Just starting out--question about right hand technique.

[Theeditor]

Hi all,

I've only been playing for a little over a month now, and I love everything about it. I feel like I am making progress every day and things are sounding better and better.

BUT...

I've been primarily using Hal Leonard's mandolin method book to learn and practice. It recommended posting my pinky on the fingerboard while picking and strumming.

But other sources online, such as some instructional videos I've watched, state that it's okay to keep your righthand free and floating above the strings.

I feel more comfortable keeping my hand free, but I don't want to learn incorrect technique. As we all know, it can be hard to relearn something the right way after you've learned it the wrong/lazy way.

Should I start posting my pinky or ring finger, or is this something I shouldn't worry about?

Thanks in advance!

Camden

[JeffD]

There are folks that advocate both sides of this never ending debate.

My own style is that I do both, depending on the needs of what I am playing. If its a lot of fast notes, I might plant my pinky sometimes, and if its a very rhythmic passage I might fly free of all reference to the top of the instrument. Mostly I brush my palm on the bridge.

I think the best route for learning is to allow your palm to brush against the bridge gently, and try and avoid planting. Once you are pretty comfortable with your playing, you can plant occasionally if needed. The key is to be flexible and able to respond comfortably to what the tune may need.

[Theeditor]

Thanks, JeffD! It's good to hear that, for the most part, what's comfortable is acceptable at this point. I'll just keep doing what I am doing.

[JeffD]

The thing, I think, is to not get addicted to either planting, or flying free, but to be comfortable with both.

[belbein]

I know the old timers say that you should "plant," but nearly all of the proficient players that I've been around don't. Emory Lester says that he has the meat of his palm (the base of his thumb) just brushing the bass side of the bridge, but not resting on it. He says it gives him an index to know where he is. If you plant (they say) you don't move well because you're, well, planted.

That said, I'm just a relative newcomer and I don't know any of this. I'm not sure it's quite true that "if it feels good do it," but there may be other things to concentrate on right up front. The only thing to consider is that bad habits are VERY hard to break.

[Theeditor]

JeffD, belbein, thanks for helping out! I'll focus on using both methods when they feel right and staying loose otherwise. As I learn, I am consciously relaxing both hands, as I have a tendency to grip the neck and clench my right fist as things speed up, but I have heard this is fairly normal.

[mingusb1]

Yes, I think touching the base of your hand to the bridge is a good way to go. This should get your pick in good position and allow you to build your right hand technique. Then you can experiment with moving the pick further from the bridge. You'll hear a difference tonally and it can also be a good approach to aid tremolo.

Z

[Pete Martin]

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=D0OAijzeQ7Y

This is what I believe is the best ergonomic way of doing the right hand.

Best of luck!

[bart mcneil]

If you feel comfortable keeping your hand off the bridge and not posting I would suggest continuing along that line,. It offers one specific advantage that I can cite, and that is that it allows you to move your picking over the entire distance of your strings from your fretting fingers to the bridge. That way you can take advantage of the tonal variations dependent on where on the string you pick. Picking over the fret board itself gives you a tonal difference which you might want to take advantage of as opposed to always picking near the bridge. Try it, you may enjoy the difference.

I would continue the way you are going.

[David L]

I let the base of my thumb lightly touch the bridge, but touching the bass strings that I'm not playing at the moment. This dampens the bass strings so that they don't ring sympathetically. This is especially useful on banjolins and electric instruments, as the bass strings tend to ring out a lot. Of course, this doesn't work while playing the low G string.

[EdSherry]

I rarely plant, but allow my left hand ring and pinky fingers to splay out a bit and brush against the pickguard as a "depth gauge." I don't know any top player who plants; watch Sam Bush or David Grisman videos.

[Eric C.]

I find that my right hand has a mind of its own and does different things as needed.

[dhbailey]

I find the same thing as Eric -- I am always wary of anybody who says "always do this" or "never do that." In my long musical life it seems that no matter what anybody says, there's always some great player doing the opposite. So my advice is to experiment and find what works best for you to allow you to play the music you want to play.

[Bill McCall]

I rarely plant, but allow my left hand ring and pinky fingers to splay out a bit and brush against the pickguard as a "depth gauge." I don't know any top player who plants; watch Sam Bush or David Grisman videos.

how about Adam Steffey?

[bradlaird]

I always enjoy when this debate surfaces. I recently wrote a blog post on the very topic... http://www.bradleylaird.com/blog-art...nt-or-not.html

[ralph johansson]

First of all, you're writing "fingerboard"; obviously you mean "soundboard".

This document:

http://www.mandozine.com/techniques/...righthand.html

lists 17 items, but on closer reading they largely fall into two groups: touching down on top or pickguard,
which is emphatically not the same as "planting",

or touching the strings behind
the bridge or, very lightly the top of the bridge (in some spot away from the strings actually picked).

My impression is that almost all players touch some part of the mandolin with their right hands, although it's hard to determine from a picture or a video.


Also check:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NmagoBQunZI

As for myself I got started on a mandolin with a pickguard, where brushing across the guard with a loosely curled fist
is the natural technique, similar to what I use on the guitar. Later I have learned the other technique, with a tighter fist, for use on a mandolin without a guard.

There is, as others have pointed out, no right or wrong here, but if you have small hands, brushing or planting on the top is likely to make the pick dip too low for comfort, producing a somewhat jerky right hand motion - note that the distance between the strings and the top is much greater on a mandolin than on a flattop guitar.

PS: The reason I touch the strings behind the bridge (in the second case) instead of
attempting a freely floating right hand is that it produces a more natural arch in my wrist. An armrest would probably change that.

[almeriastrings]

It is really about giving a sense of 'spatial awareness' to your brain, via your hand/fingers. So, any of the above contact or light contact methods will do that. If your hand is flying completely free, you may be OK for rhythm, but most would find it extremely difficult to do, say, crosspicking or any precision single string stuff because there is no 'frame of reference' as to where you are...

FWIW, I use a number of things... same on guitar... I'll let the 'heel' of my wrist lightly contact the back of the bridge (or brush the bridge pins on a guitar), and for some passages will have a finger or two down on the scratchplate/finger-rest. This will change according to the passage being played... as long as you are accurate enough, and are not over-damping, do whatever is most comfortable for you.

[JonZ]

I would suggest going as far as you can with the "floating hand" method, as it will give you the most freedom of movement. If you find that you just can't get it under control, then plant.

What I have found is that words, pictures and even video, can't really convey exactly how to do good right hand. John McGann's description of right hand technique is as good a one as I have read, but it is just a starting point. It really takes a lot of time focusing on how the pick feels in your grip, and what your tone sounds like, and whether it slips, and what happens when you speed up and slow down, and how you adjust for hitting different numbers of strings. You just spend a lot of time approximating and making micro adjustments, thinking, feeling, listening, and you gradually get better. It is a subtle thing.

[Jim1hays]

Hello, I too am using the Hal Leonard Mandolin Method book 1 to learn to play. I saw a video that suggested using a metronome and setting the beat at 50 for starters And work up from there. Bose makes a Fine electronic tuner with metronome for 29.99 and is what I use. I love it. I am still working on my right hand technique as are you and find it goes wild sometimes and hard to control unless planted. The video shows not being planted. It was by a woman that posted it on U-tube.

[jshane]

I admit to doing both.

The thing I never have had resolved is,

"If you plant or touch or brush exclusively, how to you change the position of your picking relative to the bridge?"

There are a ton of different tones that can be had by picking nearer to/further from the bridge that I done see how you achieve if you are fixed in position.

[terzinator]

there's planting of the PINKIE, but then there's the wrist MOTION.

Watching the Pete Martin video above, he advocates a TWISTING of the wrist, back in the forearm, like turning a key in a lock.

Others say it should be more like "shaking hands," where the wrist moves up and down, rather than rotates.

If you plant, you might not move the wrist as much as the elbow.

The debate will continue on forever, and grow more and more spirited.

I just want to know how to play the damned instrument! (I think waaay too much about this when I play, 'tis true.)

[Young]

Congratulations on learning the mandolin. As with any instrument there is a technique for each one. I got my initial start by taking lessons with the great Tamara Volskaya! She made sure I was holding the pick and instrument correctly. Now I study with Tamara Asta. Neither teacher advocated resting the right hand pinky on the mandolin as it could cause tension. Your playing should be effortless. I hope you continue to seek answers. I highly recommend a good teacher. You are never too old to learn.