How many fingers do you pick with?

[clintj]

I've been working through Mark Hanson's Travis Picking book, and adding the ring finger just is not working for me even after almost two months. I constantly trip myself up, pick the wrong string, etc. I've been picking away (pun intended?) at Elizabeth Cotten's Freight Train for over a week and just fighting it. Tonight, I ditched the ring finger and played it perfectly, at tempo, on the first try. I'm ecstatic about that, it's the first piece I've played with a melody on top of the other picking. Even the wife said it sounded good. I think I may stick with two fingers. It just feels the most natural to me.

Hmm, this may make a good poll. How many fingers do you use for most of your playing?

[Diamond Dave]

I learned with two, but I think people have success with two or three.

[Earwitness]

I have a self taught style that uses all 4 fingers. For 3 weeks I've been really working on 2 finger Travis picking. Getting it pretty quickly. Advantages to both.

[Celtic12and6]

Thumb and forefinger do it for me, -used to get criticised by other 'pickers years ago-'why don't you use your other fingers as well?'-so I started practicing, and practicing, now I can pick with everything-bar my little finger, I can do it better on my 12-strings, (strangely enough) doing it this way, but need my nails longer, I can not get on with picks, how I envy players who can! -but, my 'default' finger-picking, is thumb and forefinger-I can pick really fast and accurate, does it for me anyhow.

[fazool]

all four - no poll choice for that

[sweiss]

Originally Posted by clintj

I think I may stick with two fingers. It just feels the most natural to me.

Same here.

My ring and pinky fingers are not good team players...therefore they sit on the sidelines and watch while the other two do all the work.

[Grenade]

5 fingers and 6 strings, something is doing double duty.

[Aldwyn]

Thumb and three fingers. BUT, I must admit, it's infrequent that my ring finger comes into use, and most of my picking is done with just two fingers.

[JonPR]

Originally Posted by clintj

I've been working through Mark Hanson's Travis Picking book, and adding the ring finger just is not working for me even after almost two months. I constantly trip myself up, pick the wrong string, etc. I've been picking away (pun intended?) at Elizabeth Cotten's Freight Train for over a week and just fighting it. Tonight, I ditched the ring finger and played it perfectly, at tempo, on the first try. I'm ecstatic about that, it's the first piece I've played with a melody on top of the other picking. Even the wife said it sounded good. I think I may stick with two fingers. It just feels the most natural to me.

Hmm, this may make a good poll. How many fingers do you use for most of your playing?

Two is normally enough. Freight Train is easy enough with just one, IMO.
I use three when necessary (which is how I voted), but that's usually only when needing to play 4 strings simultaneously, or in some classical pieces where 3 treble strings need to played in quick succession.

With many classical pieces, where one is supposed to play with three, I often find it more natural to use just two, with my thumb taking over the index role sometimes, and the other two playing whatever strings are necessary (because I taught myself alternating bass style before learning classical tunes).

Don't forget true "Travis picking" was done with only one finger - because that was how Merle Travis adapted the alternating bass technique to suit himseldf. Merle didn't invent the technique, so (personally) I don't agree with calling it "Travis picking" unless you're describing his one-finger method. (That's my inner pedant coming out...)

[clintj]

Good answers, folks. I'm enjoying reading all the answers so far. I can do some playing with my ring finger, especially when I'm just sitting and picking aimlessly on the couch. But try to work it into a regular pattern, nope. I'll keep giving it a few minutes each session to see if anything develops, but I'm getting so fluent with two fingers that I'm skeptical. And to those who can use all four, my hat's off to you. I know it's not a competition, but I'm still impressed.

[BarryR]

"How many fingers do you pick with?"

I swear my kid can get his whole hand up there.....

[JanVigne]

I taught myself classical styles way back in the '60's when there were no available instructors. So "taught" and "style" are used fairly loosely here. The book I refer to many times here on the forum is "Foden's Grand Method for Guitar"; http://collections.si.edu/search/rec...ris_sil_284107

The book I own has books I and II included and is meant to take approximately two years to complete in an academy setting. As you can see the copyright on this book is 1920. So there's nothing shortcut about this approach at all. It contains pages and pages of arpeggios and broken chord exercises which utilize all four plucking fingers at times. Weeks and months can be spent on these exercises alone and they have many times been something I return to when I feel the need. I find most modern methods of teaching to not fully prepare students for what faces them in the next exercise when compared to most "old fashioned" classical techniques. If you're having trouble getting your fingers to cooperate, you might try a different approach to playing and find a good book on classical styles which will give a better grounding in the basic muscle memory you must develop before you move on to contemporary fingerstyle lesson plans. No shortcuts, all work. Not the modern way to teach guitar.


Hanson's "Freight Train" is neither the simplest nor the most sophisticated version I've seen. Yet most of playing any piece of music comes down to a mindset IMO. Physical limitations not withstanding, if you practice - and you practice the right material well, most of what you'll find in most instances can be accomplished. Finding the right material is often the most difficult part of the process. You might try looking at some classical lesson plans and really focusing on hand control. Be prepared to spend months on this, not a few days.

Another approach would be to get on some of the sites for other strung instruments. Banjo rolls and the fingering for a dobro require you relearn much of what you have developed for guitar. Speed is almost THE requirement for bluegrass styles and you'll find many useful techniques you can adapt to guitar in those instrument's stylistic playing.

A simple exercise of picking each string up and down from low to high and back again high to low with your thumb and an individual finger can implant some muscle memory you'll find useful before you take on Hanson's books. So, try picking strings 6-5, 5-4, 4-3 etc and then back up to the lowest srings with your thumb hitting the lowest string and your index finger the highest. Practice slowly and build up speed and accuracy over a few weeks. Then do the same with your thumb and middle finger, then thumb and ring finger. Next, when you can accomplish that exercise with all fingers, add a third string and move from a forward to a reverse roll on each string set (6-5-4-5, repeat). Then, when you have all that down and can play it at a reasonable speed, move on to skipping strings. This will take good while to develop the necessary muscle memory. If you follow through though, you'll have the ability to call on your ring finger whenever required.

There are numerous other exercises to be found in those other instruments or styles of play, many of which remain unknown to most guitar players because they simply don't think to look for alternative ways to accomplish the same end. However, the key to all of this is muscle memory and patience in developing that ability. If you want to play using more than a thumb and two fingers - most of the time that's enough for me - you simply need to practice the techniques until it becomes second nature. There's no other way to state it. You don't claim you have anything which would make you unlike the thousands of players who have learned to use their ring finger through practice and diligence. There wouldn't appear then there is any reason you cannot learn this technique. It requires practice, dedication and practicing the correct material to prepare you for the task. IMO most modern lesson plans don't really accomplish this. They are after the quickest way to get you moving forward in the book or DVD lest you become frustrated with the whole affair. Do you think any of the truly great players developed their technique by trying to get through the lesson plan as quickly as possible?

[Bern]

I believe, after getting the basics down, understanding what's going on musically and feeling the rhythmic patterns, the question of how many fingers to use or which ones to use becomes moot point.
Yes, there is plenty material out there regarding picking, which I would recommend to any beginning player. However, there will come a time when a player has to take what he has learned previously and develop his own 'style' and 'technique'...1, 2, 3 fingers or whatever it will take to grow musically on the instrument. I truly believe that fingerstyle is a very personal form of expression as most music should be.

[mustache79]

I try to focus my technique on 3 fingers, but it really depends on the piece.

[shawlie]

I voted "two", but do use the third for chords in back-up type playing (is that really picking, though? - it's just a block of fingers moving together).

Maybe one day I'll try three, but it will have to be a really nice song... (but if it needs three fingers, it'll probably be too difficult in other ways for me to play anyway..!)