Picking technique

Hi Mike

Another great Friday evening livecast!  Had a question about lesson one Rumble.  I had been playing this for a while before this evening and the triplet picking part I had started playing with an upstroke first and going up down up down and so on through the picking.  Is this a bad habit to fall into?  Would it be better to force myself to do it down up down up?

Also a question not relevant to tonights lesson.  I am struggling with the upstroke when palm muting.  Can you recommend anything or have any tips for practice to help it along?

Thanks again for the excellent Friday evening live lessons!

dag

Hey Dag - thanks for the great questions!

Picking those triplets starting on upstrokes is not a problem! Particularily in the example of Rumble - it's a short lick, so just go with whatever feels the easiest and most natural for you!

As for upstrokes with palm muting - slow down and practice a simple palm muted Down Up strum over and over - adjusting the position of your strumming hand over the bridge saddles to get the desired muted sound. Remember - go slowly at first and allow your hand to adjust to the technique. Once it feels comfortable, stop doing the down stroke and just work on the upstroke.  Here, focus on refining the hand position and pressure above the bridge saddles to get the desired sound.

Hope this make sense!  Let me know how it goes!

Mike

Hey Mike

Good to know I'm not forming bad habits.  It feels much more natural for me because of the upward progression on the strings.

Makes perfect sense, got some work to do now.

Thanks for the tips and instruction, will update with progress.

dag

Hey Mike

Excellent information and tips!  Followed exactly what you suggested and once I started focusing on the upstroke added playing a down stroke not palm muted and have made great progress already.  Will keep up the practice as well.

Thanks again

dag