Fingerstyle is a way of playing guitar. Here are the tips I have compiled about fingerstyle guitar. You are welcome to read it.

How to learn fingerstyle guitar

1: Main melody

In fingerstyle, the main melody is the first thing to consider, and it is also the main body of the song.

When arranging the main melody, in addition to the integrity of the melody, clarity must be ensured.

It is also necessary to arrange reasonable fingerings and pay attention to the unity and coordination of timbre.

The design of techniques must also be considered when arranging fingerings.

These are directly related to the key you choose.

If the normal fingering arrangement cannot be satisfied, special tuning can be used.

Two: Accompaniment part

You have to consider at least two issues in the accompaniment part.

1. The progression of the bass, 2. the overall rhythm of the song.

Both of these problems are inseparable from harmony writing and overall rhythm arrangement.

You can completely copy the chord progression and rhythm of the original song.

You can also design your own rhythm based on your own understanding.

Then modify some chords or write them from scratch.

This is a subject that tests your musical literacy.

For example, you can adapt a pop song into Blues or Jazz.

Three: Style and Techniques

Fingerstyle is a diversified music form.

Country music, classical music, rock music, Funk, Jazz, Blues, reggae and other music styles,

You can learn the playing skills of electric guitar, electric bass and percussion in Found in fingertips.

So you have to dabble in every instrument and style.

An insurmountable god-like figure in the fingerstyle world is Tommy Emmanuel from Australia.

If you search for his experience, you will understand why he has achieved what he has today.

How to choose a fingerstyle guitar

Wood determines the sound quality

Each piece of wood is unique, so the selection of materials for each guitar is naturally different. In this regard, Bill Collings of Collings Guitars (a famous American high-end guitar brand) explained: "For example, if you choose among 200 top woods, even though they come from the same tree, each of them is different from the other tops. . ” Years of experience have allowed him to accurately judge whether a certain material is suitable for a specific style of instrument. Collings observes that in 99 percent of cases, “wood needs special treatment to reach its full potential. But sometimes you can get lucky. Some woods will have unexpected effects after a little processing, and then you This is how we made a world-class guitar!"

Top

Spruce (also known as white pine) and cedar (red cedar, also known as red pine) because of their Its natural resonance makes it the wood of choice for soundboards. Among spruce, Sitka spruce and Engelmann spruce are the most common, while some German spruce and Adirondack spruce (also called Eastern spruce) are also used.

Sitka Spruce: Hard and heavy, durable and has a long service life. Waterman explains: "Sitka spruce allows the guitar to have a wider range of sound, including a very clear bass and a bright and penetrating treble."

It Not as responsive to light knocks as Engelmann and German spruce (i.e. Sitka spruce lacks powerful overtones and the sound becomes muted when tapped).

Englman spruce: The density is closer to that of red pine, and its lightness gives it better chirping and louder sound effects. It is more suitable for expressing rich bass and powerful mid-range sounds. The Engelmann is great at expressing rich and complex timbres, but its overtones are not that rich.

Rde Cedar: Dick Boak, C.F. Martin: "Which is the best choice? I'm surprised how many people don't realize that."

Richard Hoover of Santa Cruz Guitars (a famous American high-end guitar brand) said: "Its sound is very pleasant and unique. Compared with other woods, it takes less effort to make instruments with good sound quality. It It's more responsive (to playing) than any spruce, but on the other hand, spruce is more durable and retains its sound better than red pine.

"

Waterman (American high-end guitar maker) added: "Although the difference between red pine and spruce is more obvious in the production of classical guitars, in general, the tone of red pine Fuller and richer than other woods? Of course, this is without considering spruce. The gradual realization of spruce's superiority was a long process. Of course, red pine is enough to make a high-quality guitar. ”

Craig Meecham of Spokane?s Guitar Gallerie: “A guitar made of red pine will have the tone that a spruce guitar will have in 20 years (that is, red pine will open up faster than spruce) ). "And, for quite a few listeners, the tone of red pine is more gorgeous and sweet than spruce.

Back & Sides

Indian rosewood: sound Warmth. Because of this characteristic, it has become a favorite among players and singers, although there are some exceptions. Most guitar builders reserve the best spruce top materials they have for rosewood bodies.

Brazilian rosewood: It is extremely expensive and most manufacturers now prefer Indian rosewood because it is easier to process and is more stable. The sound of the instruments produced is very similar to that of Brazilian rosewood.

Dick Boak observed, "The Indian rosewood we have now has excellent quality. The wood is continuous, stable, straight, and has good properties. The sex of sex. In a word, it is the ideal rosewood. In addition, India's resource management of rosewood is very good. “He went on to say that the cost of using Brazilian rosewood is almost ten times that of Indian rosewood, which is not cost-effective. “On newer instruments, I haven’t noticed any significant difference.” At the same time, he admits that Indian rosewood is not as carefully selected as Brazilian rosewood. “If we were making tens of thousands of instruments out of Indian rosewood in the 1930s, we could imagine that those instruments would be very special today,” Meecham agrees. "We understand that there is a slight 5%-10% difference in sound between the two, but it may not be worth the extra cost."

Honduras mahogany: back and side wood The second choice. Very tense and crisp treble; the bass part is loud, but not very soft. Why does mahogany, a light and porous wood, have such good sound quality? Martin's Boak feels. Incredible. “I can’t explain how it makes such a good choice for a soundboard. The downside is that it looks too plain. ”

Maple: is another popular back and side wood. Unlike rosewood, which generally has good absorbency, maple board is extremely reflective. It is completely Maple guitars are better at treble by bouncing vibrations off the back of the soundboard. They can even sound a little harsh at times, but if the player is very skilled, they can sound extremely beautiful. . Maple is more suitable for larger instruments because the larger volume produces better bass. Due to the bright and crisp echo characteristics of maple, it has become the choice of many jazz guitarists.

< p> Hawaiian Koa (Koa, also known as acacia or acacia): Like Brazilian rosewood, Hawaiian koa is now prohibited from logging. Meecham describes the sound of koa: “The richness (of timbre) is between peach blossom. Between heartwood and rosewood. "

Shape

Because Boak paid special attention to the size of his guitar, he observed that size had a huge impact on the tone of the guitar. "It is well known that smaller guitars have stronger treble. And the bass is weak. Larger guitars, such as dreadnoughts, have bass that booms so much that it creates a near-chaos effect. When you go from type 0 to 00, up to 000, you can gradually find a size where the high and low frequencies achieve a more ideal balance. Only by working hard on the size can we achieve the perfect balance (of sound). ”

To give a more appropriate example, the widely imitated famous OM (Orchestra Model “symphony”) guitar has many features that make fingerstyle enthusiasts excited. Among them: the neck Size, the width at the nut is 1.75 inches (about 4.45 cm) and the dreadnought model is only about 1.69 inches (about 4.29 cm), there are 14 frets outside the body (referring to the neck), 25.4 inches (about 64.5 cm) length (which allows greater tension and volume than the smaller 24.9-inch (approximately 63.2 cm)), and a compact body that makes it more comfortable to hold when playing in a seated position.

In addition, the strings of the OM are laid out wider on the bridge, which is very convenient for the right hand who picks the strings? This is one of the important aspects that fingerpicking players need to consider.

Regarding this feature, Martin Simpson further said: "The strings are completely parallel from bridge to nut, which is great for electric guitars, but it makes it difficult to get your fingers into the right position."

Eric Schoenberg believes that the various performances of the OM guitar can be described as "the perfect combination in the eyes of fingerstyle players." In fact, the recent rise of OM-style guitars is largely due to him. After playing many older Martin models, Schoenberg found that the OM model suited his style best, and he used it to achieve a wider range of sound than the 12-fret 000 model he had previously used. Later, he was commissioned by Martin to re-release this model of guitar, which became the forerunner of Martin's custom-made handmade guitars. This relationship resulted in the subsequent Schoenberg series of guitars. Schoenberg collaborated with master luthier T.J. Thompson (who Simpson calls "one of the kings of fingerstyle guitar making"), following the guitar-making model of the early 1830s. The Martin factory completes the basic assembly and production of the guitar, and then ships it as a set to Schoenberg's handicraft workshop. Thompson is responsible for adjusting and voicing all the keyboards and matching them with the body parts according to the sound, making each guitar unique.

Although Schoenberg was originally intended to be a fingerstyle guitar, the popularity of the OM guitar is also due to its suitability for many different styles of playing. Its sound quality holds up well even under extreme playing.

In contrast, the Santa Cruz FS model guitar is conceived and designed to only take care of a special small part of fingerstyle playing, especially those with loose strings when using open tuning. Play. This model of guitar was specifically built to produce, as Hoover describes it, "a series of exquisite overtones with just a single strum." Hoover reminds: "If you play classical music from Monday to Friday, and only play bluegrass music on the weekends, then this type of guitar is not suitable for you!"

Among other body styles, it is not the dreadnought that allows most fingerstyle players to bring out the best in their skills. This type of guitar was mainly developed to suit the performance of bluegrass and country musicians. These artists often provide bass accompaniment in small choruses while providing a steady rhythm. This is also the purpose of fearnought design. However, fingerstyle music has more ups and downs and less of this kind of stability, and their music after the fifth fret will be a bit sharp (it is not easy to integrate into the harmony).

Despite these shortcomings of the dreadnought, many musicians who play Travis picker still play it. Simpson speculated that this was because they used finger cots, which dampened the bass. “If you don’t do that, you have to deal with loud, deep bass.” He admits that a good dreadnought guitar can work well with fingertips, “but unless you’re prepared to do that all the time. Play it with finger picks. "A fearnought guitar with a mahogany back and sides has a strong bass sound, which gives it better balance. Despite this, everyone has their own preference for green vegetables and radish, and personal preference comes first. Take John Fahey, known as the father of the American folk guitar solo. The guitar he uses is rosewood dreadnought, because he likes a calmer bottom tone.

Jumbo guitars are also very common in fingerstyle playing. From the perspective of volume, dreadnought and jumbo are similar in size, but their sounds are completely different. Jumbo's girdle design is like the balance point of the entire instrument. Its balance is better than dreadnought, and the bass sound of both is outstanding. On the downside, larger guitars are more "soundy," which makes them less precise. Waterman described their sound as "coming out of a hallway." In addition, due to their large size, many people find them a bit awkward to use.

After wide neck, cutaway is probably the most common custom request for fingerstyle players. Waterman explains: “If you have to use a capo on the fifth fret, you’d better have a cutaway guitar, otherwise it’s going to be hard to reach the 1/3 of the neck (the height of the guitar). frets!" But as a reminder of custom cutaways (especially on smaller guitars), he goes on to say: "The downside [of making the guitar smaller due to cutaways] is that you sacrifice about a liter of The air needs to be compensated for in other parts, otherwise the sound of the guitar will sound a bit floaty. Experienced luthiers will make the sides of the guitar deeper to compensate. This ensures that the final volume of the missing corner cabinet is still the same. Same as the rounded corners."

Guitar skills that must be mastered

1. The string pressing method: The string pressing method is also called the leaning method or the parallel playing method. This is the bass string on the classical guitar. The most commonly used basic techniques.

The method is: touch the string vertically with your right finger, press and pull it down forcefully, and after the sound is played, the finger will stop on the next string. The sound played by pressing the string method is solid, powerful and penetrating. The string-pressing method is mostly used in the performance of melody parts and chord root notes. It is often used in contrast with the string-drawing method to make the music rich in layers.

2. String hooking method: After the fingernails of your right hand touch the string, use the power of your knuckles to hook them into the palm of your hand. According to the different hooking positions of the right hand nails, it can be divided into oblique hooking method, flat hooking method and Segovia string hooking method.

(1) Flat hook method: touch the string vertically with the fingernails of your right hand, and hook the flat hook toward the palm to make the string vibrate and sound. This is the most widely used string hooking method. Pay attention to the intensity mark when playing. If there is no velocity mark, just use moderate velocity.

(2) Oblique hook method: Touch the string with the fingernail of your right hand near the direction of the thumb, and hook it diagonally toward the palm.

(3) Segovia's hooking method: Use your fingers and fingernails on a string at the same time, touch the fingertips to the string, and then use your nails to hook the string.

3. Sound: Arpeggio playing is a simple, gorgeous and frequently used technique in guitar playing. There are three types of arpeggio playing methods: single-finger forward arpeggio, single-finger reverse arpeggio, and multi-finger arpeggio.

(1) Single-finger arpeggio: use the thumb or index finger of your right hand to pluck from the bass strings to the treble strings in sequence, with moderate strength and speed between strumming and decomposed chords. It is required to be able to hear clearly. Every sound comes out, and the sound is as gorgeous as flowing water.

(2) Single-finger reverse arpeggio: Use the nail of your right thumb to pluck from the treble string to the bass string.

(3) Multi-finger arpeggio: The sixth, fifth, and fourth strings are all played by the thumb of the right hand, and the third, second, and first strings are played by the index finger, middle finger, and ring finger of the right hand respectively, and then from Start playing the notes one after another with your thumb, and the notes should be even and coherent.

4. Strumming: Strumming technique is the most expressive and important technique in guitar skills. Strumming is a difficult technique to master, but there are only two basic playing methods: forward strumming and reverse strumming. sweep.

(1) Sequential sweep: Sweep the index finger nail from the bass string to the treble string, or bring the four fingers except the thumb together, and use the nail to sweep from the bass string to the treble string at the same time. The speed should be faster and the sound should be louder. A certain sense of intensity.

(2) Sweep your thumbnail from the treble string to the bass string.

5. Right-hand cut: Right-hand cut is also called right-hand silencing. After strumming the strings with your right fingers, touch the strings with the outside of your palm close to the thumb or stop on the strings to make the sound disappear quickly, which can enhance the rhythm and dynamics of the music.

6. Bass drum: Bass drum playing is a very unique technique in classical guitar. The essentials of playing: Make a half-turn with your right hand, and use the outside of your thumb to flatly knock the strings 2-3CM away from the piano to make the piano vibrate and make sounds. After knocking, leave your thumb quickly to avoid hindering the vibration of the strings.

7. Finger-picking: Finger-picking is also called flamenco strumming method. This is a difficult right-hand technique. Make a loose fist with your right hand, and use the nail surface of your right hand to play the strings in sequence with your little finger, ring finger, middle finger, and index finger. Each finger should be opened equally and quickly. Finger-picking is often used to express tense and lively atmospheres.

8. Monophone method: Monophone method is also called plucking. Straighten your right palm, use the inner right side of your right hand (direction of your little finger) to gently press the strings directly above the piano, and use your fingers (or plucking piece) to play the strings. The sound will be dull and short. Pay attention to the part of the string pressed on the palm side of your right hand. If it is too far to the right, there will be no effect, and if it is too far to the left, there will be no sound.

9. Picking notes: Picking notes is also called finger snapping. Essentials of playing: press the string with the index finger of your right hand, put the nail of the ring finger or middle finger of your right hand inside the string, and then pop the nail out hard to make a dull sound similar to finger snapping. The tone is very unique.

10. Small mines: Small mines are also called clapping strings. The key is to hit several strings with your right elbow forcefully to make a collision-like sound. The effect is similar to that of the big drum playing method. , but more rugged.

11. Ring finger: Ring finger is also called tremolo. This is the most important and difficult technique of classical guitar. The ring finger refers to the rapid repetition of the same sound. The ring finger, middle finger, and index finger of the right hand take turns to play the same sound, so that the fine homophonic repeats continue to form a flowing melody, and the tone is very charming.

12. Appliance: The small note decorating above the original note of the melody is called appliqué. The appoggiata occupies the duration of the original note. The appoggios on the guitar are divided into two types: appoggios on the same string and appoggios on different strings.

(1) There are two types of appoggio on the same string: ascending appoggiata and descending appoggiata.

A Ascending Elegance: Point out the lower note with your right hand, and then hit the fret where the higher note is with your left finger. The sound is produced by relying on the residual vibration of the string and the tapping of the left finger. The right hand no longer plays the second note. This sound is gorgeous and beautiful.

B descending grace note playing method: hold down two notes, high and low, at the same time with your left finger. First use your right finger to pop out the higher note, and then use your left finger on the higher note to draw out the higher note diagonally. For low notes, the string's residual vibration and the strength of the left finger's hooking force make the string sound lower. In the hooking performance, the little finger of the left hand is used more.

(2) Apparatus, minor notes and fundamental notes on different strings must be played separately.

13. Essentials of playing the push-pull string method: hold down the string with your left finger, and after playing the sound with your right finger, push up or pull down with your left hand in a direction perpendicular to the string to make a big change in the pronunciation. . In specific performances, push up and pull down are often used repeatedly.

14. Snare drum: Use the middle finger of your left hand to raise the sixth string between the seventh and ninth frets, cross it on the fifth string, and then hold the intersection of the two strings. Use the two strings of your right hand to By strumming the strings with your fingers, you can get the sound of a snare drum. You can also play the snare sound by twisting the third and fourth strings or the first and second strings together between the seventh and ninth frets.

15. Tremolo: Within the duration of the note, the main tone and a tone that is a second greater or a minor second higher than the main tone are used to alternately produce a vibrato effect at a very fast speed. Essentials of playing: Hold down the main note with one finger of your left hand, and after playing the main note with your right hand, use the other finger of your left hand to quickly and repeatedly hit the string to make the note pop out as required.

16. Left-hand cut: Hold down the note to be played with your left hand. After the right hand plays the note, immediately relax the string-pressing fingers of your left hand to make the strings leave the frets, but the left-hand stringing fingers should float on the frets. on the strings to achieve the purpose of muffling sound.

17. Left-hand solo: Play directly on the head of the piano with your left hand to get a clarinet-like effect.

18. Overtone playing method: Overtone is an important technique commonly used in classical guitar. Its tone is transparent and clear, and has strong penetrating power. Overtones can be divided into artificial overtones and natural overtones.

A Artificial overtone: Press the index finger of your right hand on the string just above the 12th fret behind the actual pressing position of the left finger, and use the little finger or ring finger of your right hand to hook the string. (When the little finger or ring finger hooks the string, the index finger of the right hand must leave the string at the same time, otherwise there will be no overtone effect).

B Natural overtone: The left finger is gently pressed on the strings at each equal point, and the right finger is used to pull the string with moderate strength. While pulling the string, the left finger is quickly moved away from the piano. Strings can produce clear sounds. The positions of the natural overtones are at the 3rd, 5th, 7th, and 12th frets of the guitar.

19. Knockboard playing method: Use the nail of the ring finger of your right hand, or the fingertips of the middle finger and ring finger, to gently tap the panel on the underside of the strings. When tapping, you need to turn your wrist and the movement should be flexible. Another method is to tap the top of the strings with the knuckle of your thumb. When striking, the thumb must be raised, but do not use excessive force.

20. Bell tone: Bell tone is a method of imitating a bell in guitar playing. The open string tone of the treble string and the treble tone of the bass string are intertwined into a set of decomposed chords.