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Finger Strengthening
Just finished the stretching class. Lots of good stuff there. I had noticed how relaxed Tony’s fingers are when he is showing us things. Mine seem to be sticking up spastically in all directions. I think that the stretching will help in that, but another thing is finger strength. I have to physically push down on the string so hard to get a good sound, I think my other fingers are trying to help me push down harder. So, does anyone have any exercises to strengthen your fingers? And please don’t say fingertip push-ups or hanging from a trapeze. 😝
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6 Replies
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Great question Cisco. Strength will come through regular practice, but Tony has some great finger strengthening videos in the Skills section in Your Next Six Chords. Under the regular video for the chords there are videos for strengthening your fingers. Great tool to build up strength.
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Two things come right to mind. The first thing I’d do is check my finger position in the fret. If the finger is too far back from the fret, it takes a lot more effort to get it to play cleanly, and conversely, if the finger is right on top of the fret, it will sound dead. There’s a sweet spot right behind the fret where it’s easy to press and it sounds nice.
The second thing is the guitar’s setup, broadly speaking. First thing is the strings. Lighter gauge string are softer than heavier gauge strings, and uncoated phosphor bronze strings are softer than coated strings, and nickel strings are softer than phosphor bronze strings. If you already have nice light and soft strings, then check the neck relief and the string height at the 12th fret. If it’s higher than about 7/64″ on the bass side, it’s almost certainly going to feel a bit stiff, and if working on your guitar doesn’t feel like a good idea, a good tech can get you sorted for not a lot of money. 🙂
Finally, the best finger exercise is playing. Work on your scales and your fingers will get stronger naturally, and so will your scales. 😁
Hope this helps!
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You’ve answered my dilemma on where to place my finger tip, whether on top of the fret (which indeed was giving me a dead sound) or in the middle. You stated that the ‘sweet’ spot was just behind the fret, great advice. Thanks so much
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Hi @Cisco , Today’s Speed Challenge is definitely a way to build finger strength👍 You don’t have to match the speed, just doing 4 hammer-ons and pull-offs in a row with each finger and repeating the pattern on each string is a heck of a work-out in itself😎
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Couldn’t agree more. I’m really getting into hammer ons and pull offs although the speed challenge is going to motor through at a pace I can’t even dream of at the moment. I will go back to the first time through a couple of weeks ago and just carry on at a pace that seems vaguely human!
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All good suggestions and I will try them all. Thanks for the help!
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