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Having problems playing with a pick

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Deerhunter113

May 17, 2014
8
3
28
#1
Hello there,

I've been playing bass for about a month now, and whenever I try using the pick my muscle between my index finger and thumb starts burning within a minute of playing. Am I holding it too tight? Or is the pain going to fade away as I become better with the pick? I use a 1.00mm pick right now, but i have got other gauges as well.
 
#2
Holding it too tight? Yes and no. Maybe. These are specific muscles - you rarely use them so intensively so it'll take a while to build 'em up. Don't rush it. You're going to have to build up to a standard that carries you through. This takes time. Just keep at it. Easy does it.

When you play, warm up first, go slow, and only use just enough strength so that you can remain in control of the pick. Don't monster it. The more relaxed you are - the lighter your hold on the pick - the longer you'll be able to play, trouble free.

Use a variety of picks too so you find one that truly works best for you. It's amazing how many different sounds you can get out of the various plectrums available. Try 'em all, I say. Bless!
 
#4
That's probably true. Being too tense will cramp you up. You've only been at it a month. So expect it to get a whole lot easier. Learn to relax more. That'll probably knock this on the head. See how ya go.
 
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#7
Tom Bomb said:
Holding it too tight? Yes and no. Maybe. These are specific muscles - you rarely use them so intensively so it'll take a while to build 'em up. Don't rush it. You're going to have to build up to a standard that carries you through. This takes time. Just keep at it. Easy does it.

When you play, warm up first, go slow, and only use just enough strength so that you can remain in control of the pick. Don't monster it. The more relaxed you are - the lighter your hold on the pick - the longer you'll be able to play, trouble free.

Use a variety of picks too so you find one that truly works best for you. It's amazing how many different sounds you can get out of the various plectrums available. Try 'em all, I say. Bless!
Click to expand...

I began using a 0.88mm pick, and I'm finding it easier than before!
 
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#8
When you play, your hand muscles should be fairly relaxed. Not so relaxed that you drop your pick, but the biggest issue I see in beginners (besides failing to practice) is they grip things too tight and press down on strings like they are about to slither away.

Are you doing this? I dunno, I can't see you. But when you play bass, relax. Don't fight or wrestle with your instrument. Use just enough pressure to fret the note cleanly, pluck the string or grip the pick to keep it from dropping.
 
#12
Nev375 said:
When you play, your hand muscles should be fairly relaxed. Not so relaxed that you drop your pick, but the biggest issue I see in beginners (besides failing to practice) is they grip things too tight and press down on strings like they are about to slither away.

Are you doing this? I dunno, I can't see you. But when you play bass, relax. Don't fight or wrestle with your instrument. Use just enough pressure to fret the note cleanly, pluck the string or grip the pick to keep it from dropping.
Click to expand...

I guess that is the biggest problem, as all I want to do is to play songs. But I end up practicing scale to improve my fretting hand, and I use a metronome to improve my internal beat/rhythm timer thingy.
 
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#13
Deerhunter113 said:
I guess that is the biggest problem, as all I want to do is to play songs. But I end up practicing scale to improve my fretting hand, and I use a metronome to improve my internal beat/rhythm timer thingy.
Click to expand...

If you want to play songs, go ahead and play whatever songs are in your current skill level. There's no reason you can't. The purpose of devoting time to metronome and scales is to make it possible for you to learn more difficult songs in the future with much less effort and time being spent in the process.
 
#14
I'd recommend Judas Priest Songs off British Steel for stamina as a beginner. Breaking the law is a good one. All the songs are simple. Take a few you like and learn em. I would not get into it anymore then for stamina and after you get what you need out of it I'd recommend not getting into the bass player as an influence because it's so old school. Ian Hill one of my early influences and served me well but times have changed.
 
#15
Deerhunter113 said:
I guess that is the biggest problem, as all I want to do is to play songs. But I end up practicing scale to improve my fretting hand, and I use a metronome to improve my internal beat/rhythm timer thingy.
Click to expand...
We first learn how to make music on our instrument, i.e. run our scales so our fingers know where the notes are located, and we learn what chord tones make bass lines, etc. But the goal is to play songs with all that stuff.

If you use sheet music that has the notes and chords you are to play no reason you can not play songs right now. . If you have problems with a song you may need to brush up on your fundementals, but, spend some time now learning how to use sheet music. I play from fake chord sheet music. Might want to let Google find some for you. http://www.guitarchordsmagic.com/guitar-song-chords/happy-birthday-guitar-chords.html

Why do I use fake chord sheet music? Because that is the type of sheet music the band directors hand me. In fact the only question my last band director asked was can I play from fake chord. Google can find fake chord for you if you use these key words; guitar chords, "name of the song".

Start with fake chord and when you need something else learn that something else. I must say this about tab. Tab is OK for learning a riff or a phrase, but, if you are using tab for the entire song, there is a better way.

Good luck and have fun playing the songs you like to hear.
 
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#16
Make the picking movement come from your wrist while using flat pick,...not from your thumb nor any fingers muscles. Don't anchor your pinky/else on the bass.

Carol Kaye tips for flat picking bass playing from her website said:
About playing the pick with the technique I use. It's just a natural flat wrist technique that lets ANYONE play HARD on the bass, getting big hard sounds (jimp?) without working at it. ANYONE can easily play that way ALL DAY AND NIGHT (which I had to do in the 60s studios for years) and NEVER get tired....the only thing we all got tired of was boredom and *sitting*, that was tough. When you have the easy correct picking technique (and yes the hard pick does help with good sounds and ease of picking too), then it's really nothing to do that, NO EFFORT AT ALL. When I watch how others play so awful with their arched wrists, or pinkie laying on the board (ugh!), it just amazes me that they have no idea how to use the pick on bass at all, it's all so simple. Lay your hand down on the strings (no never as a "mute" but as a guide for the thumb muscle) and keep the pinkie up in the air slightly to cock your right wrist so you naturally use the natural tough strength in the wrist to pick the bass. This technique is shown at great length on BOTH video courses: Bass Video Course and "Music Reading Pracitce" split-screen 2-video set. Boogaloo and deep bass sounds are easy and you hardly have to hit the string to get a "man's" sound as one confused pro put it.....no you don't have to be built like a "man" to get a "man's" sound.

Carol

Source
Click to expand...
 
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#17
I think people hold picks too tightly in fear of dropping it, usually. It might not work for everyone, but I super-glue a bit of sandpaper to either side of my picks. It takes the fear of losing grip completely out of the equation for me. As soon as I started doing that I let up on the death grip approach. Now, I hold the pick fairly loosely, only tightening slightly when I strike. It's kind of like Bruce Lee's thoughts on punching, keeping the fist loose until just before connecting. YMMV, but maybe give it a shot.
 
#18
You've only been playing a month so of course you're still having problems. Give it a year or two. If you think it's going to start to happen any faster maybe you should save yourself the inevitable disappointment and trade the bass in on an Xbox or a bicycle. Some of use have been at it decades and still have lots of work left to do.

If you do decide to keep going you will experience pain as your muscles get used to the new movements. It's important NOT to try to play through it or you will cause damage to your body. You will also experience frustration. It's important that you DO play through that.

The advise several people have given you to try holding the pick looser is good. A little hint there is don't try to keep it from moving in your fingers. It moves for everyone no matter how good they are. The trick is to figure out how to constantly be adjusting it back to where you want it. When you get good at it it happens before the pick ever moves enough to be a problem.
 
#19
Jeff Bonny said:
... A little hint there is don't try to keep it from moving in your fingers. It moves for everyone no matter how good they are. The trick is to figure out how to constantly be adjusting it back to where you want it. When you get good at it it happens before the pick ever moves enough to be a problem.
Click to expand...

This is an interesting thought that I don't recall having heard/seen before. I am also in the process of learning to play with a pick, after a dozen or so years of playing strictly fingerstyle, and one problem I've been struggling with has been keeping the pick from moving/rotating between my fingers. I've been assuming that I must be doing something wrong, and that once I get it "right" the problem will go away. But you're saying that I shouldn't think of it that way, and should focus instead on developing the skill of constantly adjusting the pick rather than trying to prevent it from moving in the first place.

Do others agree with this advice? If this really is the way to go, I'll definitely give it a try....
 
#20
Lobster11 said:
This is an interesting thought that I don't recall having heard/seen before. I am also in the process of learning to play with a pick, after a dozen or so years of playing strictly fingerstyle, and one problem I've been struggling with has been keeping the pick from moving/rotating between my fingers. I've been assuming that I must be doing something wrong, and that once I get it "right" the problem will go away. But you're saying that I shouldn't think of it that way, and should focus instead on developing the skill of constantly adjusting the pick rather than trying to prevent it from moving in the first place.

Do others agree with this advice? If this really is the way to go, I'll definitely give it a try....
Click to expand...

Yes I agree with that advice,..It doesn't always clearly seen by audience when pick players do it, but even Paul McCartney does and sometime it can be clearly seen,... watch here about @2:50, 3:50 and many other occasions if you watch carefully - how he constantly re-adjusting his pick while playing. Well, it's very logic, actually since the pick is not our natural body part and it constantly is moving in our hand.

 
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