Right hand technique

[bluemoon]

Picks always seem to be something that haunts players like looking for the “one” when playing different guitars. Recently, I revisited Eric skye’s 30-day guitar challenge and his comments about the picking hand hit home vs I’ve focused on left hand many times in the past.

One thing that I’m trying to focus on is right hand technique of mandolin and guitar players to try and develop a more fluid form of my own. What I’ve found is rounded triangles around 1.4-1.5 result in my right hand being much more relaxed but The volumes not there. Is this something that comes with time in your experience or is it another chase for the “one”?

Best

[muscmp]

i choose my pick based upon the song i'm playing, the guitar i'm playing and whether or not i'm singing. as far as volume, i would say that comes from the guitar itself. also vary how you strum whether it is straight up and down, down and up, in a forward circle, backward circle, etc. watch your right hand more often.

play music!

[bluemoon]

Originally Posted by muscmp

i choose my pick based upon the song i'm playing, the guitar i'm playing and whether or not i'm singing. as far as volume, i would say that comes from the guitar itself. also vary how you strum whether it is straight up and down, down and up, in a forward circle, backward circle, etc. watch your right hand more often.

play music!

I agree with this thoughts, it’s very much a rabbit hole once you start thinking about it. I guess versus volume I’m thinking about dullness versus bright ness and how your attack also influences all of these details.

[jseth]

I can't remember where I first heard this, or who said it... but it rings true for me.

"Your fretting hand shows 'WHAT you know, but your picking hand shows WHO you are..."

(Actually heard it that your left hand shows what you know and your right hand shows who you are... obviously for a right-handed player)

Picking technique, both with a plectrum and /or fingers/nails, is a very rich and meaningful area to explore and utilize, for every player. Too many different aspects to list them all here, but a partial list would have to include:

Dynamics, playing closer or farther from the bridge, angling of the pick or fingers, muting with either or both hands/palms/fingers...

Like you, I used the rounded edge of my picks for years, to get an easier "flutter" stroke as well as increasing speed in general. Then I read this interview where Jerry Garcia talked about how he used the rounded edge for years until he realized that his tone and volume control improved in a BIG way by using the pointed edge!

I began to use the pointed edge (again!), and found Garcia's statement to be very true. Not only did my volume increase, but I had a lot more control on the tone I wanted to produce... I ended up feeling that using the rounded edge was more of a "cheating" move, a lazy way to get more speed...

[HHP]

I don't think you need sacrifice volume with a rounded triangle. May just be a matter of slightly altering the point/bevel. The bevel, in particular, can make a big difference in terms of clarity, speed, and volume.

Material can also make a difference. One rounded triangle I have tried recently that worked well was the 346 size Fender Tru-shell. It is made of casein and , once re-beveled, give very good performance in all categories.

I generally alter them into a tri-tip, one pointed, one rounded point, and one full round so I have three tonal choices available. I speed bevel all three tips.

[vindibona1]

It's all both an experiment and learning progression. I've adapted the mandolin concept of picking to my regular flat picking and it's made me much faster overall.

What I did was start by picking one string (with a "normal" pick). I'll use a standard Tortex or Ultex. Not too thick. Not too thin. The idea was to use only enough motion to get to the other side of the string. In fact, I started off by trying to mute the string with the pick from the opposite side. That insures that the pick motion is minimized. From there I'll play simple stuff, just trying to keep that pick motion as small as it can be to get the sound out.

While I understand how a rounded pick tip might help, you do sacrifice volume and attack. One way to help maintain attack and volume will aiding the ease of picking is the speed bevel. Most of my thicker picks have been beveled so they move through the strings efficiently, yet maintain that "ping" that we like to hear rather than the "woof" of a round tip. One of the members, HHP has some stuff posted about speed bevels.

Edit: And then I just watched a video about Carl Miner... and blew everything I said above out of the water :0.

[DukeX]

No "chasing the one" or "down the rabbit hole" for me. I use common, medium picks for all guitars, whether electric or acoustic. I vary my right hand grip and technique depending on the guitar and musical piece.