Re: time for a Benson Picking thread?

On Fri, 01 Feb 2008 16:24:16 +0000, Paul K. wrote:

thanks Dan. I'll focus more on the left hand to see if that helps. I've
never anchored my right hand. what do you mean by "more limiting
technically" in your last sentence?


Paul K

Hi Paul and all,

I spotted the OP on this thread but didn't note who that was, so if that
was you, or not, here's what I've always felt to be the essence of this
issue:

Benson's unusual wrist and hand angle is a quirk, apparently resulting
from playing restrictions during travel. I don't know where Metheny's
odd technique comes from, or Martino's.

That, and though Andress focuses on the bio-mechanics of it, is not the
significant difference between Benson and Mel Bay.

The entire technique for people who didn't evolve an unusual picking
posture out of circumstance or necessity is simply the ROTATION OF THE
PICK.

As little as 30 degrees counterclockwise is sufficient to observe all the
benefits that Tuck's epiphany entailed. More than 45 degrees is probably
not going to improve anyone's playing as much as it's going to hurt one's
wrist and thumb.

The whole point of the rotated pick is to strike the string at an angle
so that the PICK RIDES UP AND OVER THE STRING and secondarily so that the
pick COMES TO REST on the string below a down stroke, and CLEARS THE
STRING above an upstroke, and in the process, the pick never gets STUCK
ABOVE OR BELOW the strings.

You don't have to read too closely between the lines to see that as the
significant factor Tuck observed Benson doing.

Yes, the thumb and index fingers are pointed more toward the neck than in
the classic Mel Bay - pick-lying-across-bent-index-finger grip, and a
consequence of this is the thumb will be bent back, at least a bit, but
there's absolutely no need to exaggerate this.

Now, here's a simple demonstration you can do, and explore this technique
in probably just a few minutes, which should suggest how you might
progress if you stayed with it:

Get a nice fast tremolo going with a conventional pick attack angle -
roughly the pick will be parallel with the strings, and might even be
tipped downward as Jack does in his Sheets work. Take your speed all the
way up.

Then, begin rotating the pick counterclockwise, again about 30 degrees is
plenty, with 15 even being enough to completely observe the difference.

You'll find after literally a few minutes that you can exceed the speed
of your familiar pick attack. You'll also observe some of the bio-
mechanical differences Tuck notes, and you will find, despite the gross-
motor movement of the shoulder vs. the finer motion of the wrist and even
moreso the finest motion of the fingers (and yes, we all can name players
who clearly use those joints to move the pick) the shoulder will be the
fastest and maybe even the most fluid.

So, for anyone still reading down this far, and thinking they have a
better picture than before, I'll summarize in three easy to understand
steps:

01. Pick "pinched" between thumb pad and side of the first segment of
the index finger.

10. Pick rotated "a bit" counterclockwise so it glides up and over and
avoids accidentally striking and sounding the string above and below.

11. Main motion is that oscillation that Tuck describes in admirably
intricate detail coming mainly from the shoulder.

Damn, I just remembered one more thing - sorry, it's been years since I
read Tuck's article - that grip is supposed to also reduce the likelihood
or frequency of the pick popping out of your fingers.

Frank

--
"Life isn't a spectator sport" - Jackie Robinson
.