New Member; What is up with my picking technique(s)?

Playing Technique
#1

Hey guys, big fan of the videos Troy has put together. I’ve always had a bit of a nagging feeling in the back of my mind about my picking technique and how it always seems to change from year to year without my conscious input. I was originally an elbow picker as a teenager then re-learnt my technique from scratch around 2006 or so (at about 15 years old).

I uploaded a recent guitar solo to YouTube and filmed it and noticed that I switch picking techniques/angles multiple times, I’m wondering which of the few (mainly on the alternate picked stuff) is for the best, for instance at the end my picking hand approaches a near Marty Friedman “hook” type technique, yet in other passages it’s as loose as a goose with 1 pick per string type lines.

Would really appreciate some feedback from some people who’ve really analysed and understand picking technique and ergonomic motion etc…

Cheers from the UK!

I have some older videos, and some from around 2011 have what I consider way cleaner/more precise alternate picking technique, but I’m not sure what I’ve changed and what went wrong over the years haha…

#2

For instance, video from 2014 which has way faster/cleaner/seemingly more relaxed picking;

#3

Video from 2008 (would’ve been 17 years old at the time) where my picking is definitely faster and cleaner than today), forgive the horrid vibrato and such haha… I’m definitely happier with my playing today but it would be nice to be able to tap into the picking technique I had back then and seemingly lost;

#4

Hey @AJD_Music, great playing in all these clips!

If there’s anything you want specific feedback on, feel free to create a technique critique thread. I’ll attach below our filming instructions to make the most of it. Also, it’s typically easier for us and the other forummers to give feedback on a short video focusing on something very specific, like a short riff that you repeat 4-5 times.

For example:

“here is a clip of me playing lick X, my picking get uncomfortable at notes Y Z W, please help” - or something like that :slight_smile:

1 Like
#5

Thanks very much mate!

I’ll look into trying to film some more analytic type footage with a better view, although my picking technique seems to change in context to what I’m playing so often that it’s hard to pinpoint what I would actually be trying to demonstrate and how to consciously use a certain type of picking technique.

But whatever it is I’m doing now and I know my pure alternate picking is much more of a struggle than it used to be, just wish I knew what I was doing to make it much more efficient haha… maybe it’s just a tension thing. I’ve had periods in the past where I had a bit of “tennis elbow” type ache from too much playing guitar and using the mouse and keyboard all day at the computer etc… managed to mainly resolve it through changing my diet but it might be a sign that I tend to hold tension in my elbow(s).