Heel of your hand on the bridge. Like, right on the saddles. Just a little bit of meet over top of the saddle, and you mute the strings below where you’re playing.
Another trick that was tough for me learning is that I sort of tried to pluck the strings with the pick - to like hook underneath them - instead of strumming through them. That took practice.
Thinking about it now - the motion for anchoring your hand and strumming is like… resting the heel of your hand on your side, just above your hip bone, and gently scratching an itch with the pick.
Gosh, reading through the comments about specific pick brands of picks left me concerned that I’m happy to play with any old pick, provided it badged a medium / 0.7 / 0.73!! Most of mine came free with Lekato straps!!
I also have some blue Ibanez ones - medium - with a sandpaper grip. They are good, but they are very small!!
This thread got me to reconsider thicker picks. I think as my technique has improved, they may actually work better (1.0 - 1.14). Silly question for those who gig - where do you put your pick? with the thin one, i loosened a screw on my pick guard and slide one half way under it. Doesn’t work as great with a thicker pick.
I play with the standard pick shaped pick a lot. I also use a jazz III pick a lot, which is about half the size of a normal pick. pretty much just hold it with my thumb and index fingertips. What I think I use the most though is somewhere between a jazz III and a normal pick.
I have a few of the triangle picks. They’re okay. They’re too big and clunky for my tastes but they give a solid thud if that’s what you’re going for.
I often wedge one between a pickup and the pick guard or body on the far side of the strings. This is often just about perfect for a 1.0mm pick. Makes it really handy.
Since I’ve gotten used to thicker picks, thin ones feel weird. Too much flex/give. I suspect this has come with more precision and/or a more relaxed grip.
I’ve tried that, but there’s no ‘give’ in a coin… I’ve also tried the lid of a Bic biro (wasn’t great. ), cutting a pick out of a plastic takeaway box (too flexible) and bit of old credit card (surprisingly ok).
I actually like to switch back and forth. My hand feels better getting to be in slightly different positions. Also some playing styles I prefer one over the other.
The only caveat is that I prefer ones with a bit of a pointed tip, rather than the standard rounded style.
While gigging i keep a few in my right pocket. It’s the only thing that lives there while gigging incase I drop one and need another quickly. In my practice space they’re scattered around my desk.
I played not just one but three different songs with a pick tonight! All the way through at tempo! (Fate of Ophelia, Crazy, and Wicked Game)
There’s a long backstory, but despite 20+ years of guitar playing I was unable to play with a pick after an illness induced disability. Which is initially why I switched to bass. For whatever reason a month ago I started doing my warmups with one I found randomly in my cable bin and despite it being difficult at first kept at it. And then tonight it just clicked! Whatever had been glitching isn’t now!
Definitely gonna do another B2B pass with a pick now.
Now the real question is if I can get lightning to strike twice and get a breakthrough my slap struggles
That’s awesome! I’m glad you are progressing with the pick!
I haven’t progressed much with the pick, but these last weeks have been so busy. And I’m going through TalkingBass’ Groove Trainer course, and at those lessons I’m playing finger style.
I have some times (not often enough) tried playing with a pick, and one day it went well, but the next day I couldn’t repeat that. It is strange, but some days one pick works best, another day it doesn’t work but another pick works, and I have no idea why. I might sometimes be holding it differently. I don’t know whether I should keep it at an angle and press it down a bit on the string instead of just across it, because each video I watched about it seems to say something a little different.
Maybe I’m always doing it a little wrong.
My muscles are always tense, and it is not something I can control too much. The muscles have learned to compensate for joint hypermobility by keeping tension. Trying the stretch the hands and fingers aggravates the problem. So sometimes holding the pick too long might cause my hand to hurt. I try to keep a lighter grip on it. So far at least the pick never flew from my hand. At the moment I’m trying to find a balance between how I hold the pick, the angle, the strength, etc.
Oh man solidarity with the hypermobility. I have it too and the muscle tension is no joke. As frustrating as I know it is you’re being really smart in taking it slow and not pushing it. The “correct” way to do something is as unique as the person doing it. I have faith that you’re gonna find the way that works for you!
I don’t know if this is something you’ve tried but I use a pinch hold with my pick (thumb index and middle). I’m limited in the way I can sit and hold my bass due to bad hips so being able to rotate my fingers holding the pick is the best way to get a good contact position on the strings. It wasn’t something I could do with the standard grip without a lot of discomfort in my wrist. Plus Marie Moe holds her pick that way so ya know, good company?
How are you liking it? I have it bookmarked since I quite like Mark’s YouTube videos. Although I will admit lately I’m kinda enjoying picking a song and then learning the techniques I’m lacking rather than something more formal.
I haven’t tried it yet, but thanks for the suggestion! I still haven’t found what works best for me. Or, one day it felt like I did, but I didn’t manage to repeat that yet.
I’m enjoying it a lot! The course starts with some theory, and there were things I found were very useful! Then there are the groove practice lessons, with a riff (tabs and notation), a video, and 4 different tracks to practice with: Full Band Track, Full Band Track (No Bass), Isolated Drum Track, and Bass and Drums Track.
The grooves start from easier to gradually more difficult. I still didn’t get to the difficult ones, but the easier ones are also excellent to pay attention to note duration, to the drum track, and locking in with the drums. In the videos Mark analyses the chord progression and gives advice. I have found it interesting and very useful. I feel that now I reached a point where I can get faster back on track if I make a mistake. I can memorise the riffs more easily too. Playing with the tracks have been very useful.
I find it a good course to continue developing my technique after finishing the BassBuzz course. It is not too formal at all. The Module 1 starts with 9 useful lessons on technique. Then lessons 10 to 16 were theory. Only a few of them were challenging, but in the long run they are useful things to know. The rest of the course is groove practice.
), cutting a pick out of a plastic takeaway box (too flexible) and bit of old credit card (surprisingly ok).
