The Waltz Stroke in Three

The basic three

In 3/4 the pattern is one downstroke on beat one and a down-up pair on each of the remaining two beats: D | DU | DU. Six contacts per bar, counted 1, 2-and, 3-and.

The strong beat is beat one. Beats two and three should be lighter and, on a slow ballad, nearly equal in weight to each other — that is what separates a waltz from a march.

Loud-soft-soft is not always right

The textbook waltz is 1 loud, 2 and 3 soft. That works for Oh My Darling, Clementine at speed. It does not work for Silent Night, where the melody is long and the accompaniment should be almost flat. Three settings, and you should choose deliberately:

• Loud-soft-soft: fast waltzes, anything with a comic or dance feel.
• Even (very slight lean on 1): slow ballads, hymns, lullabies.
• Silent beat two: for a waltz where the melody has a long note on beat two, leaving it out entirely makes the tune float.

Changing chords inside a waltz

The chord change belongs on beat one. In 3/4 that gives you two whole beats to prepare the next shape, which is more generous than 4/4. Use it: on beat three, lift the fingers that are going to move while the last upstroke is still sounding. Silent finger movement is the whole secret of clean waltz playing.

Six-eight is a different animal

A 6/8 tune such as Greensleeves is often written with the same three strums, but the feel is two beats per bar, not three. If you count three in a 6/8 song it will sound like a jig. Check the time signature before choosing the pattern.