SWITCHING TO FINGERS AFTER 30 YEARS OF PICK...HELPPPPPP!

[rymiraflores]

Recently started playing with my fingers...index and middle, I find that I am mostly using index finger.... and second just for faster parts...BUT with a pick I only had to think about my left hand and the pick just followed now I am losing concentration with my left hand because I am thinking about my right.....does this pass?

[Lo-E]

Oh, yeah. It'll pass. First it'll drive you crazy, but then it'll pass.

Practice everything at half-speed for a while and really concentrate on alternating your index and middle fingers. It might seem like torture now, but it'll be worth it.

The good news is; your left hand doesn't have to do as much muting when you play with your fingers, so that part will actually be easier.

Keep at it!
E

[JeffBTZ]

Yes. Once you get used to the concept, you won't have to think about your right hand and you'll go back to thinking about your left. I can be the same way with a pick, but since I dabble on guitar a bit, it isn't so bad.

However, I just started playing DB. Talk about frustrating. There's wayyy more going on with the right hand when using a bow than there is doing walking lines. But using a bow is such great practice that I'm just going to have to work through it until it feels more natural.

Just realize that the only bad thing that can come out of learning to use fingers is a few blisters, and those go away. (oh, and maybe the extra time, but playing bass is a great way to spend time.) Best of luck.

[mward69]

I made the switch about 5 yrs ago agter 15 yrs of pick. Now I can't even use a pick...lol keep at it, before long you will be using 3 fingers...for some reason I find the index and ring finger work much better together...maybe it's just me

[jgroh]

Same here...22 or so years with a pick, now the last few with my fingers. I had a hard time at first, especially with faster parts, but it really all comes down to putting in the time. Also, make sure you try to alternate as much as possible.

[Russell L]

1)-Don't bend your wrist too much. Let your fingers come at the strings at about a 45-degree angle.

2)-Use "rest stroke." That's when your finger rests on the next string after plucking one. You get more attack that way.

3)-You will find that sometimes you will wanna use your middle finger as the first one when playing eighth notes (middle finger on the beat) to help accent the beat.

4)-Blisters? I've NEVER gotten blisters in 23 years of finger playing. Lighten your touch if you start to get them. You can also grow your nails out just enough to use them as well as the meat of your fingertips. That's how I play.

5)-You will find that some of the ways in which you accented stuff with a pick won't always be easy with fingers (some things are the same, though), but you will also find things you can do with your fingers that you can't do as well with a pick. Choose a good lick and try playing it for about 20 minutes non-stop to find how to feel the groove with your fingers. Lighten your touch and begin to accent some things and de-accent others. It takes awhile, but you will eventually begin to feel it in your hand, wrist, and arm. This works!

Hope that helps. Keep at it.

[john grey]

I went the other way and got into a pick after many years of finger-style, yet I didn't get blisters during learning as I remember either.
I happen to agree w/ Russell L in the concepts illustrated so I could only add a "+1".

Yet, they are distinct & I also found there were some voicing that I could get with a pick that fingers didn't emulate and visa-versa. I enjoyed taking lessons and getting input from various people. There are a lot of exercises that if a person maintains the discipline to keep at them; get some great results. Self discipline is a valuable item.
I also think it's very important to be increasingly aware of your technique & if you see an issue begin - to stop it as quickly as possible (playing with a dominant single finger rather than alternate, changing attack from fatigue, etc, etc). I took lessons MANY years after i began playing: I just looked for really professional teachers, there are quite a few if you look.

When I first started playing in a way I had not previously (Slap, whatever) I also did the "slow-it-up" thing. I believe it really pays off.

[stingraysvt]

Originally Posted by mward69

I made the switch about 5 yrs ago agter 15 yrs of pick. Now I can't even use a pick...lol keep at it, before long you will be using 3 fingers...for some reason I find the index and ring finger work much better together...maybe it's just me

When I started, I used my index finger only and when I learned some lines that jumped octaves my ring finger was the easiest to work in with those changes. Didn't really start using my middle finger til sometime later!

[rymiraflores]

Thanks guys..I will stick it out haha got to...have a gig in a few weeks !

[germ_77]

I just switched to fingers a few weeks ago as well from years of playing only with a pick, I literally couldnt play if I didnt have one.

I found these exercises really helped from bass exercises for dummies. Basically just open string exercises. I used the ones in the book and then started making my own to get used to crossing strings and the raking with the same finger to the next string really messed me up for a while.


You can view some of them on the preview of the book on google books. Heres the link and they start on page 21 in the preview

Bass Guitar Exercises For Dummies - Google Books


I would do the ones from the book to a metronome when I was near one and when I was just sitting around watching tv I would play them without a metronome and try not looking at the strings and just get comfortable with it.

A month later it feels completely comfortable, just need to work on speed and endurance now as my first jam using fingers I had to switch to a pick after an hour or two.

[rymiraflores]

I don´t know fellas...this is driving me crazy....no dynamics, loss of co-ordination in left hand...blah blah ...feel like a beginner all over again..not much fun.

[EricssonB]

No rush, dude! Take your time! Practice, rest, practice, rest.

Muscle-memory takes a while to build up, especially if you're changing a long-engrained set of muscles. You'll have it within a few weeks.

[germ_77]

Keep spending some time each day on it and you won't have to think about it much, I'm starting to get to the point that it's comfortable without thinking about the right hand although I still hit the wrong string here and there.

It's coming along fairly fast for me over the last few weeks but during those weeks I have been practicing a few hours a day, I had to stop for a few days because of a blister even (I play slap on upright too so my fingers take a lot to blister)

Guess it depends on the person and how much you practice but it definitly gets easier man, stick with it, I'm loving being able to switch between pick and fingers depending what I'm playing. Way more options and sounds.

[germ_77]

Oh and I am by no means a great bass player or anything, my approach could be the worst way of learning it but it's working for me. Those open string exercises a few hours a day while watching tv.

[aus_bass]

Just the opposite for me...........

When I first played bass in the 70's, it was exclusively with a pick. Then around a 20 year break. Picked up the bass again around 2000, and decided to play the "proper" way finger style. It took a little while to get comfortable, but now I can't play with a pick to save my life.

Just keep at it and it will come together.

[Rookwood]

As others have pointed out, the muscle memory and dexterity will come... in time. I had a similar experience, but took a 15 year break and when I started up, I just didn't use a pick at all. Nothing against picks, but I always wanted to learn fingerstyle.

My biggest problem was/is learning how to mute unplayed strings and rest my thumb on the lower unplayed strings.

Good luck and keep practicing!

Originally Posted by rymiraflores

I don´t know fellas...this is driving me crazy....no dynamics, loss of co-ordination in left hand...blah blah ...feel like a beginner all over again..not much fun.

[Floyd Eye]

Practice with your fingers. Rehearse as much as possible with your fingers. Gig with a pick until you are completely comfortable using your fingers.


What exactly is the reason you "Have to" use your fingers all of a sudden, if I may ask?

[rymiraflores]

Originally Posted by Floyd Eye

Practice with your fingers. Rehearse as much as possible with your fingers. Gig with a pick until you are completely comfortable using your fingers.


What exactly is the reason you "Have to" use your fingers all of a sudden, if I may ask?

I guess it´s a combination of wanting to do things that I can´t do with a pick and being annoyed because I can´t master it quickly haha..I am good with a pick..good dynamics etc ..not a thrasher....but now with fingers I sound like a beginner and I am having to concentrate hard on the fingers of both hands like I haven´t had to do for years, and I (possibly mistakenly) vaguely remember an article about pick players getting thumb and finger joint problems and the knuckle joint of my pick hand is a little stiffer than the others now so I would like to have a more gentle technique....not really one big reason just several niggly ones. I am using 2 fingers but honestly I can´t even play Black Velvet well just now and that should be as easy as you can get.

[Floyd Eye]

Originally Posted by rymiraflores

I guess it´s a combination of wanting to do things that I can´t do with a pick and being annoyed because I can´t master it quickly haha..I am good with a pick..good dynamics etc ..not a thrasher....but now with fingers I sound like a beginner and I am having to concentrate hard on the fingers of both hands like I haven´t had to do for years, and I (possibly mistakenly) vaguely remember an article about pick players getting thumb and finger joint problems and the knuckle joint of my pick hand is a little stiffer than the others now so I would like to have a more gentle technique....not really one big reason just several niggly ones. I am using 2 fingers but honestly I can´t even play Black Velvet well just now and that should be as easy as you can get.

You should practice fingerstyle and gig with a pick until you are comfortable. Don't put so much pressure on yourself. Start out with some easy songs that are in your set and as you get them down fingerstyle, play just those songs fingerstyle at gigs. It won't take too long if you practice and take some pressure off yourself.

[panda bass]

My personal tips for finger style are:
1) Rest your thumb on the string above what ever one your plucking (or pickup in the case of the E string). It may seem to slow you down at first but it will help you with accuracy and in my opinion help you get more familiar with your bass.
2) Really work on alternating fingers it may seem hard at first but it will become mindless soon enough.
3) When you first start do everything strictly by the book and once you become proficient then loosen up!