More Picking Patterns
In this lesson you will learn several more picking patterns that are commonly used in modern fingerpicking styles. These patterns will be the basis of all the examples and songs that appear throughout the remainder of this book. Once you have become comfortable with the right hand patterns in this lesson you will have an excellent foundation in fingerpicking guitar and will be in a position to successfully complete the more difficult fingerpicking techniques that are introduced in later lessons.
The Pinch
The next set of alternating thumb style patterns incorporate a pinch. The pinch is the playing of a bass note and treble note together. The thumb and a finger must pick the strings at exactly the same time. This technique may require a little practice to coordinate cleanly as well as ensuring a correct balance of tone and volume between the two notes.
Fingerpicking Pattern Three
The third Fingerpicking pattern uses the pinch on the first beat of the bar. The root bass note and the second string are "pinched" together.
Now try applying Fingerpicking Pattern Three to a basic chord progression.
Fingerpicking Pattern Four
The fourth fingerpicking pattern is the same as the previous pattern except the order of the treble strings is reversed. This time the root bass note and the first string are "pinched" together. Compare this pattern to the third fingerpicking pattern introduced earlier this lesson.
The following example uses fingerpicking pattern four.
B7
Em
The two patterns introduced in this lesson can be used within the same progression.
Fingerpicking Pattern Five
The fifth fingerpicking pattern places the pinch on the second beat of the bar. This puts the emphasis or accent on this beat giving it quite a different feel to the previous patterns. The last note in this pattern is an optional note.
There will be situations when you may feel more comfortable omitting this note, especially on certain chord changes and when you are changing to a different pattern which has a pinch on the first beat of the bar.
An alternative fingering for the F bar chord is introduced next. This alteration can be compared to the alternative fingering for the E chord shown in Lesson Two. The fifth string is not picked with the right hand so it is not necessary to fret the note that is usually found on that string. Using this fingering for the F bar chord will also free up the left hand fourth finger, allowing that finger to fret other notes which can be added to the chord. This type of situation will arise later in the book.
The basic F chord used in previous exercises contained the root bass note on the fourth string. The F bar chord has a root bass note on the sixth string. This bass note is chosen as the root bass note in the following example. It also employs the fifth alternating thumb style pattern shown in the previous diagram is used.
F (alternative fingering)
Fingerpicking Pattern Six
The sixth fingerpicking pattern also places the pinch on the second beat of the bar. This pattern is the same as pattern six except the order of the first and second strings is reversed. Once again the last note in this pattern is an optional note.
The following basic chord progression uses a combination of fingerpicking patterns five and six. You may notice the last note in the pattern has been left out in some bars. Subtle variations to the patterns can give a more natural sound to the fingerpicking.
The Story So Far
The final example in this lesson combines many of the patterns studied so far. The chord progression consists of two different sections. The first section is an interesting sequence of chords that has been used for many popular songs over the years. An eight bar middle section is then played before returning to the last eight bars of the first section.
D7
Try creating your own chord progressions using a combination of the six fingerpicking patterns that have featured so far. Make sure you are comfortable with all the patterns and chord shapes that were introduced in the previous lessons before tackling these next examples.
