Fingers muting strings below.

[petelanger]

All you can do is arch your fingers, yes by getting the palm under the fretboard. The muting issue while playing open chords is something that resolves over time, new players struggle with it, and so does everyone else just not as much.

Is this about certain chords or are you on the daily challenge? Context would be helpful.

[petelanger]

There are a number of workarounds you could attempt and things to check:

1. Position: you want to play in the best possible position for comfort and ease to place your fingers properly. This is something you can play around with, raising the neck up, adjusting the shoulder and elbow. Certain chords may require you to come at the fretboard differently.
2. Pressure: when we’re learning we have a tendency to press very hard, trying to eliminate the buzzing or thuds. Getting the finger closer to the fret wire means less pressure will still work. We need to find that sweet spot where it’s a clean note but minimum pressure. This is still something I focus on everyday, because I still press to hard when making certain chords, like the D major.
3. Light strings: make it easier by using lighter strings. This will change the tone, but there are lots of options and you might find you like the brighter sound. Also, every guitar has it’s “soul mate” when it comes to the marriage between the guitar+player and strings. I recently switched my favorite guitar to D’Addario EJ11-3D Light Guage and I was absolutely floored how beautiful my guitar started sounding to my ears.
4. Tuning: @jorgemac should advise you here, but you can tune your guitar down a 1/2 step or even more, makes it much easier to fret. Great for practicing and I believe he said he slaps on a capo to play along with the challenges. I haven’t done this myself but I’m going to eventually.
5. Nails: always have the finger nails on your fretting hand trimmed as short as possible. This is essential for beginner players.
6. Based on your question I assume you are a new player. You may not have developed callouses on your finger tips. As you do, this will help with the issue of string muting.
7. Make sure you are fretting with the tips of your fingers, the strings should be making their indentation marks about 1/10 inch (2mm) from the finger nail. Much further than that and you’re fretting with the pads and that’s going to cause muting.

[gmhendersonme-com]

These are great suggestions. Since starting TAC in December, I’ve had to “re-learn” how to finger the strings, since I used to press more with the pads of my fingers. Even after almost a month, the tips of my fingers are calloused, but still sore, since that’s not where I’m used to putting my fingers. ( the slides with the middle finger from this week’s challenge were particularly hard !) Every week gets better, and I keep an emory board close to my guitar to keep those fingernails short.

[petelanger]

Oh yeah, I thought you might be referring to those slides in Friday’s verse. Slide not so bad but then doing the double triple stops with the diamonds – not at all easy. Gave me a whole heap of trouble. But it’s that struggle that really helps you grow. Took the guitar onto my TV couch and kept doing it over and over.
Don’t forget: in the struggles is where your learning (growth) is the greatest! Try to be happy when your struggling! I know it’s counter to what we think. Are you a believer? Similar principle: the trials are what mold us. We are the clay, He is the potter.

[jorgemac]

Pete, great stuff.

I like the tone of heavier strings but don’t like the fact that the strings take more finger tip pressure to produce that fuller tone of heavier strings.

I started with 10 gauge strings and now usually play .013/56. I found as i increased the string gauge I could put less tension on the strings if I tuned the strings down a half of a note to 1 1/2 notes per string. Much less string tension meant no sore fingers as my tips got used to the heavier gauges.

One of my early rock guitar hero’s was Lonnie Mack, A Memphis picker who was a huge influence on Stevie Ray. i noticed in his song books that he tuned his guitar’s Strings down up to a tone and a half when recording. While trying to learn his songs I began tuning my guitar down to try and emulate his sound. Never did actually copy his tone but i did learn how to tune down my guitar and found I liked the bassier tone this created.

I am currently playing .013 strings and am tuned down 3 half steps, treble to bass C#,G#, E, B, F#, C#. as I like the tone. It is easy to tune your string down if you have a headstock tuner on your guitar. This is an easy way to avoid sore finger tips when to increase the string size on your guitar. Just tune it down for a week as your finger tips will have less tension when holding down the fretted notes. Then you can tune it up a half step a week until you reach normal tuning. I can just capo up if playing with friends and they like the different tone my guitar has to their guitar tone. A nice blend of different guitar sounds.

It is hard to tune lighter strings down more than a half step, as they do not adjust to the less string tension as well as .012’s or .013’s do.

[jorgemac]

Joe, finger an A chord, strings B, G, D, Fretted on the third fret of your neck. use what I call the triangle finger shape. middle on B/3, index on G/3 and ring finger on D/3 fret.

Strum these 3 strings or use thumb, index and ring finger to pluck the strings. then light lift, less pressure but still in contact with your fretted fingers and strum or finger pick these strings again. you should be getting a muted tone.

Move to the E chord and repeat this and then the B7 chord, another triangle shape

Strings G/2, D/1 and A/2, repeat this. You can mostly use this method of muting when chord strings are adjacent to each other unless you are able to split/move your fingers to cover other chords that aren’t made with strings next to each other.

Palm muting takes much more practice to learn.

Are you located in the 805 area code area? I am located there.

[Joe D]

Thanks, yes 805 in Santa Barbara

[jorgemac]

I’m close by in Lompoc. We’ll have to pick together, when you feel more comfortable with your picking.

[NEVILLE M]

Hi all, I have just started and in week 3 of the challenge. I am finding that when I first pick up the guitar for the day I hit clear chords easily, but after 5mins I am struggling. I think the ends of my fingers are swelling up. Hopefully this will improve over the coming weeks.