flatpicking

[rsmillbern]

Not really instruction, but an interesting view of some nice flat picking and cross picking...

As is said above, so slow and build up speed while keeping the correct time.
I cross pick with really sloppy technique often, but it tends to sound ok behind vocals or with other instruments.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=awFeDMNiKX4

[Italuke]

Ah yes that's the one I saw where it's clear she plants her wrist lightly on or near the bridge when picking. (Free hand for strumming.)

[UKPhil]

I've been learning to use a pick for about a year or so and after finger picking for decades and it's not easy I can tell you.

If you want to learn some tunes in between all the other stuff you seem to be doing I can recommend Eric Skye's fiddle tunes on YouTube and in particular his Homespun lessons which I really enjoyed.

Eric plays them a lot slower to concentrate on the beauty of the melody and you can see my efforts on my YT channel to give you and idea of what they are like.

Hope this helps.

[phydaux]

Originally Posted by UKPhil

I've been learning to use a pick for about a year or so and after finger picking for decades and it's not easy I can tell you.

Man, that sound so strange to my ears. I reluctantly "settled" for flatpicking because I found it so much easier than fingerpicking.

[Joe Beamish]

Originally Posted by UKPhil

I've been learning to use a pick for about a year or so and after finger picking for decades and it's not easy I can tell you.

If you want to learn some tunes in between all the other stuff you seem to be doing I can recommend Eric Skye's fiddle tunes on YouTube and in particular his Homespun lessons which I really enjoyed.

Eric plays them a lot slower to concentrate on the beauty of the melody and you can see my efforts on my YT channel to give you and idea of what they are like.

Hope this helps.

Skye’s approach seems to leave out the native spiritedness of fiddle tunes. It’s kind of spacey, maybe in a pleasing way. Or it’s a bit anemic and bloodless, depending on what you like.

[tdlwhite]

I've been learning to flatpick over the last 18 months, and have put a lot of effort in to get a bit of success! My approach was to find some stuff I liked the sound of on YouTube and then try to dissect what the player was doing based on my own personal tastes.

Youtube videos that helped:

- Troy Grady's stuff. That one of Molly (linked by someone above), plus plenty of his others. Check the one with Carl Miner (CM) - plenty to learn from there.
- TNAG's demos of CM. These sound great and CM uses a lot of different picking techniques. Most of my 'learning' has come from slowing those videos down and trying to emulate.

Things I have worked on:

- Pick grip. I decided that I was willing to start afresh (after 3 decades of self-taught pick holding). I changed to a different grip that felt awful and clunky and mechanical for weeks, but now feels natural enough and enables me to strike the strings cleaner (and faster).
- Floating right hand. I didn't want to wrist-anchor on the bridge (too many years of classical fingerstyle). I didn't want to pinky-anchor either. I believe that wrist or pink anchors are both good options btw, but if I was going to change to either, I'd find a player that I liked and very carefully mimic them.
- Playing with more arm/wrist and less 'finger pinching'. Another stylistic choice, perhaps, but I really wanted to be able to make my guitar ring, and found that a 'full hand' pick motion gave me clear (and loud) notes. Again, plenty of unbelievable players play with little in-out movements of their pinched pick-holding fingers, but I knew what I liked the sound of.

Anyways, enough detail - I think that what I really mean is after watching players on YT, I found some I liked and then made conscious decisions about three aspects of my right hand. And I am happy with my progress (most of the time).

Tom

[SRAtkins]

Check out Steve Kaufman. He can offer advice and instructions on any questions you may have on transitioning to flat picking.

https://youtu.be/6-ZmtQjAsd8

[SprintBob]

Originally Posted by UKPhil

I've been learning to use a pick for about a year or so and after finger picking for decades and it's not easy I can tell you.

If you want to learn some tunes in between all the other stuff you seem to be doing I can recommend Eric Skye's fiddle tunes on YouTube and in particular his Homespun lessons which I really enjoyed.

Eric plays them a lot slower to concentrate on the beauty of the melody and you can see my efforts on my YT channel to give you and idea of what they are like.

Hope this helps.

Originally Posted by phydaux

Man, that sound so strange to my ears. I reluctantly "settled" for flatpicking because I found it so much easier than fingerpicking.

I began flatpicking again this year to supplement my main focus on fingerstyle playing and I’m really enjoying it.

I’m also working through the arrangements in Eric Skye’s Homespun fiddle tune course as well as working through Volume 1 of Flatpicking Essentials. Great fun both are and I think broadening my horizons with flatpicking is very good for my musical journey.

The biggest challenge for me being a late bloomer to guitar playing (9 years into it at age 63) is that I don’t expect to really ever develop the speed that is associated with most flatpicking (I can say the same for my fingerstyle playing too) but I play mostly for myself so nothing to “fret” over.

[Mr. Jelly]

I'm starting to experiment playing fiddle tunes with my finger picks. Why not? It seems to have some interesting aspects to it. Think Wayne Henderson.

[eyesore]

yeah I guess I'll just stick to fingerpicking ,I just can't do it consistently.

[Joe Beamish]

Originally Posted by eyesore

yeah I guess I'll just stick to fingerpicking ,I just can't do it consistently.

OK, I’ll bite.

What interested you about flat picking to begin with?

If the interest is there, just be patient and take your time, a little every day. You’ll get better.

[rllink]

Originally Posted by eyesore

yeah I guess I'll just stick to fingerpicking ,I just can't do it consistently.

I mostly flatpick and I got started with the Flatpicking Essentials series. I'm not a great flatpicker. I can hold my own in a bluegrass jam but nothing fancy. Honestly though, I'm not great at anything so I'm pretty used to being mediocre. But I flatpick and drift along with no discernable progress for a while and then periodically I make a little jump. Over time I get better. It just doesn't come fast.

[Rick Jones]

Someone on the thread/video I posted in the Show and Tell forum pointed something out to me about my own playing that I hadn't really thought about.

I don't rate myself as a player particularly, but I do play somewhat polyphonically with a flatpick but all of my damping and note highlight choice is pretty much done on the fretboard.

I can do this quite convincingly when playing faux-bluegrass stuff at gigs, because I play solo and dislike the 'missing bass note' thing that a lot of people get when they go off into runs and leads when playing with a pick, so I've sort of learned to do it together, even though I can't 'crosspick' in the way I see many famous and otherwise brilliant guitarists doing.

I guess what I'm saying is, don't be scared to find your own ways to play, too.

Here's the thread I mentioned, and an example if you're curious. I stop fingerpicking and un-palm the pick after the opening part. That's another thing I do a lot... tuck the pick and use fingers intermittently, switching back and forth. Open tunings help but in this case it's just drop D.

https://www.acousticguitarforum.com/...d.php?t=649408

[sinistral]

Originally Posted by eyesore

i have always fingerpicked the guitar but recently [because i was bored] i took an interest in flatpicking again. i just can't do it but now with all this stuff available on the net ; there is probably some good instruction .mainly looking for crosspick technique. everything i see is fretting hand ; i want to see the right hand. is there any you tubes anyone can recommend? thanks.

I posted this in the general discussion section since I think it has general interest in a number of respects, but I also thought it was appropriate in response to your question.

The close-ups of Carl Miner are like a masterclass in crosspicking technique.



There are other videos by the same YouTube author (Troy Grady) that show footage of different picking techniques, but this one is a goldmine.

[Kyle215]

Originally Posted by eyesore

no jamming ; just want my solo flatpicking to sound good and clean. I have a pretty good idea of the neck; it's the right hand picking I have trouble with,like how to hold the pick.I 've had trouble with this since the 70's.somedays it sounds good but most days I sound very mechanical;terrible and stiff .

I think the best advice on flatpicking is always to sign up for Bryan Sutton’s course on ArtistWorks. Especially if you want to focus on technique. He is all about good mechanics to achieve a nice flow.