How To Hold The Pick – Lesson 4

bemers said:

When I am picking, I use my pinky as an anchor against the pick guard. It not only helps me stabilize but also gives my picking hand a sense of where it is in regards to the other strings. I've been playing like this for the last 10-ish years (although I can play songs, I wouldn't consider myself to be an intermediate player). Is this a bad habit that I should work on breaking or is it ok? I'm taking this class to finally become a better player, have some structure in my learning, and to learn some theory to be able to write better music.

Click to expand...

doenisz said:

This video convinced me to finally go from open fingers in my picking hand to a relaxed fist picking hand by closing down the mid/ring/pinkie, and the difference is night and day!

I only have 1 question though, if I try to make a relaxed fist, my middle finger is pulled to the underside of my index finger like a magnet, there's no way I can separate them. I wanna be clear, I'm not holding the pick with 3 fingers, it's just that the middle finger sits under the index. I'm also not clenching them to touch hardly. It's like the first digit of the middle finger grazes under the second one. Is this an issue? I feel very comfortable both tremoloing and strumming this way but having them touching will also prevent me from hybrid picking down the road.

View attachment 3641

Click to expand...