Picking speed, I can't move past my plateau

I've struggled with speed too and have been researching it to death and have come up with a few things that I am working on that are helping a lot.

First I went up to 1.5mm picks from 1mm, Dunlop primetones to be exact and really like them. Less flexing means less waiting for rebound.

Second warm up slowly and stretch. Not just my hands and wrists but my elbows and shoulders, even neck.

Third, practice stuff that is useful. Scales are important but you won't be playing many straight scales. Troy Stetina metal lead books and speed mechanics is plus full of licks that are heavily used in the actual music you will be playing and gives you musical things to practice.

Fourth and most important, rooting out tension... Tension kills my speed really bad. One guy said you need to be like a Zen master while playing and he's right. Obvious tension point is in your fretting hand. Play something lighter and lighter until it no longer rings out and then play it with just a touch more pressure and that's all the pressure that is needed, don't choke it. Don't smash your thumb into the back of the neck, it rests there. The fingers that are not fretting notes should remain moveable, tension will lock them in place. Learn to release a note before moving the finger so you aren't fighting it. Keep your fingers in a soft arch, like you are holding an Apple not like you are trying out for a zombie movie. Move up to your wrist, it should remain flexible as well. It should be relatively straight and not curled up or pushed out to extremes. Elbow should be relaxed and basically in line with your wrist. Your shoulder should be relaxed and down, don't Herman munster it. Neck relaxed. Watch your jaw, don't clench. Keep breathing, don't hold your breath when you get to a challenging section. Now down the picking arm... All the same stuff all the way down, relax your hand. Don't make a fist, don't squeeze so you are tense. Loosey goosey. Keep your back straight and your head over the spine. Don't twist your back around. Don't tense your feet.

I found all this hard to do initially and I really felt out of control but it's getting better and feeling more natural. More importantly it's helping a ton!

Another place I struggle and am making a very conscious effort is releasing tension when some is needed. Vibrato and bends take more tension than simple note fretting. Releasing that tension immediately after instead of incrementing up is important.

Another tip is to memorize what you are working on and then get more into your peripheral vision instead of pinpoint focusing helps to get you into the right side of your brain.

Another of my problem areas is trusting my muscle memory and subconscious... If I look at my hands while I'm playing very much my conscious mind overthinks and causes me to make mistakes which then causes me to tense up...

I used to practice sitting down and that was horrible I found out after I started standing up for my practice. That alone caused a pretty major jump in speed after getting used to it.

I really like the tips you have given here. I have heard about needing to be relaxed, but I think often I tense up and become too self conscious.

Thanks again!
 
Nothing to do but practice, practice, practice! Although I guess you could cheat and work on your legato technique. ;)
 
Anything is achievable if pursued with conviction, yes there is a cutoff physically that we all have to deal with and the effects of things like arthritis can limit what level of speed and dexterity we can reach as we age. I personally got faster at certain periods of my guitar life and it had less to do with my age and more to do with my environment. In my 20's I got fairly fast playing hard rock and doing the guitar solos of the early 80's, in my 30's I slowed down because I wasn't playing enough improv and a lot of rhythm playing, in my 40's I speeded back up while teaching myself jazz and having fusion jams, now I'm a little fumble fingers because I've just been writing songs and recording backing tracks for singers.

To me it has more to do with environment than anything else. If you're playing with rockers, shredders, fusion heads, or jazz nuts, you're going to get pushed to play faster than if you were strumming chords to a vocal tune. Simple math there.

Sometimes it's not how long you practice, but how you practice. Here's a thought, take a couple of lessons with a shred master, sometimes they can point out some things that can improve your speed and precision, correct things that may be slowing you down, and even the impact of seeing someone do what you want to do in person can inspire much more than a video lesson on youtube. (Even though there are a ton of great lessons on there) There's friend around the corner from me that is a guitar teacher and recording artist that specializes in acoustic playing similar to the Paco De Lucia, Al DiMeola, John Mclaughlin stuff, and he takes jazz guitar lessons from Mimi Fox a recording artist from the area. He wants to get that jazzy vibe first hand.

More than genetics or how many hours are put in, we're all products of our environment, and of you put yourself in an environment of fast players, you're gonna get faster. Otherwise, if you're trying to do it alone your just going to have to be committed to pushing yourself.

Very good point about putting yourself in the right environment. Thanks!
 
I'll add an opinion. Just like with athletics, some people are just more coordinated than others, and, some people are just quicker than others. I think this can translate to anything they do. If a guy who has natural quickness happens to be a guitar player, then if he works at it he will probably be quicker than most. By the same token, some people can practice any special way they want but will never be fast because they just don't have the natural quickness to do anything fast. And, there is a difference between quickness and coordination, and it takes both to play fast.

I'm not really sure how fast I can play. Not as fast as I used too, but not too bad for an old guy.
 
This is a great thread! I have just read through all of the comments and there are lots of helpful suggestions. I must say I really liked Les's post, especially the part about when you start playing and music's relationship to language - which I have always thought about - and I have to say I agree with. I started playing guitar at age 17 and by age 19 I was in a band, but I could already see how much better some of the guitarists were than me and they all had 2 things in common. They started playing at a much earlier age and they took formal lessons at some point.

Now back to the speed "thing". My biggest weakness is my left hand and in particular my pinky, which tends to want to move away from the fretboad when I play fast. If my pinky would stay closer to the fretboard, I am sure I could play faster. Try playing 4 chromatic notes in a row on the same string and many of you will see what I mean (especially for me going backwards - say from a C note to an A note) . Any thoughts on how to fix this pinky issue would be appreciated
 
FYI, the next issue of Guitar Techniques that will hit the U.S. (March 2016 issue, number 253) is going to have a cover story on how to develop speed.
 
Whatever you do, don't watch this -- she gives no helpful tips whatsoever:
(I realize it's strumming and not picking, but it's still speed, and they do not address how.)
 
Any thoughts on how to fix this pinky issue would be appreciated
The simple answer is to use it more. The pinky doesn't do much in life so tends to be weak and not particularly responsive.

The best thing that ever happened to my left pinky was playing double bass. Those strings are so big and you move them so far to get to the fingerboard that your left hand fingers develop very well. For about 6 months I used the two small fingers together to hold a note. After that I could use all four fingers on their own. An electric guitar string is nothing after that. Not that practical for the average person, but it gives you an idea what forced use can do.

Maybe try doing some simple things with your pinky. It could be as simple as typing your next post with it. On guitar, play scales with it and practice chords that require it - even if you don't need those chords for anything, give yourself 5-10 minutes of finger exercise.
 
DjangonReinhardt was 17 when he was burnt in an accident and he had to relearn how to play with just two fingers He did so to many listeners' satisfaction. I have no doubt genetic ability and starting early are important. Indeed my own observation is that many famous musicians had a parent or other relative in the music business. Still I think it's defeatist to assume that just because you didn't start when you were 5 means you can never make it. As if "making it" can be defined anyway.

As far as that goes there are lots of professional musos and they still can't play like Eric Johnson or John McLaughlin.

I think the more relevant question is how much can you expect to improve at any point in your career and what is the best approach, rather than the more defeatist/realist view "you didn't start when you were 5 therefore there is no hope and therefore there is no point, go back to watching "Nashville""
 
Actually I just watched the petrucci videos amazing and funny at the same time. Thanks for posting.
 
FYI, the next issue of Guitar Techniques that will hit the U.S. (March 2016 issue, number 253) is going to have a cover story on how to develop speed.

I would love to read that, but I'm not sure I've seen that magazine locally. Do you know if it is possible to buy an issue online rather than subscribing longer term?

OK. I found the issue for sale online (March 2016, Issue 253)
Would still much prefer to buy the print version. Available at newsstands? Barnes and Noble perhaps?

Kevin
 
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I know the feeling! I started playing folk music on a nylon-string at the age of 12, open-handed strumming and a little fingerpicking, but I didn't want to be a folkie; I wanted to play rock 'n' roll--my initial influences were Chuck Berry and Dick Dale, and even after I got an electric guitar I still tried to play with thumb and fingers--didn't work so well for the Dick Dale stuff! I've never been able to flatpick very fast except in short bursts, but I do a lot of hybrid pick-and-fingers stuff, and if I need to play Misirlou or something similar, I'm a lot faster with the right-hand middle fingernail than I am with the pick. Whatever works, I guess! Part of it is that I'm left-handed playing the guitar right-handed, so my gaining chops has been a constant process of trying to get the picking (right) hand to catch up to the left. At 65 years old I don't think I'm going to improve the picking speed much, but I'd like to get back to where I was six or seven years ago! About five years ago I smashed the middle knuckle on my left-hand pinky--I thought I'd lost the use of it permanently, but after six weeks in a splint I got most of the use of it back--it just won't stretch as far as it used to. No more Honky-Tonk in F for me! I'm just glad I can play at all--I'm lucky that I came up at a time when soul and taste were more important than speed.
 
I think I've found my own personal limit in ability. It's enough to get done what I want to get done but I'll never be able to play fuzz universe by Paul Gilbert lol.
My main block is mustering the energy to sit down and learn something new rather than get side tracked and just going off and jamming the same old shapes.
One thing I wish I could sort out was going up and down the strings with speed. I seem to arch my hand so by the time I get to the top high strings the pick angle is all wrong.
Is it right that I should move my entire hand including palm up the bridge as I go up the Strings?
That's something I think I can learn but my picking has always been my weak point. I've always been jealous if people who can fist grip a pick for maximum stability like Hetfield or 'Tremonti. I remember rob Flynn from Machine Head saying it took hi, 6 months to make the transition.
 
Hetfield and Tremonti don't "really" fist grip. If you watch a lot of their stuff their finger tips are curled in at times for really fast runs but it's a very very very soft "fist". If you squeeze that fist you'll never make the run. The thing they are doing is bringing their finger tips in to mute the other strings. As far as moving your hand... let that baby move to where it needs to be to get the effect/playing you need. Watch some great shredders, John 5, Randy Rhodes, Zach Wylde, tremonti, ect... None of them are anchored and not allowing their hand to just go where it need to for what they are playing.
 
I've had the same problem, no matter what I did, what I practiced, I couldn't gain any speed... So I started taking lessons.

After a few months of it, my instructor saw that the speed could be there, but isn't coming out for some reason. He noted my hands were fast enough when they needed to be, the technique was correct, but something was still holding me back.

He decided to try something, as odd as it was, to see if I had some sort of mental block going on. I put ear plugs in, and noise cancelling headphones on over it with soft white noise playing so I couldn't hear anything going on around me. Sat face to face with him, and only used my eyes to mimic what he was doing, starting obnoxiously slow, and building up. I guess only being able to look at his fretboard & hands, and not hearing what I was doing did work a little because I was actually able to kee up with him for a little bit... Until I realized I was keeping up with him, and screwed it all up, lol.

While it worked in the practice room with dim lights and not being able to hear anything but static and my heartbeat, I'm still struggling "in the real world", I am actually convinced my mind is telling me I can't do it, and holding me back some, so I've been trying to find ways to get over it... I honestly think at this point I'm gonna need to find a band to play with so I have something to concentrate on other than myself.
 
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I would love to read that, but I'm not sure I've seen that magazine locally. Do you know if it is possible to buy an issue online rather than subscribing longer term?

OK. I found the issue for sale online (March 2016, Issue 253)
Would still much prefer to buy the print version. Available at newsstands? Barnes and Noble perhaps?

Kevin

Yes - Barnes & Noble is where I get mine. But my store just got 252, so it's probably about a month until 253 hits.

It kills me how expensive the UK mags are over here. When I was in London a few years ago, the UK mags were obviously much cheaper there. But here's the kicker - if I did the exchange rate right in my head, the US mags (Guitar World I remember for sure) were the same price over there as here.

And yes, I bought just about every UK guitar magazine that was out while I was over there.
 
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I've had the same problem, no matter what I did, what I practiced, I couldn't gain any speed... So I started taking lessons.

After a few months of it, my instructor saw that the speed could be there, but isn't coming out for some reason. He noted my hands were fast enough when they needed to be, the technique was correct, but something was still holding me back.

He decided to try something, as odd as it was, to see if I had some sort of mental block going on. I put ear plugs in, and noise cancelling headphones on over it with soft white noise playing so I couldn't hear anything going on around me. Sat face to face with him, and only used my eyes to mimic what he was doing, starting obnoxiously slow, and building up. I guess only being able to look at his fretboard & hands, and not hearing what I was doing did work a little because I was actually able to kee up with him for a little bit... Until I realized I was keeping up with him, and screwed it all up, lol.

While it worked in the practice room with dim lights and not being able to hear anything but static and my heartbeat, I'm still struggling "in the real world", I am actually convinced my mind is telling me I can't do it, and holding me back some, so I've been trying to find ways to get over it... I honestly think at this point I'm gonna need to find a band to play with so I have something to concentrate on other than myself.

Been there... Still visit from time to time... When you figure it out let me know... I don't like that place...
 
I'm just wondering out loud here. Is there ever really a time when 10 notes per second is not enough? 10 notes per second "sounds" fast to me. Maybe not blazing fast. But fast. I've got to check something I recorded a while back and get a count on "NPS" on it and maybe I'll have a better idea. But even without that, 10 notes per second "seems" like it should be fast enough for just about anyone. But I haven't seen anyone else take this position yet, so maybe I'm off base.

My tastes run from slower bendy guys (big Hendrix and Trower fan here!) to all 70s and 80s rock/metal/prog (Page, Beck, Van Halen, Yngwie and lots of other guys) to DiMeola and Holdsword. My screen name may have given away that I'm a huge Dream Theater fan and Petrucci has already been posted in the thread so you know what he can do.

I know (and I'm sure we all do) guys who are great guitar players, that I KNOW can't play 10 notes per second. Am I off base here, in thinking that 10 notes per second IS fast?
 
Anything in the 150+bpm range with 2 beats+ of 16th notes would be 10+ notes per second. You'll probably run into it if you are playing rock and definitely playing any sort of metal, including classic metal.
 
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