1 Finger or 2

[Robscott]

On your right hand do use the 2 finger style 100% of the time. Or do use one finger 100% of the time. Or do you mix it up between both. For me i would say 2 fingers 65% the rest only 1 finger....

I use one finger then the other one.....

 

[JoeWPgh]

Mostly 2, sometimes one. When playing ballads, I sometimes use my relatively un-callused third finger for a softer attack

 

[Robscott]

I started on piano using all fingers and thumbs on both hands. On bass, I usually use two fingers on my plucking hand, but when called for and/or necessary, I use all five, frequently in a flamenco style (using both up and down-strokes with each). I do this unconsciously and didn't know it is a tad unorthodox until it was pointed out by a drummer many years ago.

My god what are you playing??????

 

[mrjim123]

Two.

 

[Krisfield]

Adding a one finger flick is very useful. I think Geddy Lee did this.

 

[tedious1]

Well, usually I start by asking them to pull one finger...after that, no-one wants to risk two fingers.

 

[Ric5]

On your right hand do use the 2 finger style 100% of the time. Or do use one finger 100% of the time. Or do you mix it up between both. For me i would say 2 fingers 65% the rest only 1 finger....

I use all fingers, thumbs, picks, plucking, slapping, picking, tapping and many more techniques … if it sounds good then do it!!!

 

[BtaylorTheRogue]

probably 50% index, 40% middle, 9% ring (i use 3 finger style for quick triplets), and 1% thumb.

 

[FrenchBassQC]

4 fingers here, thumb, pointing, middle and ring.

 

[Sam Evans]

Mostly 2. Sometimes 3. Occasionally the thumb. But never the pinky. That's just wrong, man ...

 

[2112]

I would say 85-90% of the time I'm playing fingerstyle I use one finger. I will go to 2 or 3 fingers for very fast stuff when one finger gets tired (which is rare) or if I can play it more smoothly or with better articulation or style. On very rare occasions I have pulled in a 4th finger.

When I'm playing flamenco style it's probably 50-50 between 1 and 2 fingers depending on how they are and what kind of attack I want.

 

[Clef_de_fa]

3 + thumb in many configuration

 

[WhenTheDrumsStops]

2 fingers, but my ring finger is always used for the accent noted. The 2nd finger packs the biggest punch.

 

[whero]

I tend to use three about 95% of the time. Mainly my index and middle fingers, with either my ring finger or thumb helping out. I only thought about it when I saw this thread, but I can't think of any songs where I'm using my thumb and also using my ring finger. My pinky is a lazy little bugger; just hangs around, watching the other guys do all the work.

The other 5% of the time I'm using a pick.

 

[mark beem]

On your right hand do use the 2 finger style 100% of the time. Or do use one finger 100% of the time. Or do you mix it up between both. For me i would say 2 fingers 65% the rest only 1 finger....

1 finger all the time. Sometimes 2. Sometimes 2 fingers and thumb..

 

[Phalex]

I frequently fall into a pattern using one finger for more beats than the other.

 

[Manticore]

My god what are you playing??????

Nah, it's not like that. Although I had years of piano lessons, I'm self-taught on bass. I used whatever worked when starting out. Without considering proper technique when I was starting out I found sometimes it is easier, cleaner and more efficient to use a flamenco technique with more than two fingers. For instance, the bass line in "Heart of the Sunrise" by Yes was played with a pick at a fairly fast tempo. Using fingers I can play the line at speed very cleanly using three fingers combined with up- and down-strokes. There are other ways to play it (like using a pick, but sadly, I suck at using a pick), but this works well for me.

Another example is the ascending bass line at the beginning of "Revelation" as played by Robben Ford (I believe with Roscoe Beck on bass). Listen to the example below. In the opening lines you'll hear the bass playing an ascending line with one note on the E string, one on the D string, two on the E string, one on the D string, two on the E string, one on the D, etc. The line is a bit awkward to play with those string jumps using a standard two-finger approach, but a snap using both up- and down-strokes with one finger for the notes played on the E string and up-strokes using a different finger for the notes played on the D string. Again, it can be played in another fashion, but for me this just works better.



It might take a little practice to get all the notes to have the same tone and to be able to place accents using any finger on either up- or down-strokes, but part of the joy of playing is figuring out ways to make practice more interesting. I'm not an advocate of forsaking "proper" technique, but neither can I condemn those that have found viable alternatives.

 

[lermgalieu]

Sometimes 1, usually 2, sometimes my thumb.

 

[Chrisk-K]

every Iron Maiden song 3 ;-)
Rock on.

Be a man and use 2 fingers like Steve!!

 

[Skeptismo]