The guitar is an instrument that attracts many people, as it is a classical instrument. But there is more than one type of guitar; there are six strings guitars, four-string bass guitars, twelve strings guitars for fingerstyle acoustic guitars. There are a lot of choices for you to choose from when starting your journey of learning guitar. Today, with the help of this article, we will show you the importance of learning fingerstyle guitar and how it can help you play some of the complex songs on guitar with ease, so let's begin.
Why should one learn fingerstyle guitar?
Fingerstyle play can be done on both acoustic and electric guitar as both create a unique sound when played this way. In most cases, when you learn fingerstyle guitar, you will see the tunes that come out of your guitar will tend to sound more like a piano tune. This is because, with fingerstyle, you will play both the bass parts and melody parts of the music simultaneously. Lessons on fingerstyle acoustic guitar could be a little daunting at the start but don't worry, and you could take a step back and pace your learning according to your speed.
Is it challenging to learn fingerstyle guitar?
See, when you are playing a fingerstyle guitar, you are not using the plectrum, commonly known as the pick. Instead, you will use your fingers of the picking hand to pluck and strum the strings of your guitar. This is the main difference between the strumming guitar technique and learning the fingerstyle guitar technique. A lot of time, when a musician is thinking about learning fingerstyle guitar, they often look intrigued by the performances of Tommy Emmanuel and Andy McKee. The thing is, playing what they are playing and how they are playing requires mastering fingerstyle guitar.
The arrangements you have seen in the videos are pretty complex, and it combines a variety of guitar styles along with the addition of both right-hand and left-hand techniques. Apart from this, these are some of the best fingerstyle guitarists in the world and have been refining their chops for a long time. As a result, you could see them playing fingerstyle guitar with such speed and fluidity. The honest answer we can give you is that no fingerstyle guitar is not difficult, but you are not going to play like those legends in your first few months of practice.
How do you play guitar using the finger styling technique? A step-by-step guide?
Below is the step-by-step guide on how you can master the old technique of playing guitar which has been around since the 19th century. We will provide you with five quick steps to help you get started on this journey in no time and help you master the basics of fingerstyle acoustic guitar play. If you follow these guidelines, the whole task of learning fingerstyle guitar will become much easier and straightforward, so do follow these steps correctly and see the results yourself.
Step - 1 Have a right fingerstyle guitar.
One needs to know which fingerstyle guitar is an excellent option for them. Keep in mind that fingerstyle and fingerpicking can be used interchangeably, and each carries a slightly different idea. Fingerstyle covers more than one style, which includes jazz and classical guitar techniques. We recommend you start with the acoustic guitar for fingerstyle. This is because acoustic guitars are designed in a very complex manner, so they can highlight each and every note that a person plays on them. As a result, acoustic guitar compliments the fingerstyle guitar technique.
Step - 2 Position your right hand carefully.
The second step is to make your mind remember your right-hand positions in specific ways. With a fingerstyle guitar, you will be more focused on playing strings with your right hand. In the strumming technique, you will be using the right hand for plucking the strings. You should assign each finger with letters. On the other hand, the left-hand fingers will be associated with numbers. PIMA is an excellent Spanish fingerstyle technique, and it goes like this.
- Pulgar (thumb) = 4th, 5th, 6th strings
- Indice (index) = 3rd string
- Medio (middle) = 2nd string
- Annular (ring finger) = 1st string
For the left hand, you can use T,1,2,3 for each of your fingers, or you can go with the following:
- Thumb = 4th, 5th, 6th strings
- Index = 3rd string
- Middle = 2nd string
- Ring = 1st string
One thing to note here is that the pinky finger in the Spanish fingerstyle technique does not pluck any strings.
Step - 3 Start with strumming with a free stroke
Once you understand where to put your fingers of both hands on the guitar, now it's time to stroke the strings of your guitar. In fingerstyle, the strokes are known as free strokes. To make this stroke, you need to consist of each of your fingers with tip, middle, and knuckle. You need to make a circular moment with your thumb as it shifts downward and outward.
Remember to learn one pattern at a time, not the whole song. This means you should start practicing right-hand patterns by playing simple, open, and picking chords. Start slow, repeat, and gradually build up until you get to play the same pattern with no mistakes.
Step - 4 Learn some rolling exercises.
Rolling is a little bit challenging at first, so we want you to spend a little more time mastering it. In the rolling technique of fingerstyle, your fingers will go up and down the strings while they are playing the specific chord. Given below are three different rolling exercises you can do to master this technique.
Rolling up exercise
First is rolling up; you need to start slow, as the goal here is to sound as clean as possible while doing it. If you want, you can anchor your hand on the body of your guitar with the help of your wrist.
Rolling down exercise
For some guitarists, this is another challenging task to do, so there is no rush in any way. You should try playing this specific exercise below.
Rolling exercise
After you are comfortable with both upward rolling and downward rolling, the following technique to learn is combining these two in order to perform the rolling exercise.
Practice more with simple chords and use a metronome.
By this, you might have learned that fingerstyle techniques will require you to have more focused playing from the right hand. As a result, we recommend you learn and practice patterns with only open strings while keeping a metronome device near you. Also, if possible, you should avoid using your left hand for the moment. With the metronome, you will learn rhythmic skills because it is vital to play in rhythm when you are following the fingerstyle guitar technique.