# 3 fingers for holding pick?



## toolsound (Apr 10, 2008)

Does anyone else use 3 fingers to hold their pick?

I use my thumb, pointer and middle finger to hold the pick, but I've noticed that most people just use their thumb and pointer. I try doing this from time to time, but I find that the pick slowly slips out of my fingers if I don't use my middle finger as well. 

Is this bad technique? I sometimes wonder if my picking would improve if I started practicing with just my thumb and pointer finger.


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## Groff (Apr 10, 2008)

My old bass player played guitar like that. He never had a problem playing, but he never played fast either.


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## darren (Apr 10, 2008)

Like holding a pen, it's whatever gets the job done. Lots of big players hold their picks in unorthodox ways. EVH and Carlos Santana come to mind. Santana also uses those huge triangular picks.


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## Leon (Apr 10, 2008)

darren said:


> Like holding a pen, it's whatever gets the job done.


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## Edroz (Apr 10, 2008)

probably the first 2 years of my playing i held my pick with 3 fingers as you describe. it wasn't a conscious effort, it's just naturally how i started holding it when i first picked up a guitar.

i started to notice most players using just the thumb and index finger and forced myself to switch, it seemed like a more practical approach to me since you have your middle finger more readily available for tapping while not affecting your grip on the pick. 

it took me about a solid week of awkward playing (about 5 - 6 hours a day) to adjust to it, but after that it felt as normal as my old style.

imo, there's no right or wrong way to hold a pick, i think you just need to evaluate your own playing style and what would be the most efficient method for you.


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## kmanick (Apr 10, 2008)

I used to hold my pick like that.
I started out musically as a cellist and that's how you hold a bow so I just carried it over.
When I got into learning how to sweep arps I switched over to just using 2 fingers as I found I had a hard time muting with my pick had if I held my pick that way.
I saw an interview with Paul Gilbert somewhere and he said he did the same thing.


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## stubhead (Apr 11, 2008)

That's exactly how Steve Morse holds his pick. He also anchors his little finger on the guitar or on the volume knob, it's really weird and uncomfortable-looking - seems to work out OK for him...


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## DDDorian (Apr 11, 2008)

Chris Poland and Shawn Lane hold their pick in the same way; I think I remember reading an interview with Lane where he went into detail about it, but I don't think Poland is nearly as analytical so for him it's probably just intuitive. I don't think it'll hurt your technique at all unless you're straining to connect with the strings, which doesn't seem to be the case.


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## Michael (Apr 11, 2008)

I held my pick with 3 fingers for almost 6 years of playing up until a few months ago. Now I'm holding it between my thumb and index because I was having playing troubles holding with 3 fingers. My hand is a lot less tense now than when I was holding it with 3 fingers.


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## toolsound (Apr 11, 2008)

Thanks for the replies, guys. I was paying close attention to my fingers last night and I noticed that I actually use my thumb, middle finger and ring finger sometimes. In other words, my pointer finger isn't even touching the pick. I also anchor the high e-string with my pinky finger. It looks kinda funky, but I guess it works for me, so I'm stickin' with what's comfortable. Thanks again.


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## stubhead (Apr 12, 2008)

Chris Poland is a killer, the two studio "OHM" albums have clawed their way to the top of my listening heap. Poland and Pagliari really are two _original_ players, both tonally and in the arranging and writing.


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## arnoroth661 (Apr 12, 2008)

Do it all the time... I have thought about holding it the "correct" way, but the ends wouldn't justify the means, I guess. It works fine for me!


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## stubhead (Apr 14, 2008)

There's a lot to be said for picking out one method and sticking with it, but you do also owe it to yourself to give them all a serious try before you narrow it down (Paul Gilbert spent a few _years_ learning sweep-picking before he abandoned it in favor of string skipping). People will tell you that's whatever feels "natural" is best, but it seems to me that playing a guitar is almost entirely an _un_natural process - "natural" is sitting in a cave and banging on a log with a stick. The bible for pick-holding is Tuck Andress's pages:

Tuck & Patti: Pick & Fingerstyle Techniques


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## wannabguitarist (Apr 18, 2008)

I used to hold my pick with three fingers but my right hand and forearm would get really tense after playing for a long time. I tried working through that and all that did was cause some uneven muscle growth between my right and left arms. When I switched over to the two finger way of picking most of my tension went away and it was a lot easier to pick.


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## guitarplayerone (Apr 18, 2008)

I want to point out that Steve Morse- while he is insanely talented (seen him with both the Dregs and Deep Purple), has tendonitis to the point where he cannot feel what he is playing (many interviews). 

I notice that the three-finger technique provides extreme control as far as accuracy goes, but lends itself to that MAB sort of hand positioning (which for me, leads to much more forearm and wrist stress)


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