Another guy needing guidance

I can’t do it at 150bpm and my hand looks bouncy, like the string is snagging or I am just picking incorrectly. I also feel like I am having trouble adjusting my center point and keeping it that way.

See below! The audio changes on the video when I pivot but it does not at home, so that should not a symptom of an issue as you’re viewing!

Edit: forgot to tag you @Troy

This. But don’t worry! We’ll get there. You’re still making the double-escape / possibly / probably stringhopping motion, not the single-escape motion. It’s a tough first step but I promise you everything after this first step will be far easier than this.

Do you have a phone that does slow motion and can you use that mode, and place it closer to your hand? This will give you a way of verifying for yourself that the motion is correct. Having this immediate feedback lets you try again right on the spot. There is no point in repeating or drilling anything if it’s wrong, so think of this as a big time-saver.

The first thing you should do is try and replicate what I’m doing at the 5:27 through 5:43 mark of that first chapter. Same arm position on the guitar, same diagonal motion path, same speed, same motion size. All of it. By size I mean, push harder, so the pick travels more distance in the same unit of time. It is hard to make a “large” stringhopping motion because stringhopping motions just go “up”. The only way you can travel a path that looks big and still looks like a straight line is if you are doing it correctly. So this is a kind of test. If you can make the same large, linear-appearing motions that I’m making at 5:27, then you know it’s not stringhopping because you will see the pick moving in a dead-straight line, right into the strings and back out again.

Thanks Troy! This helps a lot. I never thought about filming with one hand while playing so I’ll definitely do that. I have an iPhone 10 that should do the trick.

I feel like I’m copying as best I can but probably failing miserably at that haha. I’ll upload a few of my recordings once I try that out!

Definitely don’t do that! Always leads to super unnatural results. I just mean, put it on a tripod or tape it to a chair or something else that’s closer. Get it as “down the strings” as you can and close enough to see really clearly if the pick is moving in a straight line or a bouncy one. I think that’s the feedback you’re missing here.

Again, trying to go “big” may help shine some light on what it looks like when done correctly. We’d like to find a guaranteed fix for this problem because it’s common and affects players of all musical skill levels and years of experience.

oh man, thanks for catching so soon. I will see what I can do!!

@Troy Here is where I’m at. I am having a rough time mirroring you.

Couldn’t get good placement with the slomo camera so I hope the front facing one will do.

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Hi Matt! Sorry you’re having all this trouble. You’re definitely still doing the double escape motion here, where the downstroke is going up in the air. I’m also noticing that you’re not touching the guitar body at all, which is unusual. I definitely rest on the body. And I can’t tell what your approach angle is here, or whether you’re doing the ulnar offset the same way I’m doing it in the lessons.

So let’s try this. In the interest of eliminating as many variables as possible, here are two pictures from the lesson chapter taken from around the 5:30 mark. See if you can match this form exactly. The first picture is the start of the downstroke, and the second photo is the end of the downstroke:


First, take a look at the Magnet side of the image. I’m using the most compact trigger-style grip here, where the pick placed somewhere between the far knuckle and the middle knuckle, and the index finger is curled back underneath so you don’t hit the strings. This grip isn’t magic and other grips do work, but in the interest of eliminating variables, use the grip I’m using even if it’s new to you. Sometimes that’s a good thing, and can feel just weird enough that you break out of whatever habits you currently have. I love changing up grips for this reason. Just make sure you have enough grip exposure that you can still reach the strings. Approximately as much grip exposure as I’m using here is a good start, especially if you’re using a larger pick. You still still have plenty to hold on to.

Second, take a look at the left side of the image. If you think of the circular Star Wars logo on my shirt like a clock face, my forearm is not coming in straight down from above at 12 o’clock. I’m coming in more at like 10:30. My guitar is a little tilted and the neck isn’t totally level with the ground. Don’t worry about that. Just worry about the position of the forearm compared to the logo. Try to replicate this approach angle.

If you look at the Magnet shot at the right, you can see I’m resting on the body with my forearm and my palm heels are also resting on the bridge and strings. Your resting points might be slightly different but the key is that there are two points of contact and that’s good. Try to replicate this. You’re just resting, there should be no effort required to do this.

Now look at the left side of the image again. See how at the start of the downstroke my forearm and hand are in a straight line. Then at the end of the downstroke, the wrist is slightly bent toward the ulna or pinky. That’s the range of motion, straight, then ulna, then back to straight again. What we don’t want is a range of motion where the wrist starts out bent toward the thumb, i.e. radial deviation, then goes goes down to about straight, then goes back up to thumb / radial again. We want the motion to go straight, ulnar side, and back to straight again.

Finally look at the right side of the image again. At the start of the downstroke, the pick is in the air. At the end of the downstroke, the pick is resting on the B string. That’s the motion path we want. A straight shot into the strings, to where it hits the B string, then a straight shot back out again. You should be able to feel this B string contact. If you can’t, push a tiny bit harder until you feel it. But don’t kill yourself, this should feel easy.

Try and replicate all these details. Do it sitting down if that’s what you need to do to get the same form, including anchor points and approach angle. I don’t know which of these details are the problem spot, but at the very least we should start with being as identical as possible, so that the only remaining difference is the motion.

Once you have all this, do the motion at the speed I’m doing it in the lesson at about 5:35 or so. Film it and verify it is correct, and that you are hitting the B string and coming straight back out again. If you can do it that fast, you can do it as fast as you can move.

Finally, one more thing. Keeping all these parts exactly the same as they are in this test, try the downstroke escape motion. The only difference is that for this motion, you rest stroke on the lower string. So if you’re picking on the G string, the rest stroke is the D string, and the downstroke escapes over the top of the B string. No other difference in form. Refer to the Downstroke Escape chapter if you want to see what the motion looks like. But the form is identical.

Based on what I’m seeing, I’m totally sure you can do both of these motions and it’s just a matter of getting all the parts set up and then making the motion. I want to make sure we’re giving you the clearest possible instructions for the shortest path to getting where you need to go.

Give this a shot and let us know how you make out.

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Scratch that. We just put up a new page in the Pickslanting Primer with a more detailed version of what I’ve written here, with better visuals. Let us know if this helps:

@Troy awesome thank you for this incredible reply and the new content. I’ll check it out and hopefully post tonight.

I had no idea my arm was lifted until you said something. Sorry if the back and forth is frustrating - there’s just something about how my body works that my brain is always looking to fix (you can tell that makes me a star athlete with perfect hand eye coordination).

I’ve really appreciated your patience and support.

I’ve also ordered a clamp for my phone to help with recording moving forward. I’ll report back soon!