Guitar question about strumming?

Question

Sorry... I'm a little new to playing guitar.

I was wondering why when everyone plays guitar, they play a chord very fast several times to a rhythm when the chord sheet only lists the chord once?

And also, how do you know what rhythm to strum to?

Answer 1

Strumming is somewhat subjective.  There is no real right or wrong way to strum so long you stay in tempo with the song.. There is a free eBook at http://www.guitarleader.com that goes into more detail than what I can here..  Anyway every guitarist has there own style of strumming.  The important thing is to change chords on time.  Strumming becomes natural after learning enough chords to play a few songs.. GOOD LUCK

Answer 2

Not being a smart aleck, but do you know about time signatures on music?

3/4 beats, 4/4 beats stuff like that?  If not, ask someone who took band in school, they should be able to explain it easily.  Also ask them about "bpm" (beats per minute)

Once you understand those two things, strumming will make a lot more sense to you.  It's not very hard, you will get it.