Pick control

So when strumming as I increase speed I seem to lose control of the pick. It slides sideways or seems to get stuck on strings? I have tried .50 - heavy picks maybe I'm digging too deep? strings 10-46 low action. Thouhgts?

Originally Posted by: Greg@Sun
So when strumming as I increase speed I seem to lose control of the pick. It slides sideways or seems to get stuck on strings? I have tried .50 - heavy picks maybe I'm digging too deep?

Digging too deep can be a problem. When I hear or see students having this problem I suggest two things to check & work on.

1. Lighter strumming. Try to lightly graze across the strings. You want to make them sound, but with the least possible friction, amount of contact.

2. Less tension. Try to keep your arm, hands, fingers, everything as loose as possible. It seems like you need to grip the pick tightly in order to keep hold of it while playing. So, it's a little counter intutitive. You want to have just enough pressure to hold the pick & strike the strings. Any more is wasted effort & makes it harder to play.

I discuss & demonstrate here:

https://www.guitartricks.com/lesson.php?input=13957&s_id=1142

Hope this helps. If you have more questions please ask! Best of success!

Only thing I would add is that I used a very, small, pointy, heavy pick; Dunlop Jazz III (yep, Chris, I strum a Jazz III). So, for me, it isn't the pick thickness but how you strum. Chris' tutorial explains it well. My only add is that when your strum or pick, you don't need to kill the strings. You just have to strike them. Many players don't use a pick and obviously, the aren't beating their fingers to death. Strums should be a natural extension of what you would otherwise do with your bare thumb if you were strumming or picking a string without a pick. Try it a little without the pick to see what you would do just with your thumb and then try picking a pick again with the same motions.

Food for thought.

Jazz III awesome. I use Dunlop 1.5 mm, love the beveled edges. But I can get by if i have to with a standard medium or heavy for 90% of playing.

Originally Posted by: JeffS65
My only add is that when your strum or pick, you don't need to kill the strings. You just have to strike them. Many players don't use a pick and obviously, the aren't beating their fingers to death. Strums should be a natural extension of what you would otherwise do with your bare thumb if you were strumming or picking a string without a pick. Try it a little without the pick to see what you would do just with your thumb and then try picking a pick again with the same motions.

Good observations. At a certain point any string is only going to put out sso much sound no matter how hard you hit it.

And it's always a good idea to work on the softer side of dynamic control.