For single note solos, pick? fingers ? thumb ? thumb + fingers? pick+fingers?

[xuoham]

What do you use when practicing single notes ?

Personally, i try to do all, and the dream would be to do all with just fingers and thumb, but sometimes the clarity and punch of a good pick is very tempting. So i play a mix of fingers with the pick tucked in my index or just don't use a pick at all and play with thumb for slow moments and thumb+fingers for quicker moments.

But when i hear Kris, i think i would better focus all my practice time on just fingers, because it seems like clarity with fingers can be attainable with hard work (i'm only 48yo ).

On the other hand watching John Stowell (fingers+pick) is a very unsettling experience. I know he is some sort of extra-terrestrial conscious being, but even though his level seems unattainable, his approach (and many other's of course) is very interesting and got me trying for the last six month.

So how about you guys ? Polyvalent ? Specialized ?

Sorry if it has been covered already, but i'd like a bit of your wisdom ^ ^

Thanks

[disco~juice]

I play mostly pick but I like all the ways you mentioned above, you forgot tapping!

[xuoham]

Ha! ^ ^

[xuoham]

Oh btw, if ever Kris sees this post, thank you for answering my question last time.
But when you say fingers, do you mean just fingers or thumb+fingers ?
Thanks.

[Encinitastubes]

The more I play, the more it is just fingers and thumb. I'm developing a picking style like a lute player, where single lines are jus thumb down and index up, like holding a pick with no pick. Right hand string spacing, though, has become a big issue.

[xuoham]

Thanks, that's interesting.

Acutally, i forgot one other alternative, that i use naturally but refrain from because it's a heavy toll on the nail:

Play as if i were holding a pick, but the pick actually is the tip of my index finger.
For those not afraid to break a nail and not afraid of low volume...

[Rhoderick]

Hello.
I received a classical training so I only use my fingers and thumb.

Music is the key that can open strange rooms in the house of memory.

Llewelyn Wyn Griffith

[xuoham]

Hello.
I received a classical training so I only use my fingers and thumb.

.....



Sounds like happiness .... ^ ^

[Frank67]

I am presently swiching from pick to thumb and fingers (mainly thumb and index finger). It feels better to me (more natural) and I also prefer the sound I get, but on the downside it gets really catastrophic when I am nervous. For some reason a pick is easier to handle then. Do you guys have similar experience.

[Jim Soloway]

For single note lines I use one of two methods depending on the circumstances.

If speed is important (I'm very not fast when playing single notes), then I use the tip of my index finger as if it was a pick. I generally use an alternating stroke using either the opposing edges or sometimes front and back.

If articulation and consistent attack are important then I use a series of up strokes with my index finger only. It's not very fast but the tone and attack are very consistent.

As for concern about my nails, I find that I am much more in danger of breaking a nail doing chores around the house or loading gear than I am while playing. I can't remember the last time I broke a nail while playing and I never worry about producing volume with my attack. That's what an amp is for. I'm much more concerned about keeping the attack controlled and consistent.

[mikeSF]

For single note lines I use one of two methods depending on the circumstances.

If speed is important (I'm very not fast when playing single notes), then I use the tip of my index finger as if it was a pick. I generally use an alternating stroke using either the opposing edges or sometimes front and back.

If articulation and consistent attack are important then I use a series of up strokes with my index finger only. It's not very fast but the tone and attack are very consistent...
.

exactly my approach too. you wierdo!

[BEACHBUM]

I started out as a full on flat picker. When I learned finger picking it seemed only natural to me to use the pick between my thumb and index finger and the other three for the rest. Down the road I learned that they call it hybrid picking. The other thing is that I like the tone I get on the bass notes using a pick.

[whatswisdom]

Try thumb + middle finger for single note lines: p + m. I like the control it gives me. An exercise I play every day is the chromatic scale from sixth string open E > to the highest note on the guitar--highest fret on first string--and back down. (The entire range of the guitar.) I use all combinations to play the notes and find that p + m is my preferred combo for smooth, strong single note lines. Don't neglect m + a. This is a very good one to practice and pays big return if you decide to try hybrid picking.

[newsense]

I voted "pick only" because I guessed the context was electric guitar. If playing nylon string, it would be thumb and fingers - even for single note soloing.

[kris]

I play by fingers on nylon strings and electric guitars.
I do not like use pick.

[xuoham]

I play by fingers on nylon strings and electric guitars.
I do not like use pick.

You mean no thumb?

[kris]

You mean no thumb?

I use technique simillar to classical guitarists/right hand -thumb plus 3 fingers/.
I've studied classical guitar/Sor, Bach, Tarrega,Carrcassi etc/ a lot years ago.
I tried play jazz on classical guitar first .
My first important "small"jazz band was duo-just two classical guitars.
Still like nylon strings instruments...but with more comfortable necks:-)
It's look like I adopted classical technique to jazz guitar.
Best
kris

[mangotango]

My answer would have to be "It depends".

With the quartet, I need a variety of tones and attack for my playing and thus I tend to use plectrum and fingers. However, for most comping and for all playing on nylon-string with the exception of single note soloing, I will slip the plec in the crook of my little finger and play with thumb and fingers 1-3. I do NOT use my nails, however; I have no training on classical or fingerpicking guitar and am not particularly keen on those types of playing, nor do I like the sound or feeling of playing using nails. I pluck the strings using the flesh of the fingertips.

With the two duos in which I play, a softer approach seems more appropriate, so I tend to use the plec very little - in fact in the duo with the trumpet, it's all fingers and I do little if any purely single-note soloing.

However, rather surprisingly you didn't have an option for all that........................

[xuoham]

I use technique simillar to classical guitarists/right hand -thumb plus 3 fingers/.
....I adopted classical technique to jazz guitar.
Best
kris

I see ! No wonder ... ^ ^

Thank you Kris, i was really wondering and you can count me as one of your fans ! ^ ^

[xuoham]

My answer would have to be "It depends".
However, rather surprisingly you didn't have an option for all that........................

Ha! Yes, i realized it would have been better not to do a poll, even with multiple choices, too limiting.
And i was stupid enough not to put the "pick with the index" option, which i actually use myself everyday.

Anyway, thank you guys for your answers, i really needed them at this point.

And what i really learnt reading you is something i overlook to often:

Play rather gently with the amp turned louder in order to have some margin in volume,
instead of playing full strength all the time.
Well, i exaggerate a bit, but since i'm not exactly what one would call a jazz guitarist, and i play acoustics half of the time, i tend to do this mistake often when trying to play jazz.
And that's why i always think that picks, though i don't like them too much, give more clarity and volume.

Actually, playing softly with a louder volume setting is really enjoyable !

Maybe i tend to forget that electric guitars are electric !

...and I never worry about producing volume with my attack. That's what an amp is for. I'm much more concerned about keeping the attack controlled and consistent.

Yep ! Thanks for the reminder, hehehe ... ^ ^ Exactly the point i learnt today !

Thanks for the lesson !

[Bryan T]

I use all sorts of approaches.

pick
pick + m/a
p + i
i + m
pima

The one I rarely use is just p.

I play across strings a lot for faster runs when using my fingers.

I worked on p+i a lot a few years ago, but I'm still not happy with it. It is hard to keep note duration consistent. I'll work with p+m based on a suggestion in this thread.

[xuoham]

I worked on p+i a lot a few years ago, but I'm still not happy with it. It is hard to keep note duration consistent. I'll work with p+m based on a suggestion in this thread.

like p+i has a tendency to make notes "pop"?
i find it easier for staccato that legato.

[Bryan T]

like p+i has a tendency to make notes "pop"?
i find it easier for staccato that legato.

It isn't really popping that is the issue, more that my thumb mutes the string more than my index prior to the attack. Consequently, if I'm trying to do fast and even notes the durations aren't consistent.

Another issue that arises is the subtle difference in harmonic content between the thumb and finger. With my acoustic I have to be careful to keep the timbre of the notes consistent. This really comes down to where on the string I'm plucking with each finger.

[Musically Mr M]

I feel like each style has a lot of potential for creating different feels, different nuances and timbres. For me, 90% of the time, the pick will provide the most accuracy.....especially playing fast, fluid passages. A really good picking technique can create lines that flow just like water. Just my 2 cents

[coolvinny]

There is a fantastic Canadian blues guitarist named Garrett Mason who plays with his thumb + index finger, alternating strokes.

Personally during my attempt at non-pick playing that approach did not work for me, but thumb + middle finger worked quite well. There is a guitar professor at my old university (where sadly I did not study music...) who also plays this way with thumb + middle finger. You can really burn that way.

For me, I prefer a pick. For the longest time I was terrible with a pick...when under pressure, it was my pick hand that would fail me...but then I put a ton of work into getting pretty decent with a pick and now it's like an extension of my hand. I'll fingerpick every now and then, but I love the pick. Also, I find it is easier to copy bebop sax licks using a pick, and specifically by 'economy picking'. Jimmy Bruno talks about that in his "No Nonsense" video.

Having said all that, I am intrigued by the reason Matt (I can't recall his last name, but he posts often and is a guitar educator/pro) changed from pick to fingers - to let his ears catch up to his fingers - and if I ever switch back to fingers, that would be the reason why.