Small hand, short fingers help..

[Kingskippy2001]

What can I do to help stretch out my stubby reach. My pinky doesn't seem to do what it should. Anyone offer some help, that has gone through this? Thanks

[Zombbg4]

I have long, lanky fingers but also suffered from pinky retardation. What worked for me was persistance. Keep practicing getting your fingers to do what you want, focus a good chunk of you practice on this. Play a major scale with the first 3 notes on the same string, so for Gmaj, 3 5 7, 3 5 7, 4 5. Start on a scale higher up the fretboard and work your way down. Just takes time, persistance, and practice.

[Stranglehold]

I also have small hands, but I don't let it keep me down. Utilizing your pinky makes most problems that arise from small hands go away. I used to think I would never be able to use my pinky. I thought it was too weak. Hell, I used to think I could never use my middle finger! All you have to do is stregthen it with 1-2-3-4 exercises (IMO practicing an actual scale is better than fret-by-fret). 1 octave harmonic minor over 3 strings is good for starters because it has small intervals.

[Bassorama57]

I have smallish hands as well (no jokes from the ladies, please). My teacher (I'm 51 and take weekly lessons - everyone should have a dispassionate obsever critique their playing imho) tells me the same thing - no stretch, no reach. A couple of pointers -
- Concentrate on arching or curving your fingers down onto the strings - the sensation is like you're 'pushing the strings through the neck.'
- Work on your strech, but don't distort the arch in your fingers to get your pinky to fret; better to let the index finger abandon it's position 4 frets up the neck than to twist your wrist and have your pinky disorted.
- Keep the axis of your arm at a 90-deg angle to the neck - sounds obvious, but practice in front of a mirror for a while to make sure.
- It's far better - faster, more efficient, and less likely to result in injury - to move your forearm/hand up and down the neck than to try to stretch your fingers into bad form to avoid shifting positions.
- Watch where your thumb is - don't lock it in, let it move with your hand so that (to the greatest extent possible) it's supporting the fingers doing the fretting.

Why'd I say all that? Because the truth is if you have small hands you're never going to be able to properly (much less comfortably) reach 4 frets in a row at the headstock end of a 34" scale neck. However, you can be wicked fast (not that I am, my instructor is of course) and accurate (fretting the note at the fretwire, not in the middle space between frets) if you maintain good technique and move your whole hand.

[Kingskippy2001]

Thanks guys, I will take all the help/pointers I can get.

[greenboy]

I used 124 a lot instead of the accident-waiting-to-happen 1234 (finger per fret) thing, or the 123 thing I'd gotten from a little familiarity with rhythm guitar. I built my pinkie strength and 124 habit until it was natural and the finger was up for marathon sessions with nary a complaint. This really helps for long term hand health too - straining finger #3 is actually where a lot of problems develop.

After 124 was ingrained I worked to bring #3 back into the game in a pivotal role when it made certain lines more fluid, and when I was playing further up the neck.

[VroomVroom]

It's just like the old joke about getting to Carnegie Hall....practice, practice, practice! I used to feel my hands were too small, but then my teacher - a pro player loaded with credentials, not to mention chops - put his hand up next to mine. The lesson in humility was enough to make me work harder.

Not to turn this into a technical post, but arpeggio exercises are perfect for this. Play a G-major chord up and down the neck, for example, and you'll get your pinky in shape sooner than you'd imagine. Good luck!

[greenboy]

Comment on my above post. Carole Kaye's website hipped me to the hand health issues and the 124 thing. And this also includes using the thumb well as a pivot. That gives reach without trying to stress on stretching beyond your capabilities. Later I thought about some astounding female bass and guitar players I had jammed with or seen. Many of them are pretty small next to the average guy and their hands are diminuitive... They had great economy of motion and didn't seem to think they had to stretch across in the "finger per fret" approach or beyond.

Last night I watched teensy Esperanza Spaulding just kill on a big ol' upright - singing at the same time! She's a total phenom! Any time you think it's about bulk and breadth just check her out and be humbled ; }

[powerbass]

good fretting hand techniques comes first by having a good teacher look at your whole arm, hand, wrist and finger position. Generally speaking your thumb should rest lightly on the neck in the relative center of your 4 finger position, this allows you to reach about 5 frets total without moving your thumb - the first position is the most difficult. You may want to start on the A note on the E string and practice the 1234 exercise without moving your thumb, then try the 1234 leaving ea finger on the string, then reverse. I agree w/the arpeggio exercise - a major scale 5th, 7th and octave can be played w/the 3rd finger and pinky. Every time I practice I include technical exercises for my right/left hand using a metronome.

[Xeperu]

I have pretty small hands I guess. *sob* Actually, its not so bad. The only effort I really have to put in is when I am playing fast runs at the beginning of the neck where the frets are the widest. I frequent finger/intonation exercises and its important even more so with small hands to have the most comfortable position possible so that you don't hurt yourself.

I noticed recently that my pinky is actually stronger than my ring or middle finger. Like, excessively stronger lol. All my other fingers can lift themselves up without tensing up the other fingers, but the ring finger doesn't. Its kind of weird, because I started out with my ring finger being the strongest.

[greenboy]

The ring finger is the least independent finger by design. That's spoken about on the Carol Kaye website too, as part of the hand health stuff.

[elBandito]

I noticed Im putting excessive force on my fretting hand thumb. I always support the neck on the thumb and never palm the neck. I try to fret lightly, and if I dont put firm pressure on my thumb, I feel like the neck is going to slip off my fingers. What am I doing wrong?