Fingerpicking VS Flatpickin’

[staustin]

First and foremost the point of the Daily Challenges is to just keep you playing. Nearly everyone here has stories of stopping and starting guitar over the course of their lifetimes, TAC is offering a way to just keep you playing – 10 mins, 5 days a week by just following the program, don’t think about it. If you start picking and choosing the daily exercise I think that will cause disruptions, discontinuity and risk your ‘sobriety’. I’ve been on the program for 7 years and it works.

[OhWowMan]

@staustin Thank you for your feedback. I am not going to quit playing. I’m just considering taking a break from fingerpicking. That’s all. I’m going to keep playing guitar. I enjoy playing. And, I’m not giving up on TAC. I’m having fun. I’m making progress. I’m just not digging’ the fingerpicking right now, man. There’s a lot more to Tony’s Acoustic Challenge than just the Daily Challenges. Right?

[staustin]

You know another factor of course is age. I am 68 and am facing this – I can’t do everything, I have to choose. If you plan on playing and just choose to focus on the flat picking, and it looks like you are past 50 anyway, that’s a good strategy. Just save your favorite flatpicking exercises and repeat those on a fingerpicking day.

[Cadgirl]

I agree, the challenges are to get you up and moving with the guitar. But, I wouldn’t skip the finger-picking. There isn’t a law that you have to do the exercise for 10 minutes, just do it for a couple of minutes. If you can’t keep up with Tony at the slowest speed, that’s ok too. It will give your ears a chance to hear what is going on, one note at a time. Good luck.

[HowardM]

I agree, enjoy each lesson, and the time committed will grow with your knowledge. It is a beautiful journey, to which there is no end.

[OhWowMan]

@Cadgirl @HowardM At this stage in my guitar journey, Tony’s fingerpicking challenges are way too much for me to handle. I enjoy watching Tony’s instructional videos, but when it comes to fingerpicking, 10-minutes of frustration and not having fun is a real time-robber. It’s just not my jam. I firmly believe I should be spending my valuable time on something I’m truly interested in.

• This reply was modified 3 years, 7 months ago by  OhWowMan.

[Mrfredsporty]

Im just the opposite of you. Im so new to flat picking that I was also considering and in fact did skip a lot of flat picking. Then I tried Billy in the Lowground. I like it and am actually making some progress. For me the thing i liked is that its not a bunch of strumming but more like fingerpicking in that its individual notes. If I could Id like to encourage you to try fingerpicking just a little here and there. You might find that you can at least tolerate it a bit . The main thing for me is that it is one more tool in the toolbox and helps me just a little bit in growing my guitar geekiness😇

[Marty75]

When I first started playing guitar, I always used to flatpick. When I joined TAC, going on 5 years now, I wantd to learn how to fingerpick. I did and I love it. Now I do both depending on the song I am learning. Plus I learned how to use a thumb pick. Now that took some time getting use to. My next goal it to learn how to use finger picks with a thumb pick.

My point is, learn them all! Some are hard but they are worth the time learning. Just my two cents. 😊🧙‍♂️😎

[Kitman]

Hi @OhWowMan , both finger picking and flatpicking (or a hybrid) bery helpful to know as they bring a very different emotive style to the music you are playing. One of the right hand techniques tang has me a bit fascinated right now is the “claw hammer” technique as well as figuring out how the old blues masters played. So much to learn! 😃

[jumpinjeff]

Hi @OhWowMan , you got me with two concepts: Frustrated and not digging right now. I have been there. If we could figure out what is at the root of those two things we could get you back on your way to success at every turn. Any Ideas?

I am a flat picker myself but I have to acknowledge the benefit of doing the finger picking exercises. It develops kinesthetic awareness in a way that only “flatpicking” does not. I was having problems with bass note accuracy at one point. My fix was found in a finger picking exercise. The down stroke of the pick and the down stroke of the thumb are at its core very similar.

[OhWowMan]

@jumpinjeff Find the root of these things — frustrated and not diggin’ it? I would rather not go down that path. Fingerpicking is a struggle for me, often confusing, and not fun… So, I’d rather skip it for now. I’m not giving up on it, I’m just saving it for later. I’m more drawn to flatpicking. I’d rather spend time learning flatpicking and playing music that interests me, stimulates me, motivates me, and resonates with me. In the recent Acoustic Tuesday Show (episode 249), Tony said “find the things that you enjoy playing and follow those things.” That’s what I’m going to do.

[jumpinjeff]

I hear you @OhWowMan , my point at getting to the root of it will work for the Flatpicking too. I spent my time in the dark place flatpicking all the same until I got to the root of the cause of those two things. I hope you never get there and your path to flatpicking satisfaction is straightforward and the progress toward your goals comes easily.

• This reply was modified 3 years, 8 months ago by  jumpinjeff.

[OhWowMan]

@jumpinjeff Thank you for your good intentions and well wishes. I appreciate you taking the time to share your thoughts and suggestions. As to progress coming easily, I regret I missed that boat about 40-some years ago. That’s when I quit playing guitar, unfortunately. I’m sure I would have made significant gains in a short amount of time back then. Now I’m in my mid-sixties, and I’m dealing with arthritis, muscle deformities, and a host of other infirmities related to aging. Restarting and relearning guitar isn’t coming so easily, but it is coming! 🙂

[jumpinjeff]

Birds of a feather or rather maybe notes in a key? I am ever happy to share how I found ways to get down the road faster and more easily. I started guitar in earnest 7 years ago. Most of what slowed me down was my beliefs in what I could do or not. Hanging around here I blew up all those old beliefs and just played and the results have surprised the heck out of me. Way better than I could have ever imagined.

[N-lightMike]

Hello @OhWowMan ;

I tried skimming the other comments, but I have to confess I really didn’t read through them. Why? Because they were pushing you to do the finger picking lessons. NO!

Ok, I started TAC over 3 years ago. For the first 2 years I did the finger picking exercises by finger picking and the flat picking exercises by flat picking. Then I quit using a flat pick altogether. I used finger picking for the flat picking exercises.

Why and with what results?

My reasons were exactly the same as yours except that I wanted to do finger picking instead of flat picking. So, obviously, I think your reasons are valid.

So, the results? I have grown so much in finger picking, way beyond just doing finger picking lessons, including extra stuff I found on YouTube. I had to figure out how to use my fingers for the flat picking exercises. How could I do the same techniques with my fingers.

Recently, I started using a flat pick occasionally. Not again, but really for the first time. I have messed around with a flat pick before I came to TAC, and I mentioned I used to do the lessons with a flat pick. But I never played a song, ever, with a flat pick. Why? I don’t know, I just didn’t want to. Now, I am actually playing songs with a flat pick occasionally. And you know what? I’m good at using a flat pick. The strings are all in the same place and my hand has already learned where they are.

So my suggestion? Don’t do any finger picking until you feel like it. Maybe never. Use a flat pick for all the finger picking lessons. That is challenging and will hone your flat picking skills and take them to the next level.

And if you ever want to add finger picking? Well, your hand will already know where the stings are and you won’t have much trouble. And for now, you won’t feel as if your energies are being divided.

I hope you do what you want and not listen to what you “should” do. My opinion.

MG 😀

[HowardM]

I agree with you this is a journey.

[GerryB56]

Interesting discussion! After thinking about both sides of this one, I have to agree with those who essentially say to go where your heart wants you to go. Though I do try to tackle each day’s challenge, I don’t spend much time on the ones that frustrate me or hold little interest for me right now. There will be time later to work on those – but the primary goal here is to have fun and play every day, right? I want to learn fingerstyle eventually, but for now flat picking and strumming seem to come easier for me (not easy, just easier than fingerpicking). I realize that Tony’s system is designed to build our knowledge of music theory and help us put together the various “building blocks” of guitar playing. But sometimes I just want to learn songs, and how to insert little embellishments to make them sound more interesting. I understand that learning scales and acquiring fretboard knowledge are essential to becoming an accomplished player one day (in the far future, it feels like, alas!) But sometimes I feel like I’m running madly off in all directions. Guess we all have to decide what works for us. I’m just glad to have found this TAC community, and the motivation to keep on strumming every day!

[HowardM]

You are 100% correct and I feel that your journey never be complete but always interesting and fun. Great attitude.

[N-lightMike]

👍

[albert_d]

When I started TAC, I don’t think I had one flat picking song in my playlist. But just to have fun I went to the TAC vault and found one. It was fun. I found two. I added a crosspicking tune.

But I continued to also fingerpick. You aren’t resource constrained and it isn’t a competition.

So I do whatever comes up. I give it a try. Old Robert Johnson and Blues stuff. Tried it and it is fun too even though I am sorry at it. So my advice is to try whatever comes up. It’s only 10 minutes. To repeat…You are not resource constrained (and haven’t missed a meal unless on purpose). The saying is “Anything worth doing is worth doing poorly at first”.

[Cadgirl]

@albert_d , I forgot about the song vault. Here it is @OhWowMan , http://tacsongs.com/ . When you open it up there is a Fingerpicking side and a Flatpicking side. Select the icon for flatpicking. The songs come in Starter, Easy, Medium and Hard. I was a little surprised when I opened up the ‘starter’s thou. I thought they were a little advanced than I thought they would be. But, you be the judge of that. If you have any problems finding the tabs, post again and someone will tell you how to get them.