Do any of you guitarists out there use your index finger for strumming instead of using a pick ?
I find it very comfortable since I'm used to fingerpicking .
I'm now starting to work on accompaniment and have to decide which method to go for.
For now I feel I play more fluently that way and able to fill in fast arpegios and triplet strumming with the rest of my fingers (like in flamenco playing style).
The only disadvantage I've noticed so far is less volume comparing to playing with a pick.
I use my index finger using both flamenco techniques (aza pua and various rasguedos), and also as if it were a pick. That is, I hold my index finger and thumb together as if I were holding a pick, and them use my index fingernail (coated with at least one layer of silk and nail glue) as a pick.
My wife and I sometimes do songs in an old-time Carter Family style and I usually do my best approximation of Maybell Carter’s technique – bass notes with thumb, strums with index or combination of index and middle, bass runs and melodies with alternating thumb and index. I avoided this style for many years (it’s deceptively hard to master!) and just used a flat pick, but that can be overbearing for some songs.
I’ve tried briefly to use my index nail as a flat pick, but I was too clumsy with it and it wore heavily on the nail. It works better on nylon strings, but I only use the classical for, well, classical.
Cecilt, do you use the Savarez nail kit? I wonder if there are enough fingerpickers in the crowd to justify a topic on fingernail issues.
1. I use right index finger up & down strokes as in flamenco.
2. I use other flamenco techniques, as mentioned.
3. I use my index nail as a simulated flatpick.
Bobbi,
I used to have my nails done professionally. At the suggestion of the last person who did them (just before she moved), I started buying silk @ "Sally's Beauty Supply".
Supernail is the brand, the last box of silk I bought cost $3.99. I replace the silk on my nails about once a week, one box lasts several months to a year. The product is Swiss Silk.
With the silk, 5 second nail wrap glue works better than super glue. Although superglue works better for glueing ping-pong balls under nails, which works well for broken nails.
Please explain about the silk - I've not seen it in the uk.
I have three fingers done with a powder that's dissolved in spirit by professional nail girls. Fun but costs £2-3 per nail and you have to go across town every couple of weeks and it's a real pain if you break one on tour.
Great for strumming, frayling and picking in the same song or tune, though, and you can get a nice hard hit for chords or notes by flicking from behind the thumb.
I've tried false nails (too thick), ping-pong balls (too silly), layers of varnish (too soft) and superglue (too thin). The powder is perfect for playing.
But with silk how do you cut in as the nail grows out? Do you remove and start over? If so, how do you dissolve off the old silk?
I’ve been dealing with fingerpicking nails since 1964, so of course I’ve tried lots of products for strengthening and repairing. Every few years, there’s something new and there must be dozens of products on the market now. My current approach works very well for me, but I haven’t really tried anything new in a few years.
Basically, I use a combination of cyanoacrylate glue and an adhesive silk fabric marketed especially to guitar players. For many years, I used a few layers of glue and this worked okay until my nails eventually got a bit thinner and more susceptible to damage. I don’t know exactly what caused the change in my nails, but it happened to all of them so I don’t think it was from the glue.
I’ve tried every brand and type of cyanoacrylate (super glue) I’ve come across and I’ve found one that is superior to all the rest. It’s called Future Glue and comes in two varieties. One (white label) is for gluing mirrors onto auto windshields and is nothing special. The good one comes in a silver colored tube. It layers well, leaves a thicker coating than the others, is less brittle, and has a longer shelf life. Super glue is notorious for having a short shelf life, which is why it mostly comes in tiny tubes. I haven’t found the gel versions to be as useful as the liquids.
The silk I use comes in the Savarez Nail Kit, sold in some guitar shops. The glue in the kit is inferior, but the silk is pretty good. By *lots* of trial and error, I’ve learned a method that gives me thick, strong, durable nails that last up to a month or more with minor touchups. My method involves a way of curing and annealing the glue so that it’s harder and tougher than otherwise. Unless somebody asks, I won’t go into that here, since I’ve already taken up too much space.
The care of the nails is at least as important as the initial nail job. I don’t let my hands get wet except when I specifically wash them. The rest of the time I wear rubber gloves – in the shower, washing dishes, handling wet laundry, etc. I also keep a coat of clear acrylic polish on the nails to preserve the stuff. I sand over the polish to break the shine.
As the nails grow out, I just file them as I would ordinary nails. The silk virtually disappears. Eventually, the glue bond deteriorates and the whole thing pops off, or it might grow completely out. Usually, before it grows all the way out, I file it thin and start over. I also like to have a layer of acrylic polish under the glue. It provides a good primer and seems to keep the nasty stuff from penetrating the nail.
PPS, I also use the same materials to repair broken nails. With Future Glue and silk, I’ve repaired nails torn halfway off down to the flesh, and extended nails from just a shattered stub, creating a nail from whole cloth, so to speak. I practically never have to go without a playing nail. [Knocks on wooden head.]
It *does* take time, though, and it doesn't help that I have to do all the work left-handed.
Thanks a lot for the tips! :( ugh) I'm really tired of bleeding all over the strings and top of my zouk. I've been to a manicurist, even, but she offered no help. You guys are great!
It's pretty much all been said already but I will add my tuppence worth before this thread gets sliced by the non-guitarists.
I have professional acrylic nails on three fingers done every three weeks at a lady's house - she's a part time beautician and lives next to my mother-in-law. It is reliable and gives a clear sound for fingerpicking. I have been doing this for over 5 years now.
I fingerpick with and without a thumbpick and use a plectrum. I sometimes will do the simulated pick thing with the index finger nail but only when I need to swap over and back quickly between styles.
In a session a plectrum is the only real way to get enough volume to accompany but in other situations I will use a range of other accompaniments with or without a plectrum. In a gig I will sometimes fingerpick an accompaniment in an attempt to imitate the harp style of accompaniment. And I do a chord thing with the thumb and index finger that I can't describe - just instinctive. Slightly similar to flamenco technique but sounds quite different.
A thumbpick can also double as a sort of plectrum for flatpicking a melody - held between thumb and index finger as you would a plectrum
That's enough verbal diarr****** for now.
Good luck and experiment with as many styles as possible.
Cheers
Donough
When I want to be more subtle than when I am struming with a pick, I strum down with fingernails and up with thumbnail. This helps when accompanying my own singing, as with a pick I can drown myself out if I am not careful. I also like to fingerpick without use of nails or any picks. Over the years, I have gotten pretty good at producing some volume even without the aid of nails/picks. Of course, that might be because I have developed some pretty tough lumps of calloses (how do you spell that word?) on the pads of my fingers.
Martin Simpson gets his nails done at a nail clinic - well, he is on record as saying he's an old tart - but complained that in the US the techs use a Dremel mini-drill, and it HURTS.
I appreciate the comments from others on both index finger strumming and nail care.
Bobbi, I echo your sentiments about getting hands wet. I don't usually take the precautions that you do (except for washing dishes) and consequently each set of silk usually lasts only 1 - 2 weeks.
For me, the silk I bought (referenced above) seems to work as well as the guitar-player-special-silk, including the Savarez, and has the advantage of being less expensive. I will keep my eye out for Future Glue.
About the dremel mini-drill, the tech who did my nails when we lived in San Diego always used one, and said that using the drill was the best method. The tech here on the east coast said just the opposite, and never used one. Both seemed to get good results.
I use a ping pong ball under my thumb nail all the time because of the twist in the nail, which can result in an annoying snag. The ping pong ball has a uniform curvature, eliminating that problem.
Being a strictly nylon string guitar player, the index picking works pretty well. I agree that it could be a different story for steel strings.
Index strumming
Index strumming
Do any of you guitarists out there use your index finger for strumming instead of using a pick ?
I find it very comfortable since I'm used to fingerpicking .
I'm now starting to work on accompaniment and have to decide which method to go for.
For now I feel I play more fluently that way and able to fill in fast arpegios and triplet strumming with the rest of my fingers (like in flamenco playing style).
The only disadvantage I've noticed so far is less volume comparing to playing with a pick.
# Posted on April 27th 2005 by azo
Re: Index strumming
I use my index finger using both flamenco techniques (aza pua and various rasguedos), and also as if it were a pick. That is, I hold my index finger and thumb together as if I were holding a pick, and them use my index fingernail (coated with at least one layer of silk and nail glue) as a pick.
# Posted on April 27th 2005 by ceciltguitar
Re: Index strumming
My wife and I sometimes do songs in an old-time Carter Family style and I usually do my best approximation of Maybell Carter’s technique – bass notes with thumb, strums with index or combination of index and middle, bass runs and melodies with alternating thumb and index. I avoided this style for many years (it’s deceptively hard to master!) and just used a flat pick, but that can be overbearing for some songs.
I’ve tried briefly to use my index nail as a flat pick, but I was too clumsy with it and it wore heavily on the nail. It works better on nylon strings, but I only use the classical for, well, classical.
Cecilt, do you use the Savarez nail kit? I wonder if there are enough fingerpickers in the crowd to justify a topic on fingernail issues.
# Posted on April 27th 2005 by Bob himself
Re: Index strumming
to clarify:
1. I use right index finger up & down strokes as in flamenco.
2. I use other flamenco techniques, as mentioned.
3. I use my index nail as a simulated flatpick.
Bobbi,
I used to have my nails done professionally. At the suggestion of the last person who did them (just before she moved), I started buying silk @ "Sally's Beauty Supply".
# Posted on April 27th 2005 by ceciltguitar
Re: Index strumming
Bobbi,
Supernail is the brand, the last box of silk I bought cost $3.99. I replace the silk on my nails about once a week, one box lasts several months to a year. The product is Swiss Silk.
http://www.aiibeauty.com/supernails3.html
With the silk, 5 second nail wrap glue works better than super glue. Although superglue works better for glueing ping-pong balls under nails, which works well for broken nails.
# Posted on April 27th 2005 by ceciltguitar
Re: Index strumming
Please explain about the silk - I've not seen it in the uk.
but costs £2-3 per nail and you have to go across town every couple of weeks and it's a real pain if you break one on tour.
I have three fingers done with a powder that's dissolved in spirit by professional nail girls. Fun
Great for strumming, frayling and picking in the same song or tune, though, and you can get a nice hard hit for chords or notes by flicking from behind the thumb.
I've tried false nails (too thick), ping-pong balls (too silly), layers of varnish (too soft) and superglue (too thin). The powder is perfect for playing.
But with silk how do you cut in as the nail grows out? Do you remove and start over? If so, how do you dissolve off the old silk?
# Posted on April 27th 2005 by tombliss
Re: Index strumming
I used to do this stuff, then went to flatpick and fingers and now I almost always flatpick.
The details of this discussion are wonderful, thanks to all!
stv
# Posted on April 27th 2005 by stv culchie
Re: Index strumming
Here’s my experience, FWIW.
I’ve been dealing with fingerpicking nails since 1964, so of course I’ve tried lots of products for strengthening and repairing. Every few years, there’s something new and there must be dozens of products on the market now. My current approach works very well for me, but I haven’t really tried anything new in a few years.
Basically, I use a combination of cyanoacrylate glue and an adhesive silk fabric marketed especially to guitar players. For many years, I used a few layers of glue and this worked okay until my nails eventually got a bit thinner and more susceptible to damage. I don’t know exactly what caused the change in my nails, but it happened to all of them so I don’t think it was from the glue.
I’ve tried every brand and type of cyanoacrylate (super glue) I’ve come across and I’ve found one that is superior to all the rest. It’s called Future Glue and comes in two varieties. One (white label) is for gluing mirrors onto auto windshields and is nothing special. The good one comes in a silver colored tube. It layers well, leaves a thicker coating than the others, is less brittle, and has a longer shelf life. Super glue is notorious for having a short shelf life, which is why it mostly comes in tiny tubes. I haven’t found the gel versions to be as useful as the liquids.
The silk I use comes in the Savarez Nail Kit, sold in some guitar shops. The glue in the kit is inferior, but the silk is pretty good. By *lots* of trial and error, I’ve learned a method that gives me thick, strong, durable nails that last up to a month or more with minor touchups. My method involves a way of curing and annealing the glue so that it’s harder and tougher than otherwise. Unless somebody asks, I won’t go into that here, since I’ve already taken up too much space.
The care of the nails is at least as important as the initial nail job. I don’t let my hands get wet except when I specifically wash them. The rest of the time I wear rubber gloves – in the shower, washing dishes, handling wet laundry, etc. I also keep a coat of clear acrylic polish on the nails to preserve the stuff. I sand over the polish to break the shine.
As the nails grow out, I just file them as I would ordinary nails. The silk virtually disappears. Eventually, the glue bond deteriorates and the whole thing pops off, or it might grow completely out. Usually, before it grows all the way out, I file it thin and start over. I also like to have a layer of acrylic polish under the glue. It provides a good primer and seems to keep the nasty stuff from penetrating the nail.
# Posted on April 27th 2005 by Bob himself
Re: Index strumming
PS, I don't apply the glue over the entire nail surface - just to about 1/8 to 1/4 inch of the tip. The polish is good for protecting the whole nail.
# Posted on April 27th 2005 by Bob himself
Re: Index strumming
PPS, I also use the same materials to repair broken nails. With Future Glue and silk, I’ve repaired nails torn halfway off down to the flesh, and extended nails from just a shattered stub, creating a nail from whole cloth, so to speak. I practically never have to go without a playing nail. [Knocks on wooden head.]
It *does* take time, though, and it doesn't help that I have to do all the work left-handed.
# Posted on April 28th 2005 by Bob himself
Re: Index strumming
Thanks a lot for the tips! :( ugh) I'm really tired of bleeding all over the strings and top of my zouk. I've been to a manicurist, even, but she offered no help. You guys are great!
# Posted on April 28th 2005 by rainog
Re: Index strumming
It's pretty much all been said already but I will add my tuppence worth before this thread gets sliced by the non-guitarists.
I have professional acrylic nails on three fingers done every three weeks at a lady's house - she's a part time beautician and lives next to my mother-in-law. It is reliable and gives a clear sound for fingerpicking. I have been doing this for over 5 years now.
I fingerpick with and without a thumbpick and use a plectrum. I sometimes will do the simulated pick thing with the index finger nail but only when I need to swap over and back quickly between styles.
In a session a plectrum is the only real way to get enough volume to accompany but in other situations I will use a range of other accompaniments with or without a plectrum. In a gig I will sometimes fingerpick an accompaniment in an attempt to imitate the harp style of accompaniment. And I do a chord thing with the thumb and index finger that I can't describe - just instinctive. Slightly similar to flamenco technique but sounds quite different.
A thumbpick can also double as a sort of plectrum for flatpicking a melody - held between thumb and index finger as you would a plectrum
That's enough verbal diarr****** for now.
Good luck and experiment with as many styles as possible.
Cheers
Donough
# Posted on April 28th 2005 by Donough
Re: Index strumming
When I want to be more subtle than when I am struming with a pick, I strum down with fingernails and up with thumbnail. This helps when accompanying my own singing, as with a pick I can drown myself out if I am not careful. I also like to fingerpick without use of nails or any picks. Over the years, I have gotten pretty good at producing some volume even without the aid of nails/picks. Of course, that might be because I have developed some pretty tough lumps of calloses (how do you spell that word?) on the pads of my fingers.
# Posted on April 28th 2005 by AlBrown
Re: Index strumming
Martin Simpson gets his nails done at a nail clinic - well, he is on record as saying he's an old tart - but complained that in the US the techs use a Dremel mini-drill, and it HURTS.
# Posted on April 28th 2005 by Guernsey Pete
Re: Index strumming
I appreciate the comments from others on both index finger strumming and nail care.
Bobbi, I echo your sentiments about getting hands wet. I don't usually take the precautions that you do (except for washing dishes) and consequently each set of silk usually lasts only 1 - 2 weeks.
For me, the silk I bought (referenced above) seems to work as well as the guitar-player-special-silk, including the Savarez, and has the advantage of being less expensive. I will keep my eye out for Future Glue.
About the dremel mini-drill, the tech who did my nails when we lived in San Diego always used one, and said that using the drill was the best method. The tech here on the east coast said just the opposite, and never used one. Both seemed to get good results.
I use a ping pong ball under my thumb nail all the time because of the twist in the nail, which can result in an annoying snag. The ping pong ball has a uniform curvature, eliminating that problem.
Being a strictly nylon string guitar player, the index picking works pretty well. I agree that it could be a different story for steel strings.
# Posted on April 28th 2005 by ceciltguitar