Guitarists' Den

jughead · **Posted:** Tue Dec 07, 2010 3:26 am

in hindsight i may have been making a mountain out of a molehill. i think i attack the strings from a conventional angle. hand sits at about a 45 degree angle and usually rests on the bridge which i'm sure is poor form but that doesn't bother me. the difference might be instead of holding the pick quite deep in my hand with a closed fist i have a slightly looser grip and control it with the ends of my thumb and index finger.

Sodacake · **Posted:** Tue Dec 07, 2010 4:20 am

like i said if it's working for you then don't change it. otherwise you're gonna waste time changing your technique to suit someone else's when you could be learning and improving on worthwhile stuff.

Yngtchie Blacksteen · **Posted:** Tue Dec 07, 2010 8:58 am

Sodacake wrote:

ever seen how marty friedman picks? i don't know how he does it.

He makes it work, but he has to alter his position if he were to palm mute a riff. Ditto with Michael Angelo Batio, whose picking technique is equally strange.

If it's comfortable for you, and doesn't hold your playing back in any way, it's the right way of picking.

jughead · **Posted:** Tue Dec 07, 2010 7:11 pm

i tried holding it slightly back in my hand which seemed to improve control and it was much easier picking cleanly whilst still being comfortable. nothing too drastic, though. thanks for the advice lads.

Yngtchie Blacksteen · **Posted:** Wed Dec 08, 2010 8:24 am

Yngtchie's preferred approach:

Sodacake · **Posted:** Wed Dec 08, 2010 2:20 pm

shawn lane style.

Forgotten Son · **Posted:** Wed Dec 08, 2010 5:35 pm

Vosenbergen · **Posted:** Wed Dec 08, 2010 11:44 pm

borracho wrote:

i've been playing for about 5 odd years and just realised that i hold the pick incorrectly. instead of gripping it with a closed fist i place it between my thumb and index which make an O shape. i'm not sure how much it hinders my playing and if it would be better to change my technique. i think the main problem is it reduces stability and control. does anyone have any advice? is it definitely a case of playing the way i currently do reducing my capacity for improvement? i don't think it would take that long to pick up considering i've been playing for awhile and i'd be willing if it would definitely help.

depending on the style you're playing, that way may be more "correct" than another

its not about correctness...its about comfort and being able to strike the strings that you want to hit...

can you hit all your notes accurately? are you able to use the plectrum to hit individual strings as well as chords?

then I'd say you're just fine

I've been playing for 19 years now...and I apparently hold my pick "like a retard" according to my friend at work

Sodacake · **Posted:** Thu Dec 09, 2010 4:29 am

Cruz · **Posted:** Thu Dec 09, 2010 4:19 pm

Yngtchie Blacksteen wrote:

Sodacake wrote:

ever seen how marty friedman picks? i don't know how he does it.

He makes it work, but he has to alter his position if he were to palm mute a riff.

Gah, thank you for saying this. I tried to hold my pick more like Friedman for a while and, since I play almost nothing but rhythm, I couldn't make it work when I tried to palm mute. :durr:

Sodacake · **Posted:** Thu Dec 09, 2010 5:10 pm

why would you want to pick like Friedman? :confused:

Vosenbergen · **Posted:** Fri Dec 10, 2010 9:12 pm

Yngtchie Blacksteen wrote:

Yngtchie's preferred approach:

I could never hold my picks that way :lol:

my fingers would get in the way...I play with the pick turned 3/4 inwards, with a traditional striking angle...I like it

Cruz · **Posted:** Sat Dec 11, 2010 12:02 am

Sodacake wrote:

why would you want to pick like Friedman? :confused:

Cuz I don't know shit about playing lead, and I've always heard that his picking was remarkably clean, so I thought I'd give it a shot.

Sodacake · **Posted:** Sat Dec 11, 2010 6:11 am

He's not much of an alternate picker and relies mostly on legato. If you should emulate anyone's picking style I'd recommend Paul Gilbert/Buckethead.

Yngtchie Blacksteen · **Posted:** Mon Dec 13, 2010 5:42 am

A friend of mine picks in a similar way as Forgie, although his playing style is far more legato-oriented than mine. I've tried picking like that, but I can't get the speed going, so I've stuck with the more Lane-ish approach pictured. I do vary it quite a bit, and I do not believe in Michael Angelo Batio's theory that changing your picking when you go from slow to fast and vice versa somehow decreases your speed. I mean, I change my picking style due to tonal differences, and I couldn't imagine sticking to just one approach.

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