Frequently Asked Questions About The Strumstick

Date: Tue, 10 Sep 2002 18:22:36 EDT
Subject: strumstick

I have a standard strumstick and the song book that goes with it. What I
would like to know is what notes on the scale coincide with the frets on each
of the 3 strings.
Can you answer that for me or tell me where I can find that information. I
have written McNally twice with no response.
Thank you.

Greetings:

Here's some info that may help you:

Subject: Songbooks For The Strumstick
Date: Tue, 3 Sep 2002 14:19:16 -0500

Hi,

I have compiled and arranged several songbooks for the Strumstick. The
songs in these books are written combining tablature and rhythmic notation.
They include chord changes for a guitar or other Strumstick to play along.
The books in this series include;

1. A Christmas book with both sacred and secular carols and songs.

2. An old-time and traditional songbook with a variety of traditional
pieces.

3. An old-time hymns and sacred songs book.

4. An old-time/bluegrass finger-picking solo book that allows the player to
use banjo finger-picks.

These books are made using the Finale music publishing software and are of a
professional print quality with comb bindings. They include information on
reading tablature and explanations of techniques used in each book.

http://www.geocities.com/strumstickgirl

Subject: strum-stick
Date: Tue, 14 May 2002 21:39:57 -0700

If you would please, I recently came upon what was identified to me as a "strum-stick". It's an interesting instrument, but as yet I have found no information on how to properly tune it.
Are you familiar with this particular instrument ? If so, can you help me with it's tuning.
Thank you
Ward Walters

Greetings Ward,

Here's the definitive site on Strum Sticks:
http://www.strumstick.com/

From Strumstick.com:
The Strumstick is tuned G D G

The Strumstick is tuned G D G. You can fret any of the strings, and you can fret several strings at once to make fuller chords. These are a bit more demanding, and usually people start with fretting the first string, and progress to the others after a while.

The trade off with the Strumstick is that it only plays in one key (or scale), instead of all 12 keys like guitar. That is why there are no "wrong" notes on the Strumstick. Wrong notes are notes outside the key you are playing in. All those wrong notes make guitar versatile, and hard. Having just "Right" notes makes Strumstick easy, but somewhat limited. As a pleasant surprise, the Strumstick is not as limited as you might think. In music, you usually play in only one key at a time anyway.

Many many songs can be played on the Strumstick, whether in a major or minor key. Blues and Jazz use notes from outside the major scale, and are trickier on the Strumstick for that reason, but not impossible. By retuning, or using a different Strumstick model, you can pitch a song in various keys if you need to.

The whole idea with the Strumstick is "baby steps". You do not have to deal with a bunch of strings and a bunch of fingers, each of which has to be matched up perfectly or it sounds bad. One finger, one string, it doesn't matter where you put it, easy! Next step, you start to organize where you put your finger, but it's still one finger, one string. Later you get fancier with the rhythms that your strumming hand can do, you can finger more than one string, but only after you are comfortable with the earlier, easier things.