I’m curious as to how smooth picking motion feels to people who can shred. I think a lot of people who can’t have a fundamental biomechanical problem in the way they are generating their pickstrokes on a neurologic level. I also hypothesize people who can shred have ingrained “multiples” of pickstrokes in their motor memory so a downstroke can trigger two or more pickstrokes as if they were one pickstroke.
Because it’s impossible to measure a feeling we have to rely on the individuals own reporting.
This isn’t really a template, but just some cues to help you think:
(Apart from defining whether you are a USX/DSX/DBX player)
1. The way I initiate my pick stroke is mostly felt in: (a) fingers, namely index or thumb (b) palm (c) thenar eminence (d) wrist (e) forearm (f) shoulder.
2. When I pick I’m holding the pick: (a) tight grip (nail bed goes white) (b) semi-tight grip (nail bed half white) (c) light grip (pick is very secure and would move minimally if you pluck the string, but nail bed is pink) (d) loose grip (pick wobbles when I pick)
3. When I’m playing a line on a single string I could: (a) go forever and don’t feel fatigued at all (b) I feel resistance against the string and can do this, but would get tired eventually and so on… and where you would feel it.
4. I think about each pick stroke individually or as multiples and if multiples, had to work on each iteration (2 notes, 3 notes, 4 notes per string etc.)
5. I think/don’t think about the string change: do you perceive it at all or is it just one flowing motion?
6, Is your forearm anchored on the belly of the guitar or not, if so, does it move up and down in the y-axis ONLY as you change strings or do you pick like a “clockface” from a single anchor point. Did you consciously work on one or the other?
7. Is it harder for you to pick on a single string on any particular string? e.g. Low E, high E.
Thanks!