# Correct way of holding a plectrum



## WildWayz (Aug 28, 2007)

Hi guys

I have been playing guitar on and off for the last urm 15 years and I recently started lessons again after a break of about 4 years.

Anyway, my new teacher picked up on the fact that the way I hold my pick isnt the 'correct' way of doing it.

I tend to hold it with the tip of my thumb and index finger with the point of the pick pointing towards the tip of my finger.

He said that I should hold it with my index finger curled around the back of my thumb with the pick point 90 degrees from the bottom of my thumb.

Is this the 'correct way'?

Does anyone have any photos of how they hold it?

Ta!

James


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## Pirelli (Aug 28, 2007)

The way your teacher is recommending is standard in my opinion, although I don't claim to be an expert. 

If the way you're holding it works for you, don't change just for the sake of changing, but if you're having difficulty with some things, experimenting with different ways of holding the pick can't be bad.

Check out this short Paul Gilbert clip, he explains it pretty well, and it's always easier to see it performed rather than described.

YouTube - paul gilbert fast licks and teaches pick angle

Sorry, I'm not sure how to embed it, maybe someone else can help me out there.


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## WildWayz (Aug 28, 2007)

Thanks! Will check that out tonight when I get home 

This is how you embed it:
(if HTML is enabled)

ooops looks like the forum is blocking HTML on the forums


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## JJ Rodriguez (Aug 28, 2007)

I imagine the way you were holding it might put some strain on your wrists if you were playing fast. If it worked for 15 years for you, and you didn't have any pains or other problems with your wrists, then there's no real point in changing, unless you find the "standard" more comfortable and easier to play with.


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## nitelightboy (Aug 28, 2007)

The way your teacher told you is the "standard" way of holding it. However, as with anything guitar related, it's all about personal preference. If it works for you and doesn't negativelt impact your playing, then go for it. The way you hold your pic worked for you for a long time, so why change it now?


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## WildWayz (Aug 28, 2007)

Thanks guys. I think I will keep on with the 'new' way - it did feel comfortable after a short while and it does make playing a bit more natural...

Thanks again


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## Mikey D (Aug 28, 2007)

A really interesting article on pick holding can be read here. By Jazz guitarist Tuck Andress:

Picking Questions


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## distressed_romeo (Aug 28, 2007)

iBreatheMusic.com - 99 Ways To Pick by Eric Vandenberg

Here's another article that might be useful. Not as comprehensive as the Tuck Andress article (which is the most comprehensive breakdown of picking technique I've ever seen), but still some good info.


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## Groff (Aug 28, 2007)

You should pick however you feel most comfortable.

My friend holds his picks with THREE fingers and he has no trouble playing.

...He also plays Nu-Metal which I don't suppose you need any proper technique to play, but he can speed pick and jump strings with no problem at all.

The point is he's comfortable.


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## MetalSir (Aug 28, 2007)

Pirelli said:


> (..)
> If the way you're holding it works for you, don't change just for the sake of changing, but if you're having difficulty with some things, experimenting with different ways of holding the pick can't be bad.(..)



i think the same.. i mind that what all the great guitarrist says on them istructional vids is: "hold the picks whatever you want. just 2 conditions: it must be confortable for you and it must works right"

=)


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## Jongpil Yun (Aug 29, 2007)

That would be the "standard" method of holding the pick (damn near everybody holds it that way). For the record the way I hold the pick I stole from Shawn Lane, mainly because he was the fastest economy picker I'd ever seen (probably still is today). It might look like I'm holding the pick with three fingers, but it's just two. I accidentally switched picks between the pictures too (first is a big stubby, second is a jazz III).


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## WildWayz (Aug 30, 2007)

that looks like you are playing with the thin edge of the pick - is that right?


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## Jongpil Yun (Aug 31, 2007)

WildWayz said:


> that looks like you are playing with the thin edge of the pick - is that right?



Yup.


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## CoachZ (Aug 31, 2007)

Tuck & Patti: Pick & Fingerstyle Techniques

This is also a very useful article. Hope it helps.


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## jaxadam (Aug 31, 2007)

WildWayz said:


> Hi guys
> 
> I have been playing guitar on and off for the last urm 15 years and I recently started lessons again after a break of about 4 years.
> 
> ...



They way you are describing it, you hold the pick like Steve Morse, and he's no slouch.

I used to hold the pick this same way (15 years ago), my guitar teacher pointed it out, but never told me I needed to correct it. 

Anyway, I slowly gravitated towards the way I hold it now, which is "standard" plectrum perpendicular to thumb. It hasn't made much of a difference, it's all in what you're comfortable with.


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## MetalSir (Sep 1, 2007)

Jongpil Yun said:


> That would be the "standard" method of holding the pick (damn near everybody holds it that way). (..)



ahahah!! i found finally a man that hold the pick like me!! ahah.. no man.. isn't the way that everybody uses.. is exactly reverted! =)

here is my way of holding it.. see here.. would be the same!


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## Nick (Sep 1, 2007)

i hold my pick with my thumb and my index....and middle finger....:S

apparently this is the 'hetfield way' Never having been into metallica and wouldnt know and if it is true has happened totally by chance. 

i cant play for shit holding it the 'standard' way.

the way you hold a pick is deffinetly something that is personal preference


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## distressed_romeo (Sep 1, 2007)

Nick said:


> i hold my pick with my thumb and my index....and middle finger....:S
> 
> apparently this is the 'hetfield way' Never having been into metallica and wouldnt know and if it is true has happened totally by chance.
> 
> ...



That's the Carlos Santana/Steve Morse/Pat Metheny method as well. I've experimented with it in the past, as an addition to my regular picking style. I found that, for me, it's great for cross-picking, and gives huge amounts of projection on acoustic guitar, but makes sweeping and economy picking really awkward.
I've always liked the tone the reverse-angled pick gives for alternate picking (Chris Amott does it as well; check out the video for 'The Immortal' by Arch Enemy, where you can see it clearly during the solo), but I've never really gotten comfortable with it.


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## TomAwesome (Sep 1, 2007)

I used the Santana style of pick holding for 5 or so of the ~7 years I've been playing. Then I joined a band and had to get tighter with my double/triple picking. It took me a while to get used to it, but after I switched over to the "standard" pick holding position, I found my playing was a lot tighter and better defined. I can see where the other way might be better for some styles of playing, but this way definitely seems to work better for metal.


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## MetalSir (Sep 1, 2007)

distressed_romeo said:


> That's the Carlos Santana/Steve Morse/Pat Metheny method as well.



are you speaking about my method of holding the pick? =)

i don't know.. this is the reason why i tell some posts ago that holding the pick is really a personal choice.. and i mind that even the size, the shape and the thickness of the pick are personal choice..
I can't play with a wide and thin pick.. I need to have a solid handle and at the same time the tip of the pick must be very close to my thumb..

i can play only with dunlop's 2.0mm stubby..





now i must go or my girlfriend will kill me..


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## Jongpil Yun (Sep 1, 2007)

MetalSir said:


> ahahah!! i found finally a man that hold the pick like me!!





That's pretty much the video that prompted me to start picking that way.


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## distressed_romeo (Sep 2, 2007)

Here's another example...check out Chris Amott's guitar solo...



I had another play with this style of picking last night, and had pretty much the same impressions as before; I love the way it makes certain licks sound, but I don't think it'll ever replace my default style. Still, it makes a cool 'secret weapon'.


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## MetalSir (Sep 2, 2007)

distressed_romeo said:


> Still, it makes a cool 'secret weapon'.


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## Jongpil Yun (Sep 3, 2007)

Regardless of technique, MetalSir has some pretty damn crazy picking chops. The chromatic black licks video =


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## MetalSir (Sep 5, 2007)

Jongpil Yun said:


> Regardless of technique, MetalSir has some pretty damn crazy picking chops. The chromatic black licks video =



 oh, tks man.. =)

i hold it more or less vertically.. but just reverted drom traditional orientation.. i don't know.. i feel more relaxed in this way.. i have no tension in my right arm.. the other way of holding pick (the "common" way) stress my arm a lot.. and more stress mean less duration in time e more risk to tendonitis.. =)

but as i said before hold the pick is something like adjusting the front seat on your car when you have to drive.. anther man can say that it sucks, but is your way!! =)


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## stubhead (Sep 5, 2007)

In the Tuck Andress article, he makes the point that you should be at least conversant with _all_ the ways - it can't hurt you to try one for a full month, then another etc., if you have to revert to your "normal" style for gigs or band, no problem. To save you having to buy the vids, Steve Morse talks about trying all the different picking methods, even after playing one way for a long time - who knows, in ten years you might want a change. Eric Johnson seems to use every type of picking, depending on the circumstance. Paul Gilbert talks about really, really seriously working up his sweep chops before he decided to concentrate on string-skipping. The main questions I'd try to answer in your experiments are clean string-skipping, being able to play odd numbers of notes without getting backwards, and stamina.


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## distressed_romeo (Sep 5, 2007)

stubhead said:


> In the Tuck Andress article, he makes the point that you should be at least conversant with _all_ the ways - it can't hurt you to try one for a full month, then another etc., if you have to revert to your "normal" style for gigs or band, no problem. To save you having to buy the vids, Steve Morse talks about trying all the different picking methods, even after playing one way for a long time - who knows, in ten years you might want a change. Eric Johnson seems to use every type of picking, depending on the circumstance. Paul Gilbert talks about really, really seriously working up his sweep chops before he decided to concentrate on string-skipping. The main questions I'd try to answer in your experiments are clean string-skipping, being able to play odd numbers of notes without getting backwards, and stamina.



 Speaking from personal experience, I put off trying economy picking for ages, until I realised that some licks were only working for me because my hands naturally started economy picking them; nowadays I use both alternate and economy picking, which gives me a lot of options in terms of note-groupings, tone and phrasing.


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## MetalSir (Sep 5, 2007)

stubhead said:


> In the Tuck Andress article, he makes the point that you should be at least conversant with _all_ the ways - it can't hurt you to try one for a full month, then another etc., if you have to revert to your "normal" style for gigs or band, no problem. To save you having to buy the vids, Steve Morse talks about trying all the different picking methods, even after playing one way for a long time - who knows, in ten years you might want a change. Eric Johnson seems to use every type of picking, depending on the circumstance. Paul Gilbert talks about really, really seriously working up his sweep chops before he decided to concentrate on string-skipping. The main questions I'd try to answer in your experiments are clean string-skipping, being able to play odd numbers of notes without getting backwards, and stamina.



you are perfectly right! but i was talking about alternate picking.. it's obvius that when i sweep up and down, or i make arpeggios or string skiping i change my way of holding the pick.. eheh.. i mind that with my reverted holdin' pick is impossible to sweep down.. =)

the technic involving the pick are, i mind, some of the most important for to have a clean sound.. it's normal to work on.. =)

for me it's important to respect *3 rulez*:

*# comfortable holding
# clean sound
# economy of motion*

if i can do it with my sx feet so i'll play with my feet till i find a better way to do it! =)


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## Faz (Sep 5, 2007)

dunno if he's been mentioned, but you seen how Marty Friedman holds his pick!? :S so weird...

But apparenlty he cant palm mute since the way his palm is when playing, so he used some machine to replicate the sound i think.

There's a video on youtube of him explaining it


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## includao (Sep 6, 2007)

http://www.sevenstring.org/forum/music-theory-lessons-techniques/17135-shawn-lane-tone.html


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## Jongpil Yun (Sep 6, 2007)

I actually hate Shawn Lane's tone -- it's too saturated, wet, delay-filled, and pretty much lacks any kind of dynamics. Thankfully my picking approach doesn't make me sound like him.


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## The Hiryuu (Sep 6, 2007)

Nick said:


> i hold my pick with my thumb and my index....and middle finger....:S
> 
> apparently this is the 'hetfield way' Never having been into metallica and wouldnt know and if it is true has happened totally by chance.



I do it the same way. And yes, Hetfield does as well.


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## Desi (Sep 6, 2007)

AGH! Help me. I try to hold the pick Shawn Lane style, but it tends to catch the string at higher speeds. I normally hold the pick the 'standard' way, but I'm experimenting with the SL method as it's a lot easier on my wrist and arm. 

I suffered a wrist accident when I was 13 and it affects my picking motion, so doing it SL style helps a lot, but I'm having trouble getting the pick to not get caught. Is this just a matter of rigorous practice? I hope so, as holding the pick the reversed way feels comfortable.


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## Jongpil Yun (Sep 6, 2007)

Desi said:


> AGH! Help me. I try to hold the pick Shawn Lane style, but it tends to catch the string at higher speeds. I normally hold the pick the 'standard' way, but I'm experimenting with the SL method as it's a lot easier on my wrist and arm.
> 
> I suffered a wrist accident when I was 13 and it affects my picking motion, so doing it SL style helps a lot, but I'm having trouble getting the pick to not get caught. Is this just a matter of rigorous practice? I hope so, as holding the pick the reversed way feels comfortable.



It's a combination of things. Probably the most important is to use a good pick. 

http://www.sevenstring.org/forum/gear-equipment/35910-new-favorite-pick.html

Coincidentally, MetalSir seems to use the same pick.


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## Desi (Sep 7, 2007)

I dug though my collection of picks and found a 2.0 mm Stubby. I normally use the green Tortex and the Ultex Jazz III, but decided to change just to see if a different pick would bring different results. The pick still catches the string on the upstroke, hampering my speed. What I like about reversing the tilt of the pick is the attack on the string it provides. 

I want to continue using this method, but it's a bit frustrating to not be able to breeze through a passage without the pick choking on a string.


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## Jongpil Yun (Sep 7, 2007)

All I can say then is keep at it. I had the same problem initially but you'll gradually adjust your picking angle until it clicks, I think.


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## Desi (Sep 8, 2007)

Thanks for the advice, Jongpil Yun. I'll definitely keep trying.


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