Pick questions...

[Srvwannab]

My son is taking guitar lessons and is doing a great job of learning a lot of the fundementals that I missed. For example, he was taught to hold the pick with his index finger pointed toward the guitar and it's pretty amazing how many more options you have with with pick held that way.

Also his teacher recommends that for individual string picking you use the edge of the pick. Maybe that is something everybody does but I have never tried before. So far it's feeling pretty wierd. Does anybody else use the pick that way?

 

[Kappy]

My pick hand, when picking just with the pick, is like a loose fist, so my index finger is actually kinda' curved and (from the knuckle in the middle to the tip) running parallel with the strings. My pick hits the strings kind of on an angle. I learned to pick from Paul Gilbert mostly, and maybe I adapted what he does to my own thing (since I use hybrid/pick and fingers picking quite a lot too).

Everyone has their way though. Bottom-line with picking is, as long as there's no undue tension that could lead to tendonitis or carpal tunnel (or that could slow you down from playing what you hear in your head), and it sounds good, and works for you, do it!

 

[jwalk24]

nah. that all sounds a bit weird to me. its all what works for you in that department. srv used a fender medium with it turned around backwards blunt edge on the string for fat tone. some folks use jazz IIs which are tiny sharp very hard picks its whatever you can get the best playability with i suppose. different strokes for different folks.

 

[Donbecker]

I switched about 2 months ago from the normal size picks to the Jazz III's. It feels weird at first but the smaller pick will keep your middle finger off the pick to pluck a different string.

Now when I pickup a normal pick they feel huge. I think my picking accuracy has gone up as well from using the smaller picks.

 

[Drumongus]

All of my picks have wear on the front edge of the bottom and on the back edge of the top. You pick more efficiently with the pick held at a slight angle.

Some players play off of the back edge, I believe alot of people refer to this as the "benson method" a la george benson played this way.

I would take a picture if I could bacuse its painfully obvious by looking at the wear, as to what I am talking about.