Does anyone hold the pick this way?

[JonPR]

Originally Posted by Pura Vida

Sorry for the temporary thread hijack, but I've always held my pick with my thumb and middle finger, not the index finger. Then, I use my index and ring finger against the sides of the pick, which helps me change up the rigidity and how I attack the strings with the pick. I can change it up just by releasing my index and ring fingers. Unorthodox, perhaps, but it works.

Hey, me too! Glad there's at least one other person who does that.

Like this, yes?


TBH I don't use my ring finger much for support. More the index against the front edge, although the ring will touch the back edge for additional firmness when I want a harder attack.

As you say, the advantage of this grip is its flexibility - the ease with which you can change the angle and the rigidity. As I suspect you did, I learned this way just because it felt most natural the first time I held a pick. I certainly wasn't taught it, and didn't arrive at it after any experimentation. It's basically the same way I'd hold a pen or pencil.

The one potential disadvantage (in my experience) is when playing fast lead passages. This is where the supposed "conventional" grip (between thumb and side of curled index, the rest of the hand more like a fist) can be faster, because it enables much smaller hand movements. Otherwise I find that grip incredibly clumsy, because it's much harder to be subtle with the dynamics.

[Pura Vida]

JonPR, yes, exactly like that! And you're right, my ring finger is much less part of the equation than the index finger. I was self-taught, and you're correct that it just felt natural to hold it that way... and it wasn't until after I had been playing for a while that I noticed that my way was different. Thanks for showing the photos too!

[Gordon Currie]

It's funny to read this kind of thread as it just reinforces how drastic of a range of approaches people have for holding a pick.

I've never become comfortable with the 'classic' method of resting the pick on the index finger like a shelf, and then gripping it with the thumb. So I developed a 'pincer' style of holding the pick - with the index and thumb pads sandwiching the pick.

In the 40+ years since I started doing this, I have not dropped a pick ONCE. And I can angle or spin the pick easily with small movements. I range from singe-line picking to cross-picking/hybrid picking and even backwards picking when I need that sound. I have all the speed I need and then some. If I had adopted the consensus approach, I would not have the facility I do now. YMMV.

If you think your picking approach is holding you back, then it's worth it to investigate alternatives. If you feel that your approach is working, then learn to not care what others are doing.

[RockyRacc00n]

Originally Posted by Gordon Currie

I've never become comfortable with the 'classic' method of resting the pick on the index finger like a shelf, and then gripping it with the thumb. So I developed a 'pincer' style of holding the pick - with the index and thumb pads sandwiching the pick.

In the 40+ years since I started doing this, I have not dropped a pick ONCE. And I can angle or spin the pick easily with small movements.

This is what is triggering me to try the grip on the 2nd picture I showed in my original post. As you commented, I do find that I can wiggle the pick back into position easier with this grip than the first grip (what you referred to as the classic grip).

[RockyRacc00n]

Originally Posted by JonPR

Hey, me too! Glad there's at least one other person who does that.

Like this, yes?

I did try this as well during the past few days I’ve been experimenting with various grips. I can see getting used to this as well if I stuck with it, but I think the grip shown in the 2nd picture will do it for me. This has definitely given me some things to try, beyond the conventional grip, as I find ways to better control the hold on the pick.

[Johny Tenthumbs]

I had to grab a pick and look because I never gave it too much. Normally hold exactly like you do in the first photo. I do hold the pick back further when using modified picking.

On the rare times I solo on a electric guitar, I really choke up on a pick, but I think that goes back to the late 70s and 80s when squealies were en vogue and I wanted to be the next Van Halen (that didn't work out too well).

I don't know how I held it the first year of learning, but I do remember accidently dropping the pick in the guitar a few million times.

[jim1960]

When I first started playing I held the pick between the pads of my thumb and index finger. It never worked well for me. I was constantly flipping picks either into the guitar or across the room somewhere. I gave up on picks for decades and have only recently started using them again but with a grip closer to the first picture (with my index finger a bit more curled underneath the pick).

[JonPR]

Originally Posted by RockyRacc00n

I did try this as well during the past few days I’ve been experimenting with various grips. I can see getting used to this as well if I stuck with it, but I think the grip shown in the 2nd picture will do it for me. This has definitely given me some things to try, beyond the conventional grip, as I find ways to better control the hold on the pick.

The 2nd pic is supposed to be just an alternative view of the 1st! (I did have to kind of twist my arm around to get the shot, which might be why it looks different.)

Just to underline: this is the way I hold it, out of habit, and I wouldn't claim it suits everyone. I don't recommend it to my students, I just tell them to find their own way, describing a few options and explaining what a good grip should allow you to do.

[VJP5]

Originally Posted by JonPR

I don't recommend it to my students, I just tell them to find their own way, describing a few options and explaining what a good grip should allow you to do.

I hold my pick exactly as you do. I've heard it referred in other posts as the 'stinky diaper' hold. I was instructed to hold the pick in 'whatever way was comfortable to me'. This is how I initially grabbed it and still do to this day (6 yrs later).

The only negative I have ever encountered is when I try to palm mute. Holding the pick the more traditional way (pick on the shelf of the curled index and held down by the thumb) keeps your wrist at a better angle for palm muting. The way I hold it makes it much more difficult. It's something I've struggled with for the past year as I try to improve my strumming and incorporate different styles.