Ok so, I'm practicing learning notes as from the absolute beginner page, Em, E, etc. I noticed David spoke about that "clunk" sound and I am hearing it on certain notes and for the life of me am having trouble just stretching/arching those fingers so they don't touch the other string/s. I've cut my fingernails down enough so I can actually put the tip on the string/fret. So my question is, will my fingers gradually stretch or be able to arch enough where I'm not touching the other strings or will I just "get it" at some point after much patience and practice? :D Thanks you guys!
you will just wake up one day.....pick up your guitar....and it will sound sweet.....honest :lol:
They will absolutely be able to arch enough to hit the strings cleanly. It just takes practise. Sometimes we hold the neck in a death grip and that doesn't allow the fingers to arch. When we relax a little and move the palm off the neck using our thumb as the suppport, it allows the fingers to have a more direct path to the strings. Good luck.
Denny
Yeah, I am not educated enough to know why.. but it will happen. I know it was hard for me and I have large hands.. so I think it doesnt matter than much.
Someone posted a YouTube vid with an Asian lady playing a classical guitar and she was awsome. You can do it!!
Jim
“The hardest thing in life is to know which bridge to cross and which to burn” - David Russell (Scottish classical Guitarist. b.1942)
Bit of both really. Your fingers do stretch over time but one day you'll probably find you pick up the guitar and can do something you couldn't do the night before. But then again you may find a week later it's not so easy again :) thats how i've found it.
One thing I would say though is work on good technique constantly. Don't get sloppy and lazy, try and do it the right way, which may not necesarily be the easiest at first. I think I got lazy and tried to shortcut and rush to begin with. I'm now trying to do things properly and accurately, and it's like starting pretty much all over again, almost a year after I started.
It's gonna take practice but it does come, you just need to be patient. Which unfortunately I haven't been.
Took me a lot of practice to get clean strings. I still have trouble with some barre chords. Also I notice I have a clunky sound if I hold my pick to tight. I have to remember to relax both hands.
Thank you all, I may need to relax my gi joe kung fu grip on the neck...I forgot to mention I have small hands/short fingers - like @2 3/4" lol
Not sure what you mean by practicing notes like Em, E...Em isn't a note it's a chord. So are you having trouble with some of the strings sounding dead when you are fingering chords?
It's just about practice but you do need to realize how your finges are hitting the fretboard and make sure they are coming straight down on the strings and not laying across the others. This just takes practice, practice, practice.
As for finger size I don't think that's a problem. My pinky is about 2.5" and the others are alittle bit longer but that shouldn't be an issue.
"It's all about stickin it to the man!"
It's a long way to the top if you want to rock n roll!
Relaxing is a big part of it and sometimes it's not the easiest thing to learn. When you grip hard, and especially if you're getting your thumb wrapped around the neck (and if you can do that then your fingers are not short), you actually pull your fingers down and away from the fretboard and that makes getting the leverage to arch your fingers almost impossible.
A good test is to try to not feel the lower edge of the neck of the guitar (the side closest to the floor) at all along the palm of your fretting hand. If you have room to put a pencil or anything between your hand and the lower edge of the neck, then you should have plenty of space to arch your fingers.
Part of it may also be how you'rr sitting. Many people rest their guitars on their right legs (if they're right handed) and then use their left leg as a "wrist rest." This too makes it very hard to get your hand comfortably around the neck and to get good positioning. Sitting up fairly straight and not curling yourself up around your guitar, will help as well. Please understand that without being able to see you play there are a lot of minor corrections one might suggest.
If I remember correctly, you have a smaller body guitar, correct? You might want to try holding it in a "classical" position to get started. This is when you place the guitar on your left leg (if you're right handed) and preferable have the leg elevated slightly. There are footstools for this but a small shoebox is also about the right height. Sitting this way will automatically give you both the posture and the arm positioning that's optimal for placing your fingers on the fretboard.
Hope that some of this helps. Hang in there, though. You'll get through this before you know it and it won't be long before you're posting advice for someone with this very same question! :wink:
Peace
Thanks David, I have 51 and am not using my left leg as a wrist rest lol, I don't think I could see if I did that. I'm going to try moving my thumb and adjusting my grip. Do you think a strap would be a huge help so I'm not trying to hold onto the neck so much? It seems like it would help. Thanks again all :D <3
Yes a Strap will help. You shouldn't be holding the neck at all with your fretting hand.
Relaxing and practice relaxing amongst other things will help out a lot.
Don't "FRET" over it. It will come in time. :)
Research is what I'm doing when I don't know what I'm doing. - Wernher Von Braun (1912-1977)
Thanks David, I have 51 and am not using my left leg as a wrist rest lol, I don't think I could see if I did that. I'm going to try moving my thumb and adjusting my grip. Do you think a strap would be a huge help so I'm not trying to hold onto the neck so much? It seems like it would help. Thanks again all :D <3
Eirraca, one of the best pieces of advice I've received was out of a book and it helped me so much that I keep repeating it.
It said to always use a strap, even when seated. It allows you much more freedom of movement, to not have to be concerned about the guitar dropping or sliding off your lap.
Experienced players may not need to always use a strap, but it sure helps me at this point.
Margaret
When my mind is free, you know a melody can move me
And when I'm feelin' blue, the guitar's comin' through to soothe me ~
Thanks David, I have 51 and am not using my left leg as a wrist rest lol, I don't think I could see if I did that. I'm going to try moving my thumb and adjusting my grip. Do you think a strap would be a huge help so I'm not trying to hold onto the neck so much? It seems like it would help. Thanks again all :D <3
Eirraca, one of the best pieces of advice I've received was out of a book and it helped me so much that I keep repeating it.
It said to always use a strap, even when seated. It allows you much more freedom of movement, to not have to be concerned about the guitar dropping or sliding off your lap.
Experienced players may not need to always use a strap, but it sure helps me at this point.
Margaret
GREAT advice Margaret.......also to add that as a beginner one naturally needs to angle the guitar too see what the hands are doing...its the novice haunch i guess....this creates the problem of reach as the fingers have to stretch further.....also to add....my calluses have formed grooves now....so my fingers naturally drop correctly in the clean position....be patient Eirrica
For the first time ever I tried the 'classical' guitar position, it just seems so odd (I generally put the guitar on my right leg when sitting) and I gotta say, I like it, it felt a great deal more comfortable for my fretting hand to play like that (both on bass and guitar). I generally stand when playing a lot but since I've been recording a lot lately I'm almost always sitting down at my computer.
A good test is to try to not feel the lower edge of the neck of the guitar (the side closest to the floor) at all along the palm of your fretting hand. If you have room to put a pencil or anything between your hand and the lower edge of the neck, then you should have plenty of space to arch your fingers.
Wow! Thank you David. I've been having ongoing soreness in my fretting hand index finger. It 'only hurts when I play' but it's been there everytime.
I concentrated on what you posted above when I practiced yesterday and today, for the first time in more than a month, there isn't even a hint of discomfort.
I think, despite having a good thumb position, my fretting fingers have been more clenched than arched, leading to a lot of tension. Everything rang cleaner with less pressure applied as well.
:)
Don
