Rest stroke

A stroke in which the finger plucks a string and then comes to rest against the next string, producing a full, round tone.

Rest stroke, called apoyando in classical playing, is the plucking technique behind a loud, projecting tone, because after the string is released the finger lands on the adjacent string and stops. The result is more volume, more weight in the low end and a slight damping of the adjacent string, which suits melodies played on the bass strings. It cannot be used for free-flowing arpeggios, since the resting finger also silences the next string, so it is used selectively.

Example: A classical melody line played on the third string with every note re-struck firmly onto the fourth string is played with rest strokes.

Rest stroke

See also