Pop in E — fingerstyle
The E-A-B pop progression played with the fingers, no pick: the thumb strikes each chord's bass while index, middle and ring pluck the three treble strings. Fingerstyle splits the right hand into two voices that must move together but independently, a bit like a pianist's two hands. The thumb is the metronome: until it's perfectly even, nothing above it will hold. It's the doorway to singer-style accompaniment without a plectrum.
Tips
Work the thumb alone first: just the E, A, B basses in quarter notes, until they're as even as a click.
Add the fingers one at a time, index alone on one string first, then two, then three, never letting the thumb slow down.
Assign a fixed string to each finger (index = G, middle = B, ring = high E) and don't change: evenness comes from the automatism.
Understanding this type of exercise
E-A-B fingerstyle
The cadence without a pick: the thumb plays the root (E, A, B), the index, middle and ring finger pick the treble strings. One finger per string; work the thumb bass alone first.
Chord progression — E
Chords
The same exercise in other keys
Related sheets
- Pop in E — syncopated muted strums (Level 4)
- Improvisation — pop in C, major scale (Level 4)
- Pop in F — syncopated muted strums (Level 4)