Finger Stretching

[Dfyngravity]

This is in responce to helping your fret hand play chords, but is good for everything.

Here is an exercise I use to help stretch my left hand out. All done on one string. Start of by doing this on the E string and work your way to the G string because it is definitely harder on the G string. The #s underneath are the fingers you use for each note.

Ascending:

E|--1--2--1--3--1--4--1--5--1--6--1--7--1--8--1--9--|
# # # 1 #2 # # # 2 # # # 2 # # # 3 # # # #3 # # # 4 # # # 4 # # # 4

Descending

E|--9--1--8--1--7--1--6--1--5--1--4--1--3--1--2--1--|
# # # 4 #1 #4 # # # 4 # # # 3 # # # 3 # # # 2 # # # 2 # # # 2

After doing this a coulpe times stop and shake you hand, get it really loose. And definitely stop once your hand gets really tired.

Now this next exercise will kick the #### out of the fret hand. Start on the G string and play the 2nd fret with your 1st finger(keep it there), then the 4th fret with your 2nd finger(keep both fingers down!), then the 6th fret with your 3rd finger(don't pull any of your fingers off yet), then the 8th fret with your 4th finger(all fingers down!). Now with all of your finger still on the frets move only your 1st finger to the 2nd fret of the D string.(keep it there, along with all of your of fingers on the frets of the G string), then move your 2nd finger to the 4th of the D string(keep all your fingers down), then your 3rd finger to the 6th fret of the D(keep that pinky on the 8th fret of the G string, and the rest of your fingers on the D string!!!) then finally move your 4th finger to the 8th fret of the D string keeping all your other fingers down on their frets. Now do the same thing going to the A string and then the E string. Do this one time through and tell me your fingers aren't a little bit stressed. If you can do that several times a day, I promise you that stretching your fingers for the 4 fingers chords will become easy

[ira]

i really like that first exercise. having trouble following the second one, but if it is as demanding as the directions, i would love to try it.

[Dfyngravity]

I figured the second would be hard to follow, let me try to make more sense.

you are playing this:

E|----------------------------------2-4-6-8-|
A|-----------------------2-4-6-8------------|
D|------------2-4-6-8-----------------------|
G|-2-4-6-8----------------------------------|

Play the notes on the G string very slowly, keeping all of your fingers down on the fret. Then you move to the D string, this is where is gets hard. Move your 1st finger from the 2nd fret of the G the to the 2nd fret of the D string keeping all of your other fingers still fretting the notes on the G string. Then move your 2nd finger from the 4th fret of the G to the 4th of the D, again you can't move any of your other fingers off the fingerboard. Then move your 3rd finger from the 6th fret of the G to the 6th of fret of the D, again keeping all of your other finger, include the ones on the D string still fretted. Then move your 4th finger from the 8th fret of the G to the 8th fret of the D. Now keep this same exercise going until you get all of your fingers on the E string. And repeat, if possible.

Hopefully this makes a little more sense. Bassically you have to keep all your fingers down, only the one moving to the next string is allowed to come off the fingerboard.

NOTE* The kicker is trying to get all of the notes sounding clearly without any buzzing. The hardest is playing the notes on the 6th fret clearly because if your pinky isn't arched enough it will muffle the note being played. Also to make it harder, press down on each fret with your fingers fairly hard and count 5 second between each note being played. This will kick the cr*p out of your left hand.

[pettyman]

OUCH!!!! man that hurts!

and now just to give me yet more pain I have got a tiny blister on my middle finger on fret hand from touching the pan I was cooking toffee/fudge in!!! All before I get my new mando on Sunday - it had better be healed!

Cheers for the exercises - will be doing them for a while until it don't hurt, then i guess i will have to find more to stretch even more.

(hmm. little memory - didn't rachmaninov dislocate his fingers to play his own pieces???) just a thought - and I am in no way suggesting that anyone should!!! (thought I better include a disclaimer there!)

Cheers again
Matt

[fiddle5]

Try playing your scales in a first position using your pinky, but after you lay down the fourth finger, don't lift it again until it is needed on the next string. It hurts at first, but its effective.


mike