Tony’s Acoustic Challenge – The New Way to Learn Guitar › Family Forums › Community Support › nails for finger picking
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nails for finger picking
Posted by DanielC on April 28, 2021 at 6:46 amwhen finger picking,i just cant get the strings to sound out,, thumb is ok but not fingers,,i see alot of finger pickers with long nails,,,so does anyone use fake nails to play,,might be kinda silly to have 3 fingers with them,,any help please ,,
jmat replied 3 years, 9 months ago 5 Members · 7 Replies -
7 Replies
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There is a prescribed way of nail grooming for classical guitar
http://classicalguitar101.org/classical-guitar-nails.html#.YIlbc7VKjIUthere are fingerpicks that you wear of all sorts (including stick on)
then there is just growing your nails out just long enough for you to fingerpick comfortably.
I think Tony Covered some of this on an AT episode, though I am not sure which one, and I am not sure if it was the main topic.
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I don’t like to use my nails, because it just doesn’t feel good to me. I have finger picks, which I’m still trying to acclimate to, but for the most part I still just use the pads of my fingers.
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Hi There @DanielC , I have tissue paper fingernails so I am a pad player. I have integrated into my FP lessons a component of Dynamics training. Tony Polecastro did an interview with Pete Huttlinger (it is on the Acoustic Life web page) before he passed and one of the things Pete talked about was playing as loudly as he possibly could and quietly as he possibly could. I found this develops my mind muscle connection to the strings. In practice I explore the extremes, not that I would ever use that in playing but it helps calibrate my touch so that when I want more volume I can get it at will. I tried plectrums but gave up on those fairly quickly. It didn’t feel right for me. That said If you have not tried those give ’em a go and see what you think. You may find they are exactly what you are looking for.
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I have just signed up so new here. But saw this and I can offer some advice as I play with nails. Nail playing only works if you have nails that aren’t thin and don’t flex when they strike a string. So good nails are key. First you only need a 1or 2 mm (or no more than 1/16th of an inch) of nail extending beyond your fingers. Any more will impede your movement. Second, you need to file then and then shape them to take any corners off so that don’t catch the strings. Thirdly, get a nail manicure multi-grade nail buffer (from any good drug store) to smooth the nail edge. You can check if this works by running each nail sideways down a piece of nylon fleece. If it catches, you’re not done. Never cut the nails, always file them. Do the manicure no less than once a week but as often as needed. All this effort will give you the maximum fluidity in movement with less risk accidental string catching. Hope this helps.
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