greenascanbe
New member
Any one got any tips for strengthing the pinking on my left (fret) hand. I've gotten better at using it but it still sort of flops around and isn't as strong as the other fingers.
Strengthen the pinky
- Thread starter greenascanbe
- Start date
Anomaly Design
New member
A Zakk Wylde excercise would be to just do hammer-ons with your pointer/pinky finger. Just play anywhere on the fretboard and keep hammering away, and if it gets boring try picking individually.
metalhead28
Hates Raymond
greenascanbe said:
Just use it all the time. That's really about all you can do. Do exercises with it. Fret things you would normally use your ring finger for with your pinky. Do lots of trills and hammer-ons with it. Basically, all of the obvious stuff. Just use it.
Well, classical gtr technique uses the left hand pinky equally with the other fingers and it can be very effective on electric. Using a classical left hand position, with the ball of the thumb pressing on the middle of the back of the neck, puts all the left hand fingers in a good spot for equal use. I play more classical gtr than electric, but I use classical technique on both. Some bluesy bending and vibrato techniques on elec work better with the left thumb wrapped around the neck but otherwise I use classical left hand position on elec.
Just practicing some scales and arpeggios each day to train the hand to do it would be pretty easy to make it feel natural I think.
Tim
Just practicing some scales and arpeggios each day to train the hand to do it would be pretty easy to make it feel natural I think.
Tim
killthepixelnow
Do it right or dont do it
Try to make vibratos (any kind, especially the wide vibratos) Hammer between index and pinky is another good way to tighten up your weak finger. Luck.
Here is a drill that I do to make my fingers stronger and to warm up:
E|------------------------------------2--3-------------
B|-----------------------------2--3--------------------
G|----------------------2--3---------------------------
D|---------------2--3----------------------------------
A|--------2--3-----------------------------------------
E|--2--3-----------------------------------------------
E|-------------------------------------------------2--3--4
B|---------------------------------------2--3--4----------
G|-----------------------------2--3--4--------------------
D|--------------------2--3--4-----------------------------
A|-----------2--3--4--------------------------------------
E|--2--3--4-----------------------------------------------
E|--------------------------------------------------------------2--3--4--5
B|--------------------------------------------------2--3--4--5------------
G|--------------------------------------2--3--4--5------------------------
D|--------------------------2--3--4--5------------------------------------
A|--------------2--3--4--5------------------------------------------------
E|--2--3--4--5------------------------------------------------------------
2nd fret = index
3rd fret = middle
4th fret = ring
5th fret = pinky
E|------------------------------------2--3-------------
B|-----------------------------2--3--------------------
G|----------------------2--3---------------------------
D|---------------2--3----------------------------------
A|--------2--3-----------------------------------------
E|--2--3-----------------------------------------------
E|-------------------------------------------------2--3--4
B|---------------------------------------2--3--4----------
G|-----------------------------2--3--4--------------------
D|--------------------2--3--4-----------------------------
A|-----------2--3--4--------------------------------------
E|--2--3--4-----------------------------------------------
E|--------------------------------------------------------------2--3--4--5
B|--------------------------------------------------2--3--4--5------------
G|--------------------------------------2--3--4--5------------------------
D|--------------------------2--3--4--5------------------------------------
A|--------------2--3--4--5------------------------------------------------
E|--2--3--4--5------------------------------------------------------------
2nd fret = index
3rd fret = middle
4th fret = ring
5th fret = pinky
IronFlippy
Dedicated To My Member
Practice that first exercise jndietz showed with your index and middle fingers, then with you middle and ring fingers, and then finally with your ring and pinky fingers.
funny thing is, my pinky is strong, i can hammer with the best of em. the reason is because i don't have any damned double jointed knuckles. as a result, i can never fret bar chords with just one finger, like say the ring finger fretting an A pattern with the pointer finger being the bar. i ALWAYS have to use all of my fingers to fret the A and E patterns up and down the fretboard, and as a result my pinky gets just as much use as the rest of my fingers, especially when i go for the A7 or E7 shape up there. thus, i suck at flowing fingerstyle runs, but rule at chunky power chords and pulling off a twang here and there.
cephus
Slow Children Playing
i used to use my pinky alot and tried to keep it in the fray, but I find that, while it's OK for single runs and chords, it doesn't have enough meat to give the the tone I like. I have the vibrato that I want from the first three fingers, but the pinky is definitely a second-class citizen as far as lead work.
He gets alot of use, but he's no ring finger.
He gets alot of use, but he's no ring finger.
azraelswings
New member
Keeping your pointer and middle fingers on the 5th and 6th frets, respectively, of the 5th string, play the 7th and 8th fret of the 6th string with your ring and pinky finger. You can do this with any combination of fingers for "finger independence." Be warned, its rather tough and often a little frustrating. Try speeding up. I start with quarter notes, then move to quarter note triplets, eigth notes, eight note triplets, and finally 16th notes.
Fun times. Really.
Fun times. Really.
Henry Mars
New member
jndietz said:
Remember to position your thumb correctly and to keep your fingers low over the strings. Also remember to keep the index finger down while depressing the middle finger the index and middle down while depressing the ring etc. Try to eliminate wasted motion..
cephus
Slow Children Playing
Can I just say one thing? I've been playing for fricking 25 years or something and I used to try really hard to keep my fingers parallel with the frets and my thumb in the back and most of the time one fret to to a finger. You think that is the most efficient and correct. I did, too. But then you see blues guys and 60s "guitar heroes" that play with 2 fingers. I saw clarence gatemouth brown live in a small club once and he had the guitar laying on his lap about 5 degrees from flat-out facing the ceiling. He used a capo on every song and I swear he played with only his middle finger. He could have played with a mitten on. He was fricking awesome. I'm not talking about that delta blues "simple is better" awesome. Like playing these swing tunes like take the a train. It really made me re-examine what was important as far as doing what I want to be able to do on a guitar. I'm no headbanger or jazzhead, but I'm no slouch. I have some licks and tricks that serve their purpose. But I think that efficiency takes a back seat to tone, phrasing, rhythm and note choice.
I know. I'm totally full of shit, because if I wasn't trying to be al frickin' dimeola when i was 17, I wouldn't be able to take my facility for granted like a can now. I don't have any advice for working on a specific finger, only that for me it always worked better to just make sure everyone was working equally.
I know. I'm totally full of shit, because if I wasn't trying to be al frickin' dimeola when i was 17, I wouldn't be able to take my facility for granted like a can now. I don't have any advice for working on a specific finger, only that for me it always worked better to just make sure everyone was working equally.
Henry Mars
New member
cephus said:
It is not so much a matter of efficienct as much as being able to concentrate on what you are playing as opposed to whether you have the chops to play it.
I am not put down these other techniques because they have their place in situations where they are needed to get a partiular sound. That said proper technique will free you to concentrate on your tone ... and a lot of other things. Belive me, when I was teaching I had students that thanked me for cracking the whip and making them do it right ... one guy had tendonitus from using bad technique. I am not say "don't play that way". Use it when it make sense. Proper technique will keep you playing into old age.
killthepixelnow
Do it right or dont do it
That's right, use your pinky, not only three finger. You'll see the results.Jahn said:
killmachine
New member
practice SHOCKA on girls
Shocka = 2 in pink, 1 (pinky) in stink
or if you need to work the ring finger as well, try the reverse Shocka, girls hate that one but it'll work out them fingers
Shocka = 2 in pink, 1 (pinky) in stink
or if you need to work the ring finger as well, try the reverse Shocka, girls hate that one but it'll work out them fingers
Here's another idea, (surely I'm not the only one who does this.) Use your pinky on chords where you would normaly use your ring finger, ring finger in place of your middle finger, and middle finger where your first would normaly go. Example open D, ring finger- high E string 2nd fret, pinky- B string 3rd fret, middle finger- G string 2nd fret. Open C, middle finger- B string 1st fret, ring finger- D string 2nd fret, pinky- A string 3rd fret. Get the idea? This alternate fingering will quickly build strength in both the pinky and the ring fingers. An added benefit to learning this alternate fingering is that it frees the first finger so you can use it to barr and make your open chords moveable, with practice you will be able to play open chords up the neck and sound like you are using a capo without actually using one.