travis picking vs fingerpicking

[LouieAtienza]

Originally Posted by BFD

To my thinking fingerpicking is mostly just arpeggiating chords, sometimes with basic embellishments; it's a style of accompaniment, somewhat more advanced than basic strumming.

IMO Fingerstyle guitar involves rendering melodic & harmonic content simultaneously on the guitar. Blues fingerstyle also often includes a lot of fills and turnarounds to punctuate vocals songs. Fingerstyle guitarists generally use a much richer harmonic palette than fingerpickers, employing a broader knowledge of the fingerboard and chord voicings and have a far more versatile picking hand.

Merle Travis was certainly a fingerstyle guitarist. He employed a very bass-driven, percussive, harmonically rich accompaniment to his singing and created rhythmically interesting and melodic fingerstyle solos.

It may shock you to know that "fingerstyle" is a pretty recent term, maybe 20 or 30 years old. It was relatively recently the Winfield "fingerpicking" competition was changed to the "fingerstyle" competition. It's just a fancy, not back-woods-sounding name for fingerpicking.

[Joscefi78]

Merle Travis used a thumb pick, it has that kind of attack, technically it's called thumbpicking, a style innovated by Merle's teacher, Moses Rager.

Merle used a clawhammer right hand, the thumb hits the bass strings, while the index finger sort of pinches out the melody notes. His phrasing was most always straight forward.

He employed alternating bass, walking bass, thumb rakes, arpeggios, occasional crosspicks, pulling off to open notes, harmonics, glissando, bends, vibrato bar, single note fills and flurries.

"Fingerpicking" generally means a sort of classical technique of the right hand, using all the fingers, but Merle didn't play like that. However, his left hand was very facile, played a lot of jazzy chords and single note fills. But the magic was in that amazing right hand.

[ljguitar]

Originally Posted by BFD

To my thinking fingerpicking is mostly just arpeggiating chords, sometimes with basic embellishments; it's a style of accompaniment, somewhat more advanced than basic strumming.

IMO Fingerstyle guitar involves rendering melodic & harmonic content simultaneously on the guitar. Blues fingerstyle also often includes a lot of fills and turnarounds to punctuate vocals songs. Fingerstyle guitarists generally use a much richer harmonic palette than fingerpickers, employing a broader knowledge of the fingerboard and chord voicings and have a far more versatile picking hand.

Merle Travis was certainly a fingerstyle guitarist. He employed a very bass-driven, percussive, harmonically rich accompaniment to his singing and created rhythmically interesting and melodic fingerstyle solos.

Hi...

I use then interchangeably.

[BFD]

Originally Posted by LouieAtienza

It may shock you to know that "fingerstyle" is a pretty recent term, maybe 20 or 30 years old. It was relatively recently the Winfield "fingerpicking" competition was changed to the "fingerstyle" competition. It's just a fancy, not back-woods-sounding name for fingerpicking.

Well sir, chatting guitars is unlikely to elicit much in the way of 'shock' personally; but referencing Winfield convention to help establish common usage for the terms certainly seems like a good step!

[JonPR]

Originally Posted by LouieAtienza

It may shock you to know that "fingerstyle" is a pretty recent term, maybe 20 or 30 years old. It was relatively recently the Winfield "fingerpicking" competition was changed to the "fingerstyle" competition. It's just a fancy, not back-woods-sounding name for fingerpicking.

I agree "fingerstyle" sounds fancier than "fingerpicking" - there's always a temptation to leave out the final "g" in the latter - but I've been playing a "fingerpicking style" for 50 years. My memory is not what it was, but I'm pretty sure both terms were around when I began (in the UK). And I've never heard of Winfield.

However, it would be interesting if anyone has any manuals from that time (before 30 years ago anyhow) to see how the technique was described - whether the word "fingerstyle" actually appeared in print, and in what context. (I still have an old Stefan Grossman book from 1970 which mentions only "finger-picking", and "picking style", but never actually the compound word "fingerstyle".)

As used today, of course, it seems "fingerstyle" is a word that covers all genres (including classical), while "fingerpicking" is used more for American folk, country and blues styles.

[ljguitar]

Originally Posted by JonPR

…And I've never heard of Winfield.

Hi JohPR
Winfield, Kansas is where there is a large gathering annually with competitions held and good prizes (as in great guitars) given.

They could be thought of by some as a standard to which all other competitions and or naming conventions bow. To me, they are one of several which do serve as a collecting point of great musicians.

They have jam tents which run late into the night/early into the morning.

[murrmac123]

Does it really need a Scotsman to point out that in Merle Travis' home state of Kentucky, the style he developed is referred to neither as fingerpicking nor fingerstyle, but as "thumbpicking" ?

It's been a quite few years since I visited with my good friend Jim Webb in Louisville, but I do recall attending a Friday night meeting of the Kentucky Thumbpickers Club ... I imagine they are still going strong.

[JonPR]

Originally Posted by ljguitar

Hi JohPR
Winfield, Kansas is where there is a large gathering annually with competitions held and good prizes (as in great guitars) given.

They could be thought of by some as a standard to which all other competitions and or naming conventions bow. To me, they are one of several which do serve as a collecting point of great musicians.

They have jam tents which run late into the night/early into the morning.

Thanks. I only meant that I suspect there are other sources of naming conventions - although TBH I couldn't point to any! How long has Winfield been going?

[JonPR]

Originally Posted by murrmac123

Does it really need a Scotsman to point out that in Merle Travis' home state of Kentucky, the style he developed is referred to neither as fingerpicking nor fingerstyle, but as "thumbpicking" ?

Sounds sensible to me! It's certainly ruled by the thumb (and a thumbpick, usually).

[ljguitar]

Originally Posted by JonPR

Thanks. I only meant that I suspect there are other sources of naming conventions - although TBH I couldn't point to any! How long has Winfield been going?

Hi Jon

Late 1960s there was an annual event which became more 'official' (in name) in the early 1970s. And though most of us call it 'Winfield' the actual name is "Walnut Valley Festival".

I came to Wyoming by way of Nebraska (for 18 years) and we certainly heard of Winfield. It was the gathering point for skilled and unskilled players. It had kind of a legendary feel when people spoke the word.

They have contests for many stringed instruments, not just guitar. Mountain Dulcimer & Hammered Dulcimer, Banjo, Mandolin, fiddle, flat pick and finger picked guitar etc.

I have friends who go every year just to hang out and jam.

[ljguitar]

Originally Posted by JonPR

Sounds sensible to me! It's certainly ruled by the thumb (and a thumbpick, usually).

Hi Jon

I'd have said driven by the thumb, and ruled by the fingers (since they carry the melody).

The thumb provides the drive and keeps the tempo and the fingers spit out the tune. It's a beautiful thing when it all comes together.

[JonPR]

Originally Posted by ljguitar

Hi Jon

I'd have said driven by the thumb, and ruled by the fingers (since they carry the melody).

The thumb provides the drive and keeps the tempo and the fingers spit out the tune. It's a beautiful thing when it all comes together.

Agreed. "Driven" is better. The thumb often does more work than the fingers, at least in the common accompaniment patterns, where you get 4 bass notes in every bar, but maybe only 2 or 3 finger notes. The thumb "rules" in that sense, but only the rhythmic sense. Fingers rule the melody.

As for "beautiful" - well I've been playing that way for nearly 50 years now, so I have to agree!