Fast pickin

[lance_wallen]

Woo, more newby questions.

I've been plain guitar a long time, not much of a speed picker on it, mostly rythm stuff with a little solo work in jazz, but never really did a lot of fast pick work.

Well, now that i'm picking up the OM I intend on playing a lot of melody on it so I've started working on my picking more with the guitar in preparation.

My friend, who's a classical guitarist told me that I should get "those picks the mandolin players use" siting that they're supposed to be designed for faster single picking, etc.

In all my years around music I've seen three types of picks used, tear drops, regular old "trioval" shaped, and big triangle picks....

Is my friend on crack or is there actualy a pick style that's designed more for fast melody picking?

[Celtic Saguaro]

The shape doesn't matter. Mostly if you use a light guitar pick, you might want a slightly heavier pick for the OM. I use a Fender medium.

Coming from the guitar you might want to check your grip on the pick. #There are several threads in the Tricks and Tips section here which discuss how to hold the pick for the mandolin family.

[Chris Biorkman]

Personally, I like the rounded beveled picks that Wegen makes more than anything else I have tried (and I have tried just about every pick out there). You can find them on Greg Boyd's website.

They seem to cut through the strings easier than teardrop shaped guitar picks (at least for me). I think the tone they produce is great, but they did take a while for me to get used to at first.

[bradeinhorn]

it ain't the pick, sad to say...

[lance_wallen]

it ain't the pick, sad to say...

I'm getting faster pretty easily, I just thought the commend he made was odd so I figured I'd ask the experts

I actualy prefer stiffer picks for playing faster so far, I feel like i have more control. It's probably easier to do doublestops or tremelo with a thin pick though.

My grip deffinitely needs some work, I still hold the pick with my index/thumb as if I were making a "B" in sign language. I need to extend my index so I can get more pivot action but its a hard habit to break.

Thanks for the responses!

[bradeinhorn]

definitely make the change in how you hold it. that is huge. and you are correct about thicker/firmer picks easy speed.

[otterly2k]

Personally, I don't think there's a single answer to this question.
Seems like a lot of mando players really like thicker picks - but that's for the high tension short scale mando. #For OM's where the strings are a bit floppier, I'm not sure whether there is a similar tendency.

Picks (most of 'em anyway) are cheap enough... get some different thicknesses and shapes and try 'em out and see what feels right to you.

I mean, yeah, there are picks that have something called a "speed bevel"... but they don't move fast by themselves... it is always a combination of the equipment and the player's style/technique.

[lance_wallen]

My wife just recommended that I paint spiders under the strings... quote "Because you sure move your hand really fast when you think there's a spider anywhere near you."

She's referencing my quite masculine "Swatting maneuver" that I use to neutralize arachnid threats as they enter my personal space.

But back to picks, I think I'm going to have to wait until I get the OM in hand to really work on it. In the mean time I can dig through my bags and see how many different picks i can find, it'll be like an easter pick hunt!

[entau]

I was at a mandolin symposium and an instructor suggested heavy thick picks for OM - I was like "no way" but tried them and the difference in tone is incredible.

slow you down - yes but with some practice and excersise the speed will return.

IMHO the strings really respond to a heavier pick -

I believe the weagans mentioned are somewhat on the thick side as well.

[JHo]

I like those Wegens mentioned above. I prefer the M150 and TF140 (both reasonably thick), though with the M150 (very rounded, beveled) I notice that I am able to play faster and cleaner with less pick noise and pick hangup, and to drive more easily through the strings to produce good tone and volume with very little effort expended. I think perhaps it's the combination of the slickness of the Wegen pick material (black specifically) and of the bevel and the particular shape.

[Bertram Henze]

Fast picking imposes two conditions on the pick:

1. grip - a slipping pick leads to firmer pressure in the right hand and eventually to tensing up of the whole right arm; the pick should stay where it is even in a loose and relaxed hand

2. control feedback - the fingers must feel when the pick hits the strings; too soft picks don't give that feedback

All other pick properties control sound rather than speed. I like a bright clicky sound, so with the control conditions added I get along best with the Clayton Ultem .80 Triangle, changed monthly - but that's just me.

Bertram

[groveland]

To me, it depends a lot on what you want to play. If you want to play various ethnic styles on that thing, there are probably picks that will get the sound, and you might use the point, the experts here will tell you more. Lots of threads on this topic.

On the other hand, if you want to play some sort of jazz stylings on the OM, I would definitely go for the rounded end of any heavier pick. For speed, the rounded end of a big stubby works great for me. Lots of control and instantaneous tactile feedback. But I prefer the sound of a fresh Dawg pick. (After a week or so for me, Dawgs start to get worn into that bevel, and loses the warmer tone, starts sounding like sandpaper.) And as you have also probably have read, for soloing jazz on an OM or bouzouki you probably would want to use the edge of the pick at a slight angle, not the flat of the pick, to stoke the double course and get a suitable tone.

[jmcgann]

How you hold your hand, the arm slot and pick slot as relates to each individual string,is crucial.

There is no 'faster pick', just faster pickers

[lance_wallen]

ANyone know of a good instruction video out there on youtube or something. I've poked about but most videos are about how to use fast picking in different cycles/patterns, I can pick fairely well but I know I'm doing it wrong and I need to learn 'right' before I get the octave. I'll probably never break my bad picking habits on guitar but I do fine with what I know, when I start on the octave I'm treating it like a whole new instrument. Forgetting my guitar and picking it up as if I'd never touched strings before (though I'll have the advantage of understanding the mechanics of the instrument) technique wise though I want to really start on this the right way so I learn the good habits instead of the bad ones.

[jmcgann]

Another Shameless Plug for my "Sound Fundamentals" DVD

[Uath]

Here's an idea..Don't use picks at all, just fingerpick with your bare fingers. I tried banjo picks, but they only work when you use the underside of your fingers. Finally I gave up on picks altogether. Fingerpicking is great for octaves. Try it. If it's too soft a sound...amplify.

[lance_wallen]

Here's an idea..Don't use picks at all, just fingerpick with your bare fingers. I tried banjo picks, but they only work when you use the underside of your fingers. Finally I gave up on picks altogether. Fingerpicking is great for octaves. Try it. If it's too soft a sound...amplify.

I already finger pick, but you 'have' to pick sometimes. Some music just sounds silly without a plectrum.

[otterly2k]

Lance--
I'd say pay attention to anything John McGann suggests. (you don't get to be faculty at Berklee School of Music unless you know what you're doing!) He has serious street cred and string cred.

[lance_wallen]

Lance--
I'd say pay attention to anything John McGann suggests. #(you don't get to be faculty at Berklee School of Music unless you know what you're doing!) He has serious street cred and string cred.

I'd hope so! I've already been eyeballing some of his instructional material.

I really want to hit the mandolin like a brand new instrument and not carry over my bad habits from guitar.