Fingerstyle that sounds like Strumming

The Secret of the “Rolling Fingers.”

Hey guys, I hope you are having a fantastic Sunday.

Today I want to share a fingerstyle approach that I use all the time that changed my guitar playing drastically.

Every time I use this fingerstyle approach, people think I am strumming the strings as the sound is pretty close to a strum, but I am actually plucking the strings.

I call this approach “Rolling Fingerstyle” or rolling fingers, and it’s a weapon that you can add to your arsenal if you want to become more melodic and musical.

Honestly, guys, this is a guitar trick that will change your guitar playing forever!

Let get started.

The Video

Ready to Roll?

The Chord Progression

The first step is getting comfortable with the chord progression so learn the chords perfectly. Don’t worry too much about using the rolling fingers movement and pluck the strings simultaneously.

Once you become fluent with the chord change and the plucking strings are memorized, move on to the next step and experiment with the rolling movement.

We will learn a straightforward chord progression to apply this new fingerstyle approach.

The chord progression is: Am – G/B – C – Dm – Am – G

The Rolling Fingers Movement

Experiment with this technique on three different levels so that you can slowly make your way towards the perfect rolling movement.

The first step, start by plucking the strings slowly and truly memorize the movement. This technique is achieved by playing the chords starting from the thumb, followed by an index, middle, and ring finger.

Slowly increase the speed and reduce the gap between the notes (Second step).

Apply the movement on the other chords (Step 3)

The roll should be done quickly, and it should sound as close as possible to a strum.

I really focus on each finger, and I perform the movement quickly without emphasize any particular note.

Rolling Fingers and Melody

We can also apply the same rolling movement over a melody.

In this example, I will play a simple melody over the chord progression you learned above.

The melody will be played using the rolling finger movement between the thumb and middle finger.

Final Thoughts

This rolling movement changed my guitar playing, and there isn’t one single melody I play without using it.

Take your time to familiarize yourself with the technique and follow the three steps, so it doesn’t get too difficult.

I hope this lesson can inspire you and give you the sound you are looking for.

Have a super Sunday, guys.