I'm not going to go all nitty gritty with your post (as I get flamed for doing so), but I do want to 'pick" on one little thing here
AdrianDavisDmith wrote:
For alternate picking, the plectrum used will vary from player to player.
I agree
AdrianDavisDmith wrote: Petrucci uses a Jim Dunlop Jazz III plectrum whilst I prefer to use a Sharkfin. (the red colored Sharkfin plectrums).
erm... ok
AdrianDavisDmith wrote:I advise all my students and fellow players to use the Sharkfin.
.... ☹ ..... :'(..... >☹.... Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
And a word from our sponsor:
Ok, let me be the bearer of bad news to you. The reason your forearms are so big... ... well... *cough*
On a more serious note... that plectrum does not allow you to feel the string. It is a bahd bahd ting daht. Your movement in a downstroke uses more energy with a flimsy red sharkfin than it would with a real plectrum. Hence the size of forearms or excessive forearm movement. Your up down movement is just not right.
Any seriously decent picker will use a thicker plectrum for this very reason... to feel the string. Your plectrum is lying to you... and if you say it doesn't, then I offer you the challenge of picking up a 1mm or something and keep your current speed steady... Truth is... you will start hooking. The red's lie... lie lie lie. Without feeling the string, you will never know if you are picking correctly or not. Your technique in the picking hand won't develop the way you want it to.
I once thought I was moerse vinnig with one of them rooi sharkies... I argued a lot that the plectrum was cool and those players with heavier plectrums were just douchebags. And then I had the light forced on me... no lubrication... I was devastated... showering for a week and crying in the shower didn't help. And so the heavier plectrum took its place... I was finally saved... Hallelujah!
Sharkfin is a company with a brain, yes... cater for the common man who wants to tokkel round the caveman fire. But you actually advising it to students? And fellow players? ..... sigh...
Just my 5c... can't do it for any less. Flame me if you must.
(I noticed some other flaws... but Ima behave... promise)
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Changed my mind. It is not fast arm movement. It is wrist movement. It is totally precise. When you strum, you will use your arm and wrist (which equates to elbow movement). If you are picking single lines... it will be the wrist. The only time the arm will decidedly and exaggeratedly move is when doing rather large string skipping jumps... rather large sweeps... Arpeggiating chords, etc. (I'm not saying this to be mean... he wrote this using Petrucci's technique as reference). The only time Petrucci's arm goes all spastic is when he is hitting those 32nd's and 32nd triplets... then he tenses up and... its not pleasing to watch. You either wanna laugh at him or cry for him... both will probably make one sound like a donkey. So yeah, that's the only time. And when one sees it... we just want to say:
When you palm mute for fear of hitting the wrong string... you have to take a serious look at your technique of your right hand/picking hand (<-- to cater for the lefties... *firewall*). You palm mute because overtones are going to happen and you don't want that clash happening. Aside from wanting muted notes too... obviously.
It was a lot of typing that went into your post... and a round of applause for you sir. But... it's not entirely true. If it works for you, then cool... enjoy.
