Pinky problem work around

[TBman]

for now anyway.. Playing xxxx25 and xxxx23 and xxx25x constantly while practicing a tune had my pinky knuckle giving me some pains and clicking once in a while when I went to bend it. So..... instead of using the pinky or using the V position to play it I tried using my ring finger. Its a stretch, but its doable on my 24" scale 00. The thing is this is stretching my entire hand and may help the pinky in the long run as it will change the angle that the pinky is used. (This and getting a bottle of Glucosamine is my game plan, lol).

BTW the changing of the fretting to the V position is ok, but it doesn't have the flow just yet so I may go back to that later. It doesn't sound as good for some reason.

[JonPR]

With pinky stretches I find it works best to place the pinky first. Put it on fret 5, and then stretch the rest of the hand back.
A 2-5 stretch should really not present any problems, unless you're kind of thinking 1st position, and then reaching the pinky all the way up there.

Think of index and pinky as equidistant from the middle of your hand. Thumb on back of neck opposite middle or even ring finger. Give that pinky a chance. The index can take care of itself!

(When I position my thumb centrally, I can stretch from index on 1 to pinky on 6 - I wouldn't want (or expect) to do it when playing, but it's comfortable enough. The secret is fretting 6 with pinky first and then stretching the index back. I have what I consider small-average sized hands for a man.)

[Mr. Jelly]

TBman that's the way I've seen Stefan Grossman play it. I wish I could play it that way as with long fingers like that I could play more cleanly and keep my hand anchored. I use my pointer and my second finger for a xxxx23 and my pointer and my pinky for a xxxx25.

[TBman]

Originally Posted by JonPR

With pinky stretches I find it works best to place the pinky first. Put it on fret 5, and then stretch the rest of the hand back.
A 2-5 stretch should really not present any problems, unless you're kind of thinking 1st position, and then reaching the pinky all the way up there.

Think of index and pinky as equidistant from the middle of your hand. Thumb on back of neck opposite middle or even ring finger. Give that pinky a chance. The index can take care of itself!

(When I position my thumb centrally, I can stretch from index on 1 to pinky on 6 - I wouldn't want (or expect) to do it when playing, but it's comfortable enough. The secret is fretting 6 with pinky first and then stretching the index back. I have what I consider small-average sized hands for a man.)

Its not the stretch, but the click that hurts later, lol. I'll try your suggestion though, thanks.

[SteveBurt]

Originally Posted by JonPR

With pinky stretches I find it works best to place the pinky first. Put it on fret 5, and then stretch the rest of the hand back.
A 2-5 stretch should really not present any problems, unless you're kind of thinking 1st position, and then reaching the pinky all the way up there.

Think of index and pinky as equidistant from the middle of your hand. Thumb on back of neck opposite middle or even ring finger. Give that pinky a chance. The index can take care of itself!

(When I position my thumb centrally, I can stretch from index on 1 to pinky on 6 - I wouldn't want (or expect) to do it when playing, but it's comfortable enough. The secret is fretting 6 with pinky first and then stretching the index back. I have what I consider small-average sized hands for a man.)

A 2-5 stretch is a huge problem for me. If I plant my pinky on the 5 fret and then try and reach the 2 with another finger the pinky just slides off. I have the same problem with 1-4 stretches. No matter what I do my fingers just won't stretch that far.
Just means I can't play tunes which require those stretches.