Using pick for beginners!

[niall1974]

Hi Guys,

I am just starting to learn to play the acoustic guitar and I have problems with strumming by following your acoustic guitar beginner videos. My problem is that when I strum down with my pick my index finger always seem to get in the way for smooth strumming.

Can you give me some guidance?

Thanks,

Niall

[TiffanyGuitar]

Hard to do in writing...it would be easier if we could see what you are doing. A lot of issues like this are figured out with practice and eventually things seem to fall into place.

But, I will try. First, when you hold the pick, best practice is to pinch the pick between your thumb and the index finger. But you aren't using the tippy tip of your index finger when you pinch it; instead, your index finger is bent underneath the pick. Then, make sure your thumb is roughly running parallel with the strings, Most people don't have the tips of the finger and thumb pointing at the strings.

With all that being said, there are tons of variations and just about everyone holds a pick a little differently...this is the practice part and things seeming to fall into place naturally. Your body will eventually figure it out. Also, when I first started playing 30 years ago, I held the pick between my thumb, and index and 3rd finger. I still sometimes do that, but eventually trained myself to hold it more conventionally. I especially learned to let go with the 3rd finger when I started to learn hybrid picking.

Take it slow...and have fun. You will figure it out. When you first start playing, it is common for odd sounds to come out and things like this to occur...don't overly worry about it not being perfect and keep working on it.

[YamahaGuy]

Is your fingernail changing color from contacting the strings? And does your left upper edge of your nail catch on the high e string when you up strum? If so, I have a similar problem.

[blindboyjimi]

The thumb and index finger should be parallel to the strings. It sounds like you are pointing your index finger at the sound hole.

[Jim Comeaux]

I am also a newbie, and I occasionally get a stray finger involved in the flat picking process. I try to keep the three fingers not involved in holding the pick tucked into the palm of my hamd. That sounds easy, but when you are trying to teach your right hand where the strings are and how to jump around among them, well, that’s not as easy as it sounds. I also have a tendency to let my right hand drift back towards the saddle. It does this all by itself and if I let it go too far back it makes finding the right string a bit tricky and the tone gets really thin sounding. I have noticed some pickers anchoring their little fingers down to the top, but I just can’t make that work for me. I must say that things are slowly improving, but I am doing continuous battle with my right hand. In fact I make more mistakes with my right hand than I do with my left.

[tbirdman]

As a beginning it was recommended to me to start with a very thin pick, like the flexibility of a margarine tub top. Makes strumming easier as a beginner. You can move to a thicker pick as you gain more experience.

[perttime]

Here's the best picture I could find of holding the pick:


https://nycguitarschool.com/how-to-n...ding-the-pick/

People have different ways but this seems to be the most common, with some variations. I find that the tip of my index finger is folded almost parallel with the thumb. The top of the nail will still often contact the strings, but it will slide over them.

Another thing may be that it can be hard to know when your hand is near enough but not too near. It may be best to practice gently so you don't hurt yourself. Keep the arm and wrist very close to the guitar in the first place. That also makes things easier when you want to mute the strings with the palm or heel of the thumb.

[niall1974]

Originally Posted by TiffanyGuitar

Hard to do in writing...it would be easier if we could see what you are doing. A lot of issues like this are figured out with practice and eventually things seem to fall into place.

But, I will try. First, when you hold the pick, best practice is to pinch the pick between your thumb and the index finger. But you aren't using the tippy tip of your index finger when you pinch it; instead, your index finger is bent underneath the pick. Then, make sure your thumb is roughly running parallel with the strings, Most people don't have the tips of the finger and thumb pointing at the strings.

With all that being said, there are tons of variations and just about everyone holds a pick a little differently...this is the practice part and things seeming to fall into place naturally. Your body will eventually figure it out. Also, when I first started playing 30 years ago, I held the pick between my thumb, and index and 3rd finger. I still sometimes do that, but eventually trained myself to hold it more conventionally. I especially learned to let go with the 3rd finger when I started to learn hybrid picking.

Take it slow...and have fun. You will figure it out. When you first start playing, it is common for odd sounds to come out and things like this to occur...don't overly worry about it not being perfect and keep working on it.

Hi Tiffany,

Thanks for your reply. I will try and attach a photo of my srumming hand.

Niall

[Rev Roy]

When I first started playing I used the classic grip with my index finger folded parallel with my thumb and my fingers curled in. But over the years my index finger has straightened some and my fingers are uncurled and relaxed. It’ll take time to discover what works for you. Key thing is to keep the thumb parallel to the guitar to lock the pick on the index finger.

Here’s a demonstration of pretty much the way I do it these days.

[dwasifar]

I have a pick grip I've never seen anyone else use. I use the thumb on one side (of course) and the index and middle finger on the other.





I never knew there was anything unusual about this until a friend gave me a Jam Kat:



...and I wasn't able to use it. Since then I've been paying attention and the only person I ever saw using anything close to this grip is Roy Clark, and it's not really the same grip.

Edited to add: Looking at these pictures, I just realized that I probably hold the pick that way because my thumb bends backward.

[reeve21]

Originally Posted by dwasifar

I have a pick grip I've never seen anyone else use. I use the thumb on one side (of course) and the index and middle finger on the other.





I never knew there was anything unusual about this until a friend gave me a Jam Kat:



...and I wasn't able to use it. Since then I've been paying attention and the only person I ever saw using anything close to this grip is Roy Clark, and it's not really the same grip.

Edited to add: Looking at these pictures, I just realized that I probably hold the pick that way because my thumb bends backward.

I held that way for years, eventually dropped the middle finger off. Not because it was a problem, just worked out that way.

[Emil]

I think there’s millions of ways in terms of holding the pick and it’s all about finding something that feels good to you.

I mainly use two different.
When playing acoustic i hold my pick like this:




The good thing is that this makes alternet picking and hybrid picking easier for me.
I anchor my wrist by putting a finger on the top of the guitar and my wrist still. Then i can either extend or shorten the action by only using my fingers.
The down side is that the pick isn’t secured between thumb and the two fingers unless you have a grip friendly surface on the pick.



The second way of holding it is this:



Since my first 20 years of guitar playing was playing death metal you want to be able to chug hard on the lower strings and have controll during sweep picking.
Also i angle my pick a bit over the strings in order to get a better flow when using the second way.


I dont think that there’s a right or wrong way. Look as someone like Marty Friedman for example. He’s got the worst pick style you’ll ever come across. But he will be able to out play pretty much everyone on the planet.

[musicman1951]

I hold the pick the same as illustrated in post #7, and would probably suggest you try and do the same.

But as others have stated, there are other ways. Pat Metheny is way better than I am and his method is distinctly different than my own.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lD2fmM7YTb0

[rstaight]

When I was starting I struggled with picks also. I used a thumb pick for about a year. Then it all fell in place.

Getting back to thumb picks because of the slick old man skin. But I still like a tear drop pick for certain songs. It's easier to play with different dynamics. You can play slightly louder just by gripping the pick tighter. Tougher to do with a thumb pick.

But try a thumb pick for awhile.

[warfrat73]

Originally Posted by dwasifar

I have a pick grip I've never seen anyone else use. I use the thumb on one side (of course) and the index and middle finger on the other.

I don't think it's all that uncommon. In fact, Dan Crary advocates for something quite similar in his book The Flatpicker's Guide.