Newmarket Guitar Lesson Guitar Picking Techniques
Guitar picking techniques falls under a big umbrella of topics; basic strumming on the guitar or strumming and finger picking styles. Then there is advanced, funky strumming and alternate picking a short riff, and the list goes on and on.
A place to start for beginners and moving towards advanced guitar players is to practice technique with your metronome or drum machine. I am sure you have heard this statement a million times. I have a different approach using the metronome or drum machine. It is my own self discovery. You must play in time with the metronome or rhythm machine during your practice sessions. When mastering a tempo while playing along with your metronome after you achieve playing accurate at that tempo, normally we adjusting the metronome up to the next speed. I advise to go down to the next slower speed. Amazing results can come from this technique. You are reinforcing your accuracy even more in a relaxed manner. If you’re interested to learn more about this contact me please.
If you are talking about picking like Speedy Gonzales, not many players can just sit down and play smoking fast lead lines that tear up the fret board. It is not about how good you are. Every guitarist needs to warm up. You don’t want to develop stress in the picking hand. Warming up at the beginning of all your practice sessions and live performances is a good habit. It takes method and goal setting to be a fast picker with good technique.
Alternate Picking
The rule of thumb when developing your picking technique is to first establish good alternate picking habits at a non-stressful tempo when starting out.
It is great to develop alternate picking at a consistent volume and tone. Pick down-up-down-up and so on. Picking in this way provides the building blocks for more complex picking techniques you will use in the future. Sweep picking, finger picking, speed picking, and a lot of amazing Blue Grass picking concepts are awesome. There are so many unique ways of picking.
Finger Picking, Alternate Picking, Sweep Picking and Speed Picking you can master with time. I can help you study all the techniques that will develop you to become a great picker. Some of the great Blue Grass pickers of today are extremely advanced in their picking methods. You should research all you can about them.
Alternate picking is when you pick down and then you pick up, and not stop that alternating down/up picking stroke. Listen very closely to the sound of your down pick stroke and your up pick stroke. You want to get your alternate picking to sound equal in tonal quality and volume when you are picking up or down. In the beginning it will be too loud of an upstroke and too soft on the down stroke or visa versa. The tone can also change on your up or down stroke. Tonal quality is the big part of your goal. Work enjoyably with making sure your up stroke and down stroke have the same tone and volume.
In the beginner’s class of guitar study the notes will wander in time back and forth. The student will not keep perfect tempo. However, with practice this shortcoming will soon be corrected. Enjoy the time you spend on your alternate picking and get to know the different tones you will find behind in front or behind the guitar’s sound hole. Keep in mind the way you hold the pick is also a very big contributing factor to finding a consistent tone. A lot of my Aurora guitar students seem to float out the door after a lesson with me teaching my methods on picking. I have so much to share and I enjoy doing it.
When you go to play a fast run or scale you want the outcome to have a smooth tone and consistent volume that has the pristine sound and attitude of a pro. When you feel comfortable that you can alternately pick every note clearly and perfectly at a consistent tempo, and volume with both up and down strokes it is time to move on.
The Pick Can Give You Different Sounds
Now, we can break the rules. A lot of awesome guitar players will use different sides of the pick for different tones. For example, the guitarist can pick down with the pick flat against the string and then at the end of the stroke, play up and use the edge of the pick. This produces a cool sound. If you get the hang of it, the guitar will sound like it is talking. You can achieve some very expressive ways to play with this technique. It can sound slightly funky. This is a great guitar picking technique.
Investigate what other guitar players are doing when picking. Some guitarists hold the pick slightly on its side and pick up and down with the same precise area of the pick all the time. This gives the notes a defining equal volume and tone. I have seen other players pick parts of a phrase, all down picked, to give that forte full bodied tone that will not fluctuate.
It is good to try as many ways as you can with the pick or fingers. Watch other great players and you will soon have your bag full of tricks for your picking expressions.
Alternate Picking with a Funky Slap-Expressive Sound
I remember a long time ago in my 20’s, I heard this great, expressive guitar player. He used the pick with the flesh of his index finger and the pick. He would grab the string with the middle area between the pick and the index finger, and pull and pick up off the string. The sound is a combination of the pick and the index fingers flesh pulling the string up. It gives the notes a slap tone. At times he would alternate pick a fast line and end it with that pick and index finger slap, which really gave it excitement of resolution. He had a palette of sounds to express himself. He really impressed me.
Learn to breathe in time with the beat, it really works. This is why it is so important to use a metronome or rhythm machine when practicing. You will really become aware of how hard it is to play in time, but don’t let your ego get in the way. Admit to yourself when you are going off time. If you get frustrated, don’t say, “Oh I don’t need to do this anyway” and loudly fan your guitar strings up and down with your pick in frustration. We all have been there.
Remember that your muscle memory is being trained and you are going to be more in tune with your heart and body bio- rhythms I can teach you these things. I will help you learn how to relax more when you play.
You can become a master at calming your body down, heart beat, and your mind to have a very high attentive focus when playing. After you learn all this technique it will be time for you to truly become a master of expressing who you are. You can learn to go to a place in your playing beyond picking techniques. This is one of my favorite guitar picking techniques.
Sweep Picking
No doubt you want to be able to sweep pick. It is such a cool technique that gives you the ability to play very fast with a self-assured, elevated feeling. This topic takes more time to explain in this article.
There is no secret to achieving great picking techniques, but there are good methods I can offer you. It is hard work, but focus using common sense and taking breaks for fresh air when you are becoming tired is essential. Guitar picking takes a vast amount of research in order to be able to play like Steve Vai, Yngwie Malmsteen, Joe Satriani, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Johnny Winter, Jimmy Page, Joe Pass, Larry Carlton, B.B. King, and so many other great guitarists.
By: Rick Washbrook
June 17th, 2011
Newmarket Guitar Lesson Guitar Picking Techniques
About the Author
Learn guitar from recording artist and teacher Rick Washbrook. Rick
Washbrook offers private lessons or global instruction via guitar videos.
He offers half hour or one hour sessions, and pricing is lower than most
music stores.
As a teacher/songwriter and award-winning guitarist, Rick Washbrook offers his students 38 years experience. This is important or both the beginning guitarist and those requiring advanced studies because his experience brings methods that many guitar teachers do not provide.
For further information and pricing, please contact
Rick Washbrook at (416) 824 3377
He has received many accolades from Guitar Player Magazine USA, & Finger Style Guitar Magazine USA,
“Washbrook plays beautiful Guitar” Guitar Player Magazine Quote
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http://radio3.cbc.ca/#/bands/Rick-Washbrook-Guitarist
Bandmix.com Rick Washbrook Guitarist
http://www.bandmix.ca/rick-washrook-guitarist/
Newmarket Guitar Lesson Guitar Picking Techniques
Ryan Adams – Come Pick Me Up