Originally Posted by: amark16Hey guys,
I've been working on my lead technique lately as i want to build up speed and precision in my playing. Im having great difficulty getting the hang of pull offs. the internet is full of trills and simple exercises but the actual technique is killing me. I know you have to "pluck" the string with the pulling-off finger, no problems with that. my problem is that in many licks, especially when descending (on a pentatonic scale for example), i have no time placing both my fingers in time to perform the pull off, if you know what i mean. How do u suggest i tackle that?

Part of the problem is the "pluck," even though this is the most common method of pull-off it is certainly not fully explained in terms of speed and execution, because when doing descending scales, your fingers which are plucking are generally moving in the opposite direction as the motion in the scale. The pluck does not necessarily have to be this giant downward pull. As your speed develops, the downward pluck should be strong enough to carry an even-sound but as small as possible (which CSegel alluded to). This can be achieved through almost a "circular motion" whereas the finger once it plucks the string almost immediate heads in the direction of where it needs to be next.

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