

I'm digging this video and think it's really good, Shannon! Love what he has to say and how he says it. As an old-style player, both on piano and guitar, I have never adopted the contemporary (as in what's been going on in Irish music for 30+ years--I'm showing my age. . . ) style of strumming and chords that Matt is showing. I feel I'm successful at playing a very gentle boom-chuck along with bass lines, throwing in some variations on standard chords. Just wanted to say that it can be done and one won't necessarily suck if they do that!

[@ShannonHeatonMusic]

how nice to hear from you, Ruth! And good point that gentle, thoughtful, musical boom-chuck (or arpeggiated playing, or any number of other rhythmic expressions) can also work. But maybe for folks starting out, Matt's approach could be a no-harm ... and, yes, fairly contemporary... option.

[@ruthrappaport1097]

@@ShannonHeatonMusic Of course! I would love to talk more about this topic, as the styles have changed in other traditions, such as contra dance music. I've actually been reamed for playing the old way. Maybe we can get together sometime for some tunes and discussion. Would love that.

[@ShannonHeatonMusic]

oh, ouch that you've been discouraged by other people. Mmmm... There's definitely no RIGHT WAY. And with sensitivity, lots of different approaches can work. The trick is the sensitivity, right? Not crowding the tune with an overbearing (un-smooth) rhythm, or with thick root-position chords, or just too much volume. And with your thoughtfulness, Ruth, I think your goal is to listen, blend, and not edge other people out. That's pretty gold right there.

[@karlcolon5299]

Love the Ear Trumpet mic! I’m just getting started with my Edwina. :-)

[@ShannonHeatonMusic]

Yeah--good sound. And it's a lot easier to play around that thing than close miking everything.... when the situation is right.

[@jamesmccarty8988]

Bravo! Great lesson! I flat pick Irish melodies on mandolin and guitar but when I back up my fiddler buddy on rhythm, I suck-too much bluegrass background. Thanks for the great pointers.

[@ShannonHeatonMusic]

Haha! Well, the title was meant to be provocative... glad you can call on your BG background, James, AND experiment with a different touch for different situations. Let us know how it goes!

[@BlackheartCharlie]

Thank you Matt! My wife and I play Irish trad as a duo (her: concertina and fiddle, me: mandolin and octave mandolin). We'd love to find a local guitar player to sit in with us, but cant find anyone who already plays ITM. I'm going to show this video to a friend who plays guitar to get him started down the right path to ITM accompaniment. I'm upping my game on accompaniment with the Octave and would love to see more vids, esp. on connecting chords with runs and passing chords. Best regards from Key West, Jeff and Rachel

[@ShannonHeatonMusic]

good luck! Keep us posted.

[@sheller94]

I love the description of the Jig rhythm as " Jiggity, Jiggity" the faster ya say it the faster ya play it. 😂😂

[@ShannonHeatonMusic]

Ah, I like your jig rhythm: The better you say it, the better you play it!

[@johncummins3254]

Hi Matt, I came upon your videos 2 weeks ago and think they are great. I'm trying to enhance my guitar playing to make some back tracks for my fiddling. I'm doing this because I could not find a source for trad guitar backing tracks. Have you given any thought to producing guitar back tracks that people like me could purchase. It seems like there is a market for it. Thanks for producing the lessons and for donating your work to the trad community. John

[@brandondavis5422]

Thank you thank you thank you! I hope this reaches the sucky players! Especially to the ones that loudly play not knowing that they are sucky!

[@MattHeatonMusicForKids]

I suppose that if someone is watching this, they have a certain self awareness and desire to improve! :)

[@ShannonHeatonMusic]

haha! Maybe it reaches the brand new enthusiasts, even before they ever muscle in there and overplay..... Maybe it will encourage and empower thoughtful musicians to try some Irish music.

[@giovannibortoluzzi1384]

"go out there and avoid sucking" 😀 Thanks!!!! Simple but super-effective

[@bakedbean37]

I could really have used this video about twenty five years ago. Someone mistook me for a competent guitarist and asked me along to a fiddle class to provide accompaniment. How difficult can it be to sit and strum two chords all night? It was a crash course in getting the rhythm for the jigs for sure. I could really have done with these tips on chord voicing. Thinking back it must have been pretty awful sounding. Wouldn't have helped that I was using a classical guitar either. It was an experience though. I'm getting into playing folk tunes myself now playing melody instead on tenor ukulele after discovering fifths tuning. I'm being drawn towards maybe getting a mandola (same tuning and similar scale length) so I shall be looking for videos on how not to suck at that now. 🙂

[@ShannonHeatonMusic]

Great that you're getting into playing trad tunes! (And haha on videos on how to not suck... evocative title, for sure... But really, it's meant to empower and make things a little simpler/clearer for folks. And not to discourage.) Those chord voicing really do HELP to present the rhythm properly, too. It's a good alchemy.

[@trioofone8911]

Here's the advice I try to give to guitarists that are new to Celtic styles: uh... please don't play like bluegrass... Don't get me wrong, bluegrass is great, but it ain't Irish in any shape or form. Old time is closer to Irish, but even that ain't it. People will finish their beer and go home early if a loud bluegrass guitar crashes the Irish party. Lol

[@ShannonHeatonMusic]

So interesting how one approach can work so well in one setting, and less so in another. I love how Matt works on right hand/strumming patterns withOUT bringing in chords sometimes. Just muting the strings and getting the right feel. And then how he considers how different colors (chord shapes) in the left hand can accentuate that fundamental feel... or how they can squish it a bit. #alchemy

[@trioofone8911]

Remember to think Dorian

[@brucesteele3052]

Coke a cola coke a cola coke a cola (reel) - jigity jigity jigity jigity jitigy (jig).

[@ShannonHeatonMusic]

Cherry coke Cherry coke, Cherry coke Cherry coke (jig)??

[@thisone9]

Can't just play the first position of each chord?

[@MattHeatonMusicForKids]

you could, but using some inversions makes for smoother changes. G/B going to C is a smoother change than G to C.

[@Guardiola075]

Merci. Class. Not " TchaKaPunk ", ok ;)

[@ShannonHeatonMusic]

Haha! But TchaKaPunk can also be fun, in the right setting... Happy rhythm to you!

[@trioofone8911]

Lots of 9s and suspensions

[@CarolineTheFiddler]

Really requires transitioning off the Bodhrán

[@ShannonHeatonMusic]

Great rhythm players (drummers and strummers) share a LOT of mechanical moves... and imagination. Seems like having a keen sense of lift and life on the bodhrán could easily carry over to guitar. Or to anything else, (Maybe even cooking!)

[@Sombre____]

The best is to use an Irish Bouzouki and not a guitar. :p

[@ShannonHeatonMusic]

haha! That can be another pretty winning strategy.... I like Matt's bouzouki videos, too. But they don't have such provocative titles.

[@Sombre____]

@@ShannonHeatonMusic You can have a pretty good bouzouki for a range price of 300 to 600 euros. Like an Antonio Carvalho (APC from portugal). You should really try it out, it change everything.

[@ShannonHeatonMusic]

@@Sombre____ Thank you for letting us know about the Carvalho bouzoukis! Matt loves his Davy Stuart bouzouki; but it's good to know about other good, affordable bouzouki options.

[@GreenfangXYZ]

This guy is greek tho

[@XandruReguera]

Lovely explained Matt. But if you don´t have time to learn don´t play! Fiddlers and flutists will kill you :)

[@ShannonHeatonMusic]

ha! Good point. But also... some people live in very remote areas and would really like to connect with other players. Or have dear friends they'd like to TRY playing with. Who knows, maybe some of those guitarists can jump in with these ideas, and THEN become interested enough to dig deeper? We may never know!

[@XandruReguera]

@@ShannonHeatonMusic Hahaha! Sure, most of us outside Ireland learned this way, and Matt did a great job explaining the tricky jig-strum (wish I had a tutorial like this some 20 years ago).

[@ShannonHeatonMusic]

yes, I think it's a good video. And also, your point about not just jumping in is a good one, too. There is a balance between getting in there and just trying.... and also maybe NOT feeling the need to always throw yourself in there. Because there are a lot of people like you, who have spent like 20 years doing their homework and really trying. To everything, turn, turn, turn.... Or Down-Up-Down, Down-Up-Down, Down-Up-Down!

[@trioofone8911]

Try to learn melodies. Not to play them, but simply to know them. It makes you a better rhythm player for Irish

[@ShannonHeatonMusic]

Yes, good. All of us knowing the melodies makes the conversation much sweeter!

[@timeWaster76]

So no ..... DADGAD tuning

[@ShannonHeatonMusic]

Matt DOES also play in DADGAD. And drop D. And other tunings. Maybe he should do a follow up with DADGAD, though the main event might be the right/strumming hand...

[@user-kb8py8dw4h]

Yeah just because your playing fast doesn't make it irish you wont hear anything like this in any of the pubs over here

[@ShannonHeatonMusic]

Hi! Agreed. Speed doesn't bring the sauce, rhythmic style does. Would be interested to know what guitar players and styles you are encountering. There are lots of ways to color Irish tunes, including NO accompaniment whatsoever.

[@bobeden5027]

learn to play the Irish drum and transfer the rhythms to guitar

[@ShannonHeatonMusic]

Good one. Also, maybe learn some dance steps and transfer those?