TOPIC: Right Hand Technique

George, do you keep your hand anchored? I tend to rest the heel of my hand on the bridge, just behind the saddle, as my point of reference. And of course hours of pickin'. Overnight? Man, don't we all wish for that.

Theres alot to be said about anchoring the hand. Hard to do, but gives good pick control. Thats a good point, Steve. You can keep your pinky near the sound hole as well. I never tried the bridge idea. Seems like it would give a better angle, especially on the lower strings (A,E).

Dave's rule 101...anchor the pinky....then proceed....

George,

You are getting a lot of feedback on this. I think that right hand technique is really a major factor to playing well. I've been shown a lot of excercizes over the years which I am sure all can have value if you stick to them (which I have not). But the main thing I'd like to pipe in here about is that if you study the great players, they all have pretty different ways to achieve great results. Some with more elbow, others, more wrist, and still others more finger movement (on the hand holding the pick). Some, like David Grier float a lot w/o anchoring their finger and still others are anchored like they have glue on their pinky. Some brush the bridge as a depth guage and others are dead against that. And, let's not even talk about how to hold the pick! The conclusion that I've come to is that we are all wired differently and what works for Tony Rice would be absolutely wrong for Doc Watson. So, you watch the great ones, but ultimately have to figure out what works for you. Not an easy task...but that's what all the good ones wind up doing. My 2 cents...

How

This is all good advice. Upon more scrutinizing my right hand as I play, I've noticed that my pick is rotating in my fingers; it's due to my hands being calloused. That's part of my problem. If I tighten down on it, I lose flexability. Maybe I need to try other pick shapes.

or you can "do" gorilla snot....that's what I do....