That "lightness" in your fingers

[kooter82]

You all know that sensation I am talking about. When your playing well and your fingers just seem to flow and have that lightness to them.

 

Well, is there any suggestions on how to effectively practice it, which all you great players could share with us?

 

I think that us guitar players sometimes over-exert pressure when we are playing, thus our bodies tense up as does our focus. You don't really see this question asked too often.

 

So...any tips?

 

Keep on rockin'

[The Maestro]

Try meditation.

You may think I'm joking, but I'm not.

It trains your mind to not worry about the future or think about the past. But just be. Which is exactly the kind of mindset needed for what you're talking about.

Or if that seems like too much work, you can try drinking a six pack of Bud.

[mosiddiqi]

I don't practise for lightness as such, but the more I play, the easier everything gets (funny how that works!). So, that's my answer really..play, play, play, play, play...and then play some more. It also helps to tell yourself to relax.

[GreenAsJade]

Scales have a bad rap around here... but.... scales. I found that doing scales has been the quickest way to lightness. I think it's because with scales it is the least effort in worrying about what note is next, so your everything can relax. That feeling I find is transferrable. Its not like "yeah, great, you are light with scales but heavy elsewhere". It seems to be a feeling that you can learn and take forwards.

 

GaJ

[kooter82]

Try meditation. You may think I'm joking, but I'm not. It trains your mind to not worry about the future or think about the past. But just be. Which is exactly the kind of mindset needed for what you're talking about. Or if that seems like too much work, you can try drinking a six pack of Bud.

 

Weird you mentioned meditation. I've been trying to meditate every time I get up in the morning the past week or so. I think I'm starting to get better at it. Haven't tried it really before playing guitar though......hmmmmmmmmm.....

 

I usually do the 6 pack thing.

[kooter82]

 

tell yourself to relax.

 

 

When I hung out with Jeff Loomis after a Nevermore show a few years back, he told me this. Along with breathing normally.

[kooter82]

The reason why I asked this (other than I just think its a good topic) is because a few years back I completely shattered the second knuckle (had to get is surgically pieced together) in my pinky finger (which I used to use A LOT) and broke the bone from the base of the pinky to my wrist as well. I basically had to re-learn how to play the damned instrument all over again. I'm starting to get about were I was before the freak accident, possibly, but gawd damn sometimes when I'm practicing speed drills or arppegios its like I HAVE to tense up my fretting hand now in order to do some stuff. Its weird.

 

I know slow is the way to go...yada, yada. I've done all that for years. It just seems when I wanna let loose now, I cant without tensing up

 

grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr

[jeremy_green]

Have you really been aware of your breathing? Lots of people hold their breath when they tense up perhaps you are doing so without knowing it. For me it just helps to be aware that I am squeezing. From this awareness I can lighten up... Kind of hard to describe really

[NewGuyonGuitar]

 

. For me it just helps to be aware that I am squeezing.

 

 

So many places to go with that quote...

[1001gear]

Still glacial. Deliberately lift and place the fingers. You learn all the moves without developing unnecessary force.

[speechless]

Ja man, I would love to be able to plug in to some wicked player and get a taste of how it feels to whip around the fret board with 'effortless' abandon. Skilled players look like they're just tickling their instrument... My key pointers:

Sit up straight. Good posture in the back supports the shoulders which in turn support the arms and so forth on down to the tips - so full relaxation begins with the spine, way down at the glutes. If yer new to this the effort of maintaining that posture may seem more trouble than it's worth... but if you're a cushion sitter then you probably have an advantage here.

Ideally, most of the force pressing the strings down comes from gravity. Position is everything in this regard so make sure the neck is in a good place relative to your body and keep those fingers good and arched.

With chords especially my teacher got me on a exercise where I position my fingers, touching all the strings ever so lightly, checking for positioning, then look away (one of very few instances where not looking at the fingers is useful). Next, very slowly, I let the weight of my arm bring the strings down to the fret, feeling the strings pushing back and stopping when the resistance of the fret is also felt. The idea is to give as much attention as possible to tactile feedback - learning to literally feel that lightness.

OH and another good one - I haven't done it in a while, {censored} - is to play or practice anything as per usual, but stopping on random notes or chords to check position and tension. It's one thing to get all relaxed, another thing entirely to maintain that looseness over continuous activity. So it's like a freeze frame, y'know, halfway through the eighth bar of a solo or something you hit pause and you check: are my shoulders relaxed? is my thumb where it should be? am I squeezing this string? are my fingers ready for what they're about to do? have I started to hunch or hold my breath? Then you fix everything that's off, carry on for a little while, and do it all over again.

[GreenAsJade]

I have to admit I'm finding it hard to picture a way of holding the guitar where gravity is helping me press the strings...

 

... also, if you're playing electric, and plan to perform (standing up) then you need to be practicing standing up as well... of course, sit up straight is good advice for classical or acoustic being played sitting down, I was just remembering a guy here a while back who was practicing his electric guitar sitting down and it was a revelation that he should stand

 

Cheers,

 

GaJ

[speechless]

^^^

!) Dang. Suppose I phrase it thusly: ideally most of the force pressing down the strings comes from directing the weight of the arm towards the fretboard rather than actually squeezing with the fingers. hmm?

@)Touche. My {censored} falls apart when I stand up. So I'm curious - might "stand up straight" be good advice?

[GreenAsJade]

If there's some way I can get force on the strings without squeezing, I need to learn it - I actually suffer from pain in my thumb from the squeezing force. I'm still danged if I can see how to get the weight of my arm to help me though!

 

I don't know whether standing up straight is going to help with lightness of touch or not, but it sure sounds like a good idea in general

 

GaJ

[jeremy_green]

Light touch is all about where in the fret you press down. You should always be JUST behind the fretwire as the

Least pressure is required to ring the note there.. I you slam your finger down in the middle of the fret you need to press a lot more relatively.

 

Practicing standing is a must for any gigging guitarist. You don't have to stand all the time but a good portion

[monstermaker]

Tension will rob you.

[speechless]

If there's some way I can get force on the strings without squeezing, I need to learn it - I actually suffer from pain in my thumb from the squeezing force. I'm still danged if I can see how to get the weight of my arm to help me though!

 

 

Aw crap. I don't know if I'm ready to upgrade from tipster to teacher but when I've got time I will scour my resources and memory and see if I can't consolidate all the exercises/words of wisdom I had to absorb to get there. It's tricky 'cause it's all about discovering the sensations in your muscles and joints - feeling things you've not really felt before. But it CAN be done - for instance, except for barre chords and things with awkward stretches I can actually play pretty much anything without even having my thumb on the neck... and I've seen my teacher run full barres chromatically up and down the fretboard without the thumb and with apparently very little effort. so uh stay tuned I will do my best for ya

 

Oh and I KNOW there a ton of players here with way more skill and know-how than me. So if anyone wants to jump in on this one...

[kooter82]

Aw crap. I don't know if I'm ready to upgrade from tipster to teacher but when I've got time I will scour my resources and memory and see if I can't consolidate all the exercises/words of wisdom I had to absorb to get there. It's tricky 'cause it's all about discovering the sensations in your muscles and joints - feeling things you've not really felt before. But it CAN be done - for instance, except for barre chords and things with awkward stretches I can actually play pretty much anything without even having my thumb on the neck... and I've seen my teacher run full barres chromatically up and down the fretboard without the thumb and with apparently very little effort. so uh stay tuned I will do my best for ya Oh and I KNOW there a ton of players here with way more skill and know-how than me. So if anyone wants to jump in on this one...

 

Awesome dude, I hope you can find something! Dont get all "tense" about it though.

[Jasco]

The reason why I asked this (other than I just think its a good topic) is because a few years back I completely shattered the second knuckle (had to get is surgically pieced together) in my pinky finger (which I used to use A LOT) and broke the bone from the base of the pinky to my wrist as well. I basically had to re-learn how to play the damned instrument all over again. I'm starting to get about were I was before the freak accident, possibly, but gawd damn sometimes when I'm practicing speed drills or arppegios its like I HAVE to tense up my fretting hand now in order to do some stuff. Its weird. I know slow is the way to go...yada, yada. I've done all that for years. It just seems when I wanna let loose now, I cant without tensing up grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr

 

 

Ouch, that sucks. I injured my index finger about 6 weeks ago and it still hurts like a mofo, but it's nowhere near what you've described. Good luck with it.

 

Out of curiosity, have you tried practicing 'Django-style' with your fretting hand?

[kooter82]

 

Ouch, that sucks. I injured my index finger about 6 weeks ago and it still hurts like a mofo, but it's nowhere near what you've described. Good luck with it. Out of curiosity, have you tried practicing 'Django-style' with your fretting hand?

 

 

I was devastated completely by it. Like straight up depressed actually. My left pinky knuckle is still all jacked up. I thought about trying to pull a switch-a-roo and start picking with my left and playing with my right hand, but, that lasted about 10 minutes. lol So i've just been steady pushing my left hand back into shape.

 

By Django style you mean like playing arpeggios? I hear a lot of that in his playing, but I rarely ever listen to him. Could you elaborate?

[Jasco]

Django was in a fire when he was a teenager that left his fretting hand in bad shape. He could only use his index and middle fingers. So everything you hear by him is essentially two finger guitar playing. Which I find amazing considering the musicality and difficulty-level of his material.

Anyway, I was suggesting trying to re-finger some things with two or three fingers in spots that your pinky might be giving you difficulty. If Django can do what he did with two fingers then you can do what you want with three.