I'm so excited about the mandolin I just got tonight. I've been playing around for about an hour or so. I had a question about pick direction. I think I read that you should try to alternate direction (up, down). But what about for jigs. Would it be something like down, up, down...down, up, down? Do you just play what feels right and what works for you or is there a more-or-less "correct" way? Also, one last question: should I always pick both strings as if they are one, or are there times when I should only use one? Sorry if this has already been discussed...a link to a previous discussion would be great if that is the case. Thanks so much!! I hopefully I'll be able to join in on the Song of the Week within a couple of weeks.
I'll jump right in and answer you! People do it differently, but I am a follower of the school of thought, that for jigs, you pick down up down, down up down (DUD DUD). I think that what confuses some people about 'alternate picking' is that they think it means it's always D U D U D U, regardless of the note length. I think that if you read music, and understand about note values, that it makes the most sense to think that you pick down on the beat. So, if you are playing 4/4 time, you would pick down on the beats, so if you were playing a measure that had four quarter notes, they would be all downstrokes. If the measure was 8 eighth notes, it would be picked DU DU DU DU. If it was a combination of quarter notes, eighth notes, dotted quarter notes, etc., you can easily figure it out by looking at the measure, and figuring out whether it should be picked down or up. In jigs (6/8), there are two main beats, on the first and the fourth notes. Therefore, those notes should be picked as downstrokes. In addition, the 3rd and 6th beats are also slightly accented (not as much as 1 and 4, but more than 2 & 5) In Irish music, the most commonly accepted way to pick this is, DUD, DUD. Some people pick them DDU DDU, which also has the first and fourth beats as downstrokes. Some people play them DUD UDU, saying that they can get it to sound the same, but, to my ear, DUD DUD gives you the sound of a jig!
Great, thanks so much! That's pretty much what I thought. I just wanted to make sure I work on it the right way so I don't get into any bad habits. I just thought of something else...if I'm changing strings (say from D to A) does it make sense to just go DD if it doesn't interfere with the style of the music, or I go to the other side of the string and continue with an up? Not sure if I'm reading into this too much. Thanks for you help!!
No, you should always maintain pick direction for the pattern you're using, never use a DD for convenience when crossing strings.
I'm no expert, but for me, personally, I try to stray from my picking pattern as little as possible. When I started playing, I had no clue about this, and learned a number of tunes with no regard to pick direction. I have found that when I am playing a tune, and continually have a stumble in the same place, it is most usually because I have gotten going the wrong way with my pick! I have tried to go back to those tunes, and 'relearn' them, paying closer attention to my pick direction. I think of my picking hand like a pendulum, so for me, if the tune (beat) calls for an upstroke on the A strings, after picking a downstroke on the D strings, that is what I do! Also, I forgot to address the question about picking through both strings. I know I've read of others that sometimes just pick one string, for some reason, but I pick through both strings all the time.
Thanks again! I'm already learning so much =)
The right hand is where the biggest change happens when coming from the violin, which has to do with scale and forces of motion: - bow: long scale motion, low forces - pick: short scale motion, high forces Often, violinists forget their loose wrist when they grip a pick because the higher forces involved make them tense up and because they are used to moving their whole arm as well. It is very important to not go down that path, because it leads to the dark side of arm/shoulder problems and headache. Just let your wrist do the work. That is even more important than up/down patterns.
