hi humanity-
here is a description of what i do, along with some info compiled from my 'mastering right and left hand technique' course on
musicdojo-
For my basic approach I like to use a dynamic, movable thumb position. In other words, instead of leaving the thumb stationary at a single anchor point, such as a pickup or thumbrest, mine 'floats' or 'trails' based on where my plucking fingers are positioned at the time. In past curriculum I've written, I've referred to this as a "movable anchor," "floating thumb," or "thumb trailing" technique. The advantage for me is twofold: It allows me to both
maintain control of the muting tasks and also
maintain a consistent openness of hand position, regardless of what bass I'm playing or what strings I'm playing on. It essentially means my hand position doesn't ever significantly change, regardless of whether I'm playing on the higher or lower pitched strings. It's a highly adaptive approach that helped me immensely in my technical pursuits on the bass. I started experimenting with this only after I switched from 4 string to 5 string bass. I had a really tough time with the muting after adding that one extra string. It was very frustrating, because I found that all of the technical facility that I had developed on the 4 string for so long had lost its effectiveness because I was not able to play as clean on my new bass. I didn't realize this before, but I had grown dependent on my 4 string plucking hand position, and what I discovered was that I was using my 4 string bass' jazz pickup as a security blanket of sorts for my hand placement. That's where I was resting my thumb 100% of the time, and I soon realized that it was quite limiting because I had to do so much 'reaching' with my plucking hand. Here is a synopsis of how this approach works, with info taken from my aforementioned
musicdojo course online. For those of you interested in the finer details of this, I encourage you to sign up for this course, as it is filled with exercises and strategies that will help you to truly gain control of your hands and develop total confidence with your technique! Also, you will see video clips of demonstrations of how this specifically works, so that you can analyze how the technique applies in context.
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[snip...]
Muting Advantages
Obviously, it is a good idea to utilize some sort of muting method to keep strings quiet that are not being played. This topic causes a lot of problems for players, especially ones who are making the transition from 4 string bass to a 5 or 6 string or more. Keeping the strings that aren't being played quiet is a challenge for the right hand because it is already preoccupied with the actual plucking of the strings. Many players try to depend on their left hand exclusively for muting tasks, but this approach can be futile during very complex or challenging passages.
In my opinion, the use of a "moveable anchor" is one of the most versatile and least restrictive solutions to this challenge. Most of us who play finger style already utilize some type of anchored approach using the thumb of the right hand. For example, some players place their thumb on a pickup or the body of the bass while they play in order to stabilize their right hand. Others might use a thumb rest or low string to accomplish the same task.
The concept of a movable anchor is similar, but instead of leaving the thumb in one place, this approach allows the thumb to ‘float’ or 'follow' the picking fingers back and forth over the width of the strings, acting as a mute in both directions.
A summary of the basic approach is this: As your picking fingers move across the strings, your thumb follows behind them, anchoring on those strings not being played and keeping them quiet. The most practical applications of this concept allow the thumb to "float" across the strings more, or use the side of the entire length of the thumb, as opposed to rigidly parking on each string until you move to the next one. There are several ways to implement this approach by simply changing the angle of the thumb; you'll want to experiment to discover which method works best for you. Over the years I've come to settle on a version in which I use the side of my thumb to maintain contact with all of the strings behind my plucking fingers that I am not playing. Of course, even this approach subtly changes as I play different types of phrases and lines.
Economy of Motion
Another benefit to using a movable anchor is that in addition to taking care of muting tasks, it also maintains a consistent hand position as you move across the strings. To explain this another way, the actual 'openness' of your right hand remains the same regardless of which string you are playing. You'll find that the more closed hand position used by this approach usually results in a greater comfort. Why? Try this test: Completely relax your hands and watch what your fingers do... If you're built like most people, you'll find that they naturally curve into a more closed hand position. It actually takes a degree of strength to hold your hands completely open. Now think about how that applies to your right hand technique. With a stationary anchor, your right hand becomes more open the farther away your picking fingers get from your anchor point. For example, with your thumb anchored on the pickup, your hand is going to be the most 'open' when you are playing the highest pitched string of your bass. It will be the most 'closed' and relaxed when you are playing the lowest pitched string.
A moveable anchor promotes a more closed right hand position across all strings, since you don't have to 'reach' for the higher pitched strings.
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Hope that helps!
