Pinkie finger

[deeman12]

Before i got bass lessons i never used to play notes with my pinkie finger, but the bass teacher instructed me that using it will ensure that i won't get any injuries in the future. Furthermore, he got me to play the bass with my thump close to the E string.

What do the good folk of basstalk think of this. Any merit in his instructions.

[Matt R.]

Uhhh... why would you not use the pinky?

[deeman12]

Originally Posted by Matt R.

Uhhh... why would you not use the pinky?

I used it frequently when i picked with my pointy finger, but now that i'm playing with both fingers, i can't use it on the lower strings.

[crazyguy832]

Yeah... use your pinky.

I use it more than my ring finger. It's a good skill to have. Your pinky can be a lot stronger than you think, you just need to build up the muscles a bit.

^_^

And, when playing bass (a lot of instruments, actually...), your hand should more or less look like you're "holding an orange" (sorry, this is what my piano teachers have always told me :P... and, yes, bass and piano the hand technique is much different blah blah blah... either way, having a flat hand while playing bass is a bad thing). Playing with your thumb closer to the strings (or using floating thumb, moving it up strings with your hand, etc.) will lend better hand positioning and comfort.

[Foxworthy925]

Wait, are you talking about your fretting or picking hand?

[crazyguy832]

I'm assuming fretting. There are very few people who pay with their pinky in their dominant hand (I'm working on becoming an exception, but it's taking quite a while... worked up a doozy of a blister today, quite proud of that ).

[deeman12]

Originally Posted by Foxworthy925

Wait, are you talking about your fretting or picking hand?

Sorry, i made things confusing. I meant fretting with the pinkie. I find it has become more difficult to do, as i now use both fingers to pluck.

[Thunder Pulse]

Originally Posted by deeman12

Sorry, i made things confusing. I meant fretting with the pinkie. I find it has become more difficult to do, as i now use both fingers to pluck.

I'm still confused. Why would fretting with your pinky be more difficult just because you're playing with both fingers on your other hand instead of only one? What does one have to do with the other?

[Depth_Charge]

Originally Posted by Thunder Pulse

I'm still confused. Why would fretting with your pinky be more difficult just because you're playing with both fingers on your other hand instead of only one? What does one have to do with the other?

Well before being told to by his teacher, he wasn't playing with 2 fingers on his right hand, wasn't incorporating his pinky into his fretting hand and he wasn't playing with his thumb so close to the E string.

That's a lot of technique change to absorb at once. It's going to be jittery for a while.

Originally Posted by deeman12

Sorry, i made things confusing. I meant fretting with the pinkie. I find it has become more difficult to do, as i now use both fingers to pluck.

Is it possible you are squeezing too hard with the left hand while you concentrate on the right hand fingering? I find too much thumb pressure or too tight a grip on the neck really weighs the pinky down...

[Ric5]

Players with big hands don't use the pinkie finger as much. I was watching how Chris Squire plays and he uses the index finger and the ring finger to play octaves. But someone like me with smaller hands I use my pinkie all the time, but I almost never use my ring finger. I also do the Geddy trick of sometimes curling my thumb around and fretting my lowest string that way.

Get some video of John Entwistle playing and watch his left hand for a while.

[Nyarlathotep]

Fretting with the pinky = EPIXFTW.


That is all.


/thread