Island Waltz

About this piece

A waltz of our own for practicing a fingerpicking pattern. The thumb plays the root of each chord on beat 1, then the index, middle and ring fingers take the 3rd, 2nd and 1st strings and come back down, six even eighth notes per bar. The tune moves through the vamp twice, A7 to D7 to G: in G, that’s the same chord turn as D7–G7–C in C. Learn the pattern on a G chord first; then pick the tune, or have a friend pick it while you play the pattern.

What it practices

• a fingerpicking pattern in 3/4
• thumb on the bass, fingers on the treble
• the A7–D7–G vamp
• G, C, G7, A7 and D7

Chords in this song

G · C · A7 · D7 · G7

Each link opens the chord finder with more ways to play that chord.

Where the notes come from

Our own tune, written for this course (no outside source). The A7–D7–G turn is the vamp described in our chapter on Hawaiian song style.

How to practice with it

1. Listen first. Press Play and follow along. The note being played lights up in the tab, in the notation and on the fretboard, and the chord being played lights up in the row of chord diagrams.
2. Learn the chords. Press each diagram to hear it, then practice changing between them slowly, before you add the strum pattern under the tab.
3. Slow it down. Use − and + to set the tempo. 60% is a good place to start; the notes keep their pitch.
4. One part at a time. Choose Tab only to hear the tune alone, or the other part alone, then put them together.
5. Loop the hard part. Under More…, turn on Loop, pick the bars, and play them a few times in a row. Count-in gives you a bar of clicks before it starts.

Click a bar in the music to start from there. Space plays and pauses. Left-handed? Turn on the left-handed view: the chord diagrams and the fretboard are mirrored to match your instrument. Tab reads the same either way: the top line is always the first (highest) string.