Kush
I am a self taught guitarist and I have been playing for about 11 years now. I learnt to play on a cheap classical nylon string guitar. With no-one to teach me, no books and the wonders of google unbeknownst to me at the time, I used chord charts and random songsheets that I got from some guys in my church band to teach myself.
I learnt to strum using my thumb and forefinger until I developed a style that was comfortable and intuitive for me. And so I eventually joined a band and played rhythm guitar for about 2 years. When I started learning scales I used to pick with my thumb too. This evolved into a folky thing where I strum and pick arpeggios etc with my palm anchored by my pinky on the pick-guard. So it was only in my 6th year of playing that a mate of mine encouraged me to try using a plectrum as the sound of my band then required a sharper strum pattern which could only be attained using a plectrum. So I did, but again, due to a lack of proper instruction, I used to pick using downward sweeps only.
A few months later I Googled something about proper right-hand technique out of frustration from the ceiling that was set over my speed due to my flawed technique. And then began a grueling year of unlearning all the bad habits I had developed and trying to get the speed back into my playing using an up and down sweep. It almost drove me to quitting guitar altogether. It was then that I developed this idea that I was not a good guitarist because I was struggling with such a basic technique. For all my knowledge of chords, cool jazz progressions and nifty rhythm techniques, I felt like the worst player ever. Eventually I got it! So now I can play pretty much "normally" as well but I still feel more comfortable with my fingers directly on the strings.
I have come full circle now after observing some other guitarists and realizing that my pickless playing is a part of my style, of who I am even and that individuality is a thing to be embraced when it comes to playing guitar. I am, however, glad that I went through that tough journey because I came out of it with a lot more technique than I would have had otherwise. But after all is said and done, there are just things I can never do with a plectrum, only with my weird technique do I get that level of expression that I will be shooting for. And the funny thing is, now its the one thing every muso I come across comments on, I absolutely love it when I get those "Dude how do you do that!?" comments. Dont get me wrong, I'm not a super guitarist or anything, I have a long ways to go and there are still a lot of techniques and theory I want to master, but I'm back to where I truly enjoy the guitar again, if it happens to overflow to my audience, then that's awesome.
So I wondered, how many of you guitarists out there have those quirky techniques that came naturally to you and how many of you struggle to play with a plectrum exclusively? I would love to hear your stories as well.
Wormwood
After learning to play on acoustic with a plectrum and then moving to electric i lost all my plectrums and just never bought any again for years.
i also played a lot more acoustic than electric for a great deal of time, i really like the sound that i get using my nail as a pick. Even on electric im so much more expressive than with this awful piece of plastic between my hand and the strings.
Unfortunately this doesn't cut through the mix very well, or at least doesn't seem to.
Another awful thing that im trying to correct is having played so much on a higher action acoustic with little frets i tend to be a grabby , physical player.
This doesn't do well on a les paul with jumbo frets where now if im even slightly passionate it sounds like im playing chords with a whammy bar.( not really, but it is definitely sharper) - perhaps i should move to 11's or higher to stop that while i learn not to grip the hell out of the chords.
I do like playing without a pick, but since that also seems to take the strings out of tune quicker, it seems like im going to have to stick to learning picks again.
rikus
When I'm on the acoustic I can switch relatively easily between pick or no pick, but I do prefer playing with my fingers or with a thumb pick.
On the electric I can't quite cut the fingerstyle thing. I find that I've just grown to used to my little jazz III. I struggle to play clean lead line type stuff with just my fingers. Some of my favourite players go pickless on electric, but I just can't get the hang of it. I've been trying to get a bit of hybrid action going with my ring and middle finger, but it's proving difficult to get it to come naturally (i.e. if I don't specifically think of playing a note with my middle or ring finger I'll use the pick).
evolucian
I used to struggle playing with a plectrum a long time ago... preferring fingerstyle to plectrum. Plectrums were for sissies n stuff, or at least thats what my thought pattern went around. Paul Gilbert? Nah, absolute pansy... betcha he can't do this (proceed to play basic fingertyle pattern I had just learned....) yeah baby!!! Thats how hard I rock!!! But I eventually saw the errors of my ways.
Nowadays when I pick up a guitar, I usually still play fingerstyle before reaching for a plectrum. Some things I just can't replicate by using a different technique so I use the one thats suited. Of course, hybrid picking brings me the flavour of both worlds nicely... but also limited in some regard.
but quirky techniques are usually in my rhythms (which I never record for some reason, no idea why). I love snappiness and percussive string rolls... new? Not at all... but I seem to want to trademark them, lol.
Squonk
I used to strum for years with a pick(generally a dark grey Jim Dunlop, close to 1mm) but about 5 years ago I tried Fingerstyle on Acoustic and I couldn't grow my fingernails so I have devoloped this 'style' of picking with the fleshy part of my fingers, not as much volume I know, but I tend to make up the difference by hitting the strings a bit harder. Doesn't make much sense, should load a video, but that would be embarrassing :-[
When soloing I tend to use my thumb and forefinger(Or middle finger) together in a claw like plucking motion (I hope this makes sense). For faster runs it's between my first and ring finger. Because it's a fingerstyle thing, I would be using my thumb and forefinger to get some kind of rhythm going....
I have also developed a technique of smacking the strings with my finger nails to get a chimey tone especially if I do it on the 12th Fret.
I am a noob on electric so I am far from the rest of you, but because of my "style' or technique with fingerstyle, I feel a bit limited with just a plectrum.
I have been teaching myself Hey Joe and I tested it the other night, with a plectrum and fingerstyle. I felt more comfortable with fingers.
Reinhard
Andy from PGS plays without a pick and he plays/sounds fantastic. I wonder how much of the sound he gets is from NOT using a pick. Whatever works for your musical style.
AlanRatcliffe
We share a lot, you and I. ? Fingers have always felt more natural for me, and I've always anchored my pinkie (on bridge, pickups or side of the neck). we're in good company - guys like Knopfler and Beck wouldn't be the same with a plectrum.
Unlike you, when I reached "the barrier", instead of unlearning "bad" habits/learning how to use a plectrum, I developed coping/faking mechanisms: using my first finger's nail as a plectrum so I could sweep; refingering so I could arpeggiate parts instead of alternate pick them, etc.. In fact, I've never developed alternate picking chops at all (probably could do, but it's a lot of wear on my nail, which I'd rather do without), which is probably one of my biggest limitations.
Interestingly, the barrier for me was more the single-note stuff than the rhythm - I picked up some flamenco in passing early on and can now do stuff rhythmically that most plectrum players can only dream of. It's not "proper" flamenco technique - I did enough of that to get the idea and then forged on by myself, developing what worked for me on the electric. Same with classical and country fingerpickin'.
All in all, it's been a long, slow slog learning to play as I've never been able to find a teacher who could guide me in the direction I've been moving, without forcing their own preconceptions of technique upon me. The upshot is I do end up doing a lot of fairly unique stuff that is mine and mine alone.
NileshHansjee
Squonk wrote:
(snip) I have devoloped this 'style' of picking with the fleshy part of my fingers, not as much volume I know, but I tend to make up the difference by hitting the strings a bit harder.
When soloing I tend to use my thumb and forefinger(Or middle finger) together in a claw like plucking motion (I hope this makes sense). For faster runs it's between my first and ring finger. Because it's a fingerstyle thing, I would be using my thumb and forefinger to get some kind of rhythm going....
I pretty much do the same - it also gives a much warmer feel (some may say lacking in definition and probably wouldn't be too far off).
When I started learning bass I was a victim of the tragic "real bassists don't use a pick" mindset and somehow transferred it onto my old nylon-string guitar as well (and subsequently onto electric). Even now, I'm not overly comfortable strumming with a pick - although I'm working on fixing that.
PeteM
I use plectrum and fingers. Mainly plectrum on electric and fingers on acoustic but I will use whatever sounds best for the particular number I'm playing.
My fingerstyle playing is based on the classical position but I find this limiting for different styles of popular music so I've developed my own techniques.
Sometimes its better to stick with your own particular style of playing than to try to correct it if you're going to be disillusioned.
Kush
Alan Ratcliffe wrote:
Interestingly, the barrier for me was more the single-note stuff than the rhythm - I picked up some flamenco in passing early on and can now do stuff rhythmically that most plectrum players can only dream of. It's not "proper" flamenco technique - I did enough of that to get the idea and then forged on by myself, developing what worked for me on the electric. Same with classical and country fingerpickin'.
?You are right, quite a few parallels there, my ceiling was these rock and blues licks that simply could not be played except by using a pick to sweep. And as for forays into other musical styles, I developed an obsession with reggae music after reading somewhere that at some point Clapton found reggae fascinating (I guessed it was around the time he recorded Knockin on Heaven's Door and I Shot the Sheriff). And so I played so much reggae I took on a patois accent and my guitar sprouted little buds of marijuana (not really). So from that I took this upstroke-and-palm-mute thingie that reggae musicians use to get that staccato rhythm and to this day it shows up in my playing in various forms and usually adds a flavour which is also mine..... and mine alone (probably not, but hey..)
Nitebob
Interesting thread. I play mostly acoustic these days and found with the pick I seem to lackproper control over volume, but with fingers only the sound is much better and I feel more expressive. Now and then I give plectra a try again, but very quickly revert back to fingers. So glad I am not alone...
AlanRatcliffe
Kush wrote:
I developed an obsession with reggae music after reading somewhere that at some point Clapton found reggae fascinating (I guessed it was around the time he recorded Knockin on Heaven's Door and I Shot the Sheriff). And so I played so much reggae I took on a patois accent and my guitar sprouted little buds of marijuana (not really). So from that I took this upstroke-and-palm-mute thingie that reggae musicians use to get that staccato rhythm and to this day it shows up in my playing in various forms and usually adds a flavour which is also mine..... and mine alone (probably not, but hey..)
Whoops. Reggae wormed it's way in to my playing too (spent a wee bit too much time jamming with the Sons of Selassie). ? Guess we're not as unique as we thought hey?
evolucian
^Yeah... reggae seemed to work its way into my playing too. Though not official reggae... more like police reggae-ish stuff. The white mans fluffed version.
Chocklit_Thunda
I always play with my fingers. For strumming I press my index finder against my thumb and play with the nail and adjust how much thumb I get in there to mute/warm it up.
I don't like the twang that comes with playing with a pick....
Johnny-B
I had an interesting conversation with a technician at one of the local music shops when I took my Tokai Les Paul, which he had set up prior to my buying it, for him to have a look at because I has a slight buzz that I couldn't trace. He checked out the guitar then handed it to me and said "Play something for me". I obliged and this is how the conversation then went.
Tech:"I don't think there's anything wrong with the set up, it's more the way you are playing it."
Me: "What do you mean?"
Tech:"Well. you are playing with your fingers, not a pick"
Me:"Yes, but what's wrong with that?"
Tech:"You can't play rock and roll without a pick"
Me:"Mark Knoffler seems to manage fine"
Tech:"That's not rock and roll.
Me:"Well, that's a matter of opinion!"
Warren
Johnny B wrote:
I had an interesting conversation with a technician at one of the local music shops when I took my Tokai Les Paul, which he had set up prior to my buying it, for him to have a look at because I has a slight buzz that I couldn't trace. He checked out the guitar then handed it to me and said "Play something for me". I obliged and this is how the conversation then went.
Tech:"I don't think there's anything wrong with the set up, it's more the way you are playing it."
Me: "What do you mean?"
Tech:"Well. you are playing with your fingers, not a pick"
Me:"Yes, but what's wrong with that?"
Tech:"You can't play rock and roll without a pick"
Me:"Mark Knoffler seems to manage fine"
Tech:"That's not rock and roll.
Me:"Well, that's a matter of opinion!"
Find another technician...
AlanRatcliffe
ShreddySmurf wrote:
Find another technician...
Absolutely! >☹
Chris-Mason
I am comfortable with a plectrum and fingers, only hastle is I cannot grow nails, they tend to break. Electric I use Picks accoustic both.
Use the fleshy part of my finger tips and agree with I think it was Squonk you tend to have to be more physical on your playing style.
Saddle and Nut
Kush
Johnny B wrote:
Me:"Mark Knoffler seems to manage fine"
Tech:"That's not rock and roll.
Me:"Well, that's a matter of opinion!"
Oh no he didnt! >☹ Nobody disses Mark Knopfler like that! +1 you should definitely find another technician!
Kush
Saddle and Nut wrote:
only hastle is I cannot grow nails, they tend to break. Electric I use Picks accoustic both.
Maybe it all depends on what one's fingers and nails are like but I don't believe you have to have long nails to play with your fingers. I personally hate having long nails, so I play just fine with my short nails. In fact I get thrown off my game a bit if my nails get too long. I can fingerpick and strum with a heavy attack just fine with my short nails, its hard to describe how exactly I do it but it has to do with your angle of attack and finding a comfortable way to position your fingers on the strings etc.
