Syncopation is the heart and soul of guitar fingerpicking – the thumb maintaining a solid, foot-tapping rhythm while fingers are playing melody notes on the high strings. Keeping that beat going in the bass is one of the main stumbling blocks for many learning players, but Happy Traum has been teaching this technique at workshops and guitar camps for years and he knows how to break it down so that just about anyone can do it. Beginner level. 1 hr, 20 min.