Guitar | Beth Chrisman | Beginning/Intermediate | Period 1 | Week 1 (July 6-10, 2026)
Master the rhythm guitar foundation that drives country jams and bands. I will be teaching essential strumming techniques, alternating bass lines, and the classic “boom-chuck” style while we develop solid timing through practice with recordings and metronomes. We’ll work through country standards daily, exploring different feels including waltzes, shuffles, polkas, and two-beats. You’ll build the rhythmic foundation that supports singers and lead players. I will explain how to best use a pick, and where to place your right hand for the best sound! Requirements: ability to play basic standard open chords and change between them.
About the Instructor
You can hear the high-lonesome of her birth-state Kentucky in the voice and fiddling of Beth Chrisman, but the warmth comes straight from the festive and tight-knit music community of Fairbanks, Alaska where she grew up.
She’s come a long way since showing up in Austin, Texas in 2006. While a member of retro country trio the Carper Family, Chrisman performed on Mountain Stage and A Prairie Home Companion, US & international festivals, and was recognized for her songwriting by the Independent Music Awards (“Cold, Dark & Lonely” Best Americana Song, “Foolish Ramblin’ Man” Best Country Song, IMA).
Both at home and on the road, she has joined a variety of artists on stage and in the studio – honky-tonking with Bobby Bare and Bill Kirchen, swinging with Big Sandy & the Fly Rite Boys, jamming with Shinyribs and the Heartless Bastards. With her bands the Carper Family and High Plains Jamboree, Chrisman performed standout showcases at Folk Alliance International, SXSW, IBMA (International Bluegrass Music Association), and as a featured songwriter with Project ATX6 brought old-time country influence to festivals & clubs in Toronto and Angers, France