Basic Guitar Tips 1
by Adam Gaensler
Before we look at what to do with your guitar, we should start with some real fundamentals ¨C how to hold your pick and how to position your hand on the guitar. This is very important because this is the root of every sound that comes out of your instrument.
Hold the pick on the side of the first finger, not the pad. Do not use any finger other than the first finger and the thumb. You can start by giving a ¡®thumbs up¡¯ and placing the pick on the side of the first finger.
I like to think about it as using ¡°three tips¡± ¨C the tip of your finger, the tip of your thumb and the tip of your pick should all be near each other.
Do not hold the pick half-way down the thumb (shown with a red cross) or the finger, and don¡¯t let too much pick show.
Once you are holding the pick correctly you can start to play the guitar. The following technique is for single-note playing (i.e. not for strumming).
You need to have your hand stabilized in respect to the guitar. This means that you have to be in contact with your instrument ¨C you cannot have your hand floating around above the strings. This will help you hit the correct string every time.
Place the fleshy part of your hand opposite your thumb on or near the bridge of your guitar.
If you are playing the low E or A strings you might like to have your hand on the wood of the guitar above the bridge. If you are playing the higher-pitched strings you can rest your hand on the lower strings (E, A and D). Your hand should follow a diagonal path as you move from the lower to the higher strings and back again, indicated in red below.
Ideally, the pick should be perpendicular to the plane of the strings and the tip of the pick should hit the strings cleanly.