Hi, GW Folks!
I've been very laser focused on good technique and like many beginner and intermediate guitarists I put too much pressure and grip strength to fret notes.
One tip I found online is to do some exercises whereby you don't have you thumb on the neck and just use minimal finger pressure to play notes.
Don't know if this is the best way but definitely been noticing how little you do have to press to make a note.
Any other tips would be greatly appreciated!
Thanks!
Hey Michael. I tend to grip like the airplane is going down.
Tomo has also shown the "no thumb" approach a few times.
Not sure if helpful, but here is what I do:
I always grip hard when I'm learning something. I now just let that be, and focus on learning what I'm trying to learn, like a new song, or something from sight reading.
Once i have learned it, I switch my focus to 3 things:
- Clean
- Quiet
- Low pressure
In that order. I just make it a deliberate focus later in the process. Maybe one day I will naturally have a soft touch. But for now, I just work on it explicitly. But not until later. If I try to do everything at the same time, it is overwhelming.
Thank you Clay for sharing your experience. I am so lucky that I taught so many people that I could see those problems in life.
Learning guitar is almost fixing bad habits more than learning anything new. Because these poor techniques is pulling down you from improving. That's why I focus more foundation than anything.
Great tips Clay! Thanks so much! You are a great teacher yourself!
Tomo
Hi Clay,
Thanks for the suggestion. I think I've gone down a similar path. Funny, I too focus on clean, quiet, and low pressure. Maybe not in that order but definitely all part of the mix.
One thing I noticed is that when you have low pressure, chord changes become cleaner and faster. Faster because less pressure means easier to move, and cleaner because when you release the string there isn't as much downward tension on the string.
So, should we be thinking softer first or earlier in the process?
Thanks Tomo! And maybe, Michael. I will experiment with that.
Thank you Michael for this important topic. How to apply Clean technique & Less pressure in playing.
It’s all about awareness when you practice guitar. I think you need to watch these lesson videos.
FT01 Simple Chromatic Scale Exercise 1 2 3 4
https://tomovhxtv.vhx.tv/videos/ft01-simple-chromatic-scale-exercise-1-2-3-4
FT Grip, Thumb Position, Strap - 4 Guitars
https://tomovhxtv.vhx.tv/videos/ft-grip-thumb-position-strap-4-guitars
FT Tone Secrets - The Best Tone for Practice
https://tomovhxtv.vhx.tv/videos/ft-tone-secrets-the-best-tone-for-practice
Tomo
Thanks for the reply Tomo!
Unfortunately, the tone secrets aren't an option as I play mainly acoustic. Otherwise, I do revisit the chromatic scales videos here or on YT regularly to remind myself to keep reinforcing the fundamentals and as you suggest a good thumb/hand position, and since I joined GW a few years ago I always use a strap to play.
It's just I grip hard and maybe that is due to bad habits when I had a terrible guitar with high action where I actually need to press hard to even get a note. Breaking past habits are hard.
I'm also trying to breath and relax like you have suggested to me in the past. So trying many things. Just a life long skill. No wonder you still keep up with it daily.
I guess there is no magic elixir and just takes mindful practice and keeping strong fundamentals.
Thanks, I'll keep at it and revisit those pages as often as I can or as much as it is needed.
Have a great evening. Take care!
My pleasure Michael! I added it so that everyone can use this thread to themselves. Posture and how you sit.... very important too. My chair is slighly higher.
As acoustic guitar... set up is super important. My 1963 Gibson is a perfect example. I think string height is about 2.00mm at the 12th fret. I use 13-56 set right now. I play it super soft because this guitar cannot handle power (strong picking). Very delicate guitar.
I do not use any coating strings because I could press hard and not notice it. I tried it but I cannot control my soft touch on those strings.
I made this video. Please take a look.
Tomo
Thanks Tomo. Just curious - what is the hair-tie thing between the nut and tuning pegs for?
My pleasure Clay! I play a lot of funky muted notes so this way avoid extra harmonics.
Tomo
Great sounding guitar! Thanks for the video, too.
I have noticed a big improvement when fretting lightly so this is definitely a journey worth pursuing. I have also noticed a difference in my strumming/picking hand. In addition to being more pleasant to listen to it’s also easier (and faster!) to play.
Good Dustin! So happy to hear that!
Tomo
Agreed Dustin. Today, I too noticed when doing R37 swing practice that the strumming sounded much nicer as I was holding the pick somewhat loosely. And yeah strumming is much easier.