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Topic: Which fingers to strike & pick block? |
Baron Collins-Hill
From:
Portland, OR
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Posted 14 Mar 2018 7:08 am |
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I don't expect there to be a strict formula for single note melodic playing (but would be happy to hear about it if there is), but I'd love an example, perhaps a scale.
In the key of G at the 3rd fret, I can play a scale from the low D on the 10th string up to the C on the 3rd string. Could someone lay out (or point me to a resource on) which fingers to use to strike the string and then which fingers to block the strings?
Thanks,
Baron
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Quilter TT15
Free Online Mandolin & Fiddle Tune Lessons
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Ken Metcalf
From:
San Antonio Texas USA
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Baron Collins-Hill
From:
Portland, OR
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Posted 14 Mar 2018 10:32 am
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Thanks! Looks like he is palm blocking rather than pick blocking. Is that advisable for melodic playing?
_________________
Excel Superb U14
Quilter TT15
Free Online Mandolin & Fiddle Tune Lessons
http://www.mandolessons.com |
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Donny Hinson
From:
Glen Burnie, Md. U.S.A.
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Posted 14 Mar 2018 11:11 am
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| I always block with the same pick that actually picks the string, but others may do it differently. Pick, block, then move to the next string (or fret). |
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Fred Treece
From:
California, USA
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Posted 14 Mar 2018 11:21 am
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Palm blocking is advisable for T-M or T-I multi-string cross-over patterns such as playing through the major scale in James Shelton’s video. Joe Wright approaches scale exercise using T-I-M (aka T-1-2) and pick blocking. http://www.pedalsteel.com/joe/Members/tea/sp/X0002_p10.html
And this is where Paul Franklin usually shows up and blows everyone else’s advice right out of the water. Especially mine...  |
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Ken Metcalf
From:
San Antonio Texas USA
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Posted 14 Mar 2018 12:55 pm
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I always pick block with the same pick that actually picks the string or sometimes a combination pick and palm.
| Donny Hinson wrote: |
| I always block with the same pick that actually picks the string, but others may do it differently. Pick, block, then move to the next string (or fret). |
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John Spaulding
From:
Wisconsin, USA
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Tony Glassman
From:
The Great Northwest
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Posted 14 Mar 2018 2:34 pm
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| What does Paul mean when he states "“Web the pinky and ring finger to the middle finger"? |
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Dave Mudgett
From:
Central Pennsylvania and Gallatin, Tennessee
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Posted 14 Mar 2018 3:39 pm
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| What does Paul mean when he states "“Web the pinky and ring finger to the middle finger"? |
I obviously can't be definitive, and maybe Paul will see this to clarify. But what it sounds like and what makes sense, to me, is the same type of usage of the phrase "web the fingers together" that comes up in slide guitar playing. In the slide context, it means to keep the fingers together as if they are tightly webbed. For example, a pinky slider typically webs at least the ring finger (and maybe middle also) to the slide (pinky) finger and moves them as a unit to give additional stability and control of the slide. I can visualize multiple potential advantages to webbing the fingers like this for blocking with the finger tips. Better solidity and control, presents a larger area for blocking, and so on.
Thanks for that link, John - somehow I hadn't noticed it before. To me, Paul's explanations are so lucid that they often leave me saying to myself, "Why didn't I think about it like that?". I've always found pick blocking a bit tricky, and that helps - though I have to adapt somewhat since I use a ring finger pick. And so, maybe another potential disadvantage of using that extra pick. |
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John Spaulding
From:
Wisconsin, USA
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Posted 14 Mar 2018 4:42 pm
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Dave-
You've got it exactly correct.
We just added a brief excerpt from one of The Paul Franklin Method lessons on Pick Blocking to the blog post to show Paul demonstrating the "webbed" fingers. Hope this helps!
Here's a link to the YouTube version:[url] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O9gHMx1LORw[/url]
John |
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Dave Mudgett
From:
Central Pennsylvania and Gallatin, Tennessee
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Posted 14 Mar 2018 5:21 pm
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| Oh yes, John - that helps a lot. Picture/video worth many thousand words. As soon as I clear the decks with a bunch of other stuff going on in my life, I gotta get onto this course. |
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Jerry Jones
From:
Franklin, Tenn.
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Posted 14 Mar 2018 5:37 pm
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I think Buddy Emmons used his ring finger in the same manner.
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Jerry Jones |
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Tony Glassman
From:
The Great Northwest
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Posted 14 Mar 2018 6:16 pm
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The video helped.
Now that I think about it, the word "web" brings to mind, a baseball glove.
I used to play outfield with my thumb & index fingers in their respective glove fingers and jam the middle, ring and pinkie finger together into the last one.
Kind of similar........... |
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John Goux
From:
California, USA
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Posted 20 Mar 2018 10:57 am
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After watching Paul’s explanation I sat down to try his “web methodâ€.
I have been practiicng “blocking with the picks†for quite some time, but revert to mostly palm blocking on gigs.
Because I play acoustic guitar I have a long acrylic nail on my ring finger. This gets in the way of the fingertip mute and is risky for my nails.
I found the web method to work very nicely, if I gently curl my fingers and use the area around the cuticle and knuckles to mute. Paul’s suggestion to forget about the fingerings and concentrate on keeping a relaxed web was very helpful.
The advantages of the web method seems to be, a stronger tone, and an immediate increase in speed for pick blocking those 3 string licks. Something about the hand shape or position was keeping my hand relaxed.
A breakthrough? Too early to say. I’ve had good days before and they can be fleeting.
I was able to play “Buck and Merle†at the album tempo, albeit sloppily, but I could never get close to that tempo palm blocking that song. Out of curiosity I tried other tunes like “Highway 40†and was getting good results everything I tried.
I would say I’m encouraged.
Thanks to you guys for posting this subject.
Thanks, Paul, for posting this written and video explanation.
John |
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