My Three Motions

Description

My best attempt at reverse dart thrower, dart thrower, and finally the motion I've been using. Not sure what to call the last one, and string hopping is obvious in it. I'm a jazz guy, FYI, and I have no natural speed and would like to open that door. Do any of these look like a path forward? Another question: my fret hand is certainly faster than my picking, and I feel like it should lead and dominate the pick hand - it's choosing the notes to be played. Trying to make the fret hand match the pick hand feels backwards to me - do I have things the right way around? Sorry if this is a naive question.

Lesson Category

Videos

USX and DSX

USX and DSX

First motion is USX, then DSX. Or is it? In the first motion, my downstroke would rest-stroke into a higher (pitched) string; in the second motion my upstroke would rest-stroke into a lower-pitched string.
Uploaded: Oct 6, 2023 12:00 AM
Best tremolo

Best tremolo

This is the best tremolo I can produce based on what I currently know - is it in the ballpark of usability? If not, what should I change? Thanks!
Uploaded: Oct 12, 2023 12:00 AM
Tremelo w Bensonish position and grip

Tremelo w Bensonish position and grip

How am I doing? This approach seems to give me a reliable tremolo and the best accuracy and sound with no loss of speed - now I want to take it into speed but an unsure how to go forward.
Uploaded: Nov 13, 2023 12:00 AM
My Three Motions

My Three Motions

My best attempt at reverse dart thrower, dart thrower, and finally the motion I've been using. Not sure what to call the last one, and string hopping is obvious in it. I'm a jazz guy, FYI, and I have no natural speed and would like to open that door. Do any of these look like a path forward? Another question: my fret hand is certainly faster than my picking, and I feel like it should lead and dominate the pick hand - it's choosing the notes to be played. Trying to make the fret hand match the pick hand feels backwards to me - do I have things the right way around? Sorry if this is a naive question.
Uploaded: Sep 25, 2023 12:00 AM
Tremelo

Tremelo

I tried the various motions and grips - this is the only one that feels fairly secure, consistent and easy, and while it's not super fast, it seems to at least leave the door open to greater speed. But it seems to rely on pivoting off the pinky side of the hand, like the boone at the base of the pinky - is that ok?
Uploaded: Sep 27, 2023 12:00 AM
Tremelo on open strings

Tremelo on open strings

Pretty coltish, but it seems to be the most reliable motion for me so far. Again, though, it feels like I'm pivoting off the pinky knuckle to achieve it - not a bad feeling, it's a point of reference, but it that problematic?
Uploaded: Sep 28, 2023 12:00 AM
Bensonish tremolo

Bensonish tremolo

How'm I doing? I think Benson picking gets me away from stringhopping habits, and I like the sound and feel of it, though it's a bit new to me. If I could play lines at the tempo I'm hitting for tremolo, I could die a happy man. I haven't succeeded in bringing this speed into actual single line jazz playing though - what is the way forward?
Uploaded: Nov 29, 2023 12:00 AM
Latest motion tests & picking bakeoff

Latest motion tests & picking bakeoff

Motion tests: EVH and DIMeola - I'm not the fastest guy in the world by a long shot, at anything, but both test motions are easy and natural. Bakeoff: tremolo and chromatics, my best efforts. Tremolo, regardless of motion, still feels coltish after months, but USX tremolo is certainly easier and a bit faster (to be fair, I've been working on it longer). Chromatics: both motions are a lot slower than tremolo and still feel labored, though Benson feels more surgical and precise, and sounds better to me - I think it makes it hard to string-hop, too, a bad habit of mine. What should I focus on to get more speed and ease?
Uploaded: Dec 16, 2023 12:00 AM
Fast and Slow

Fast and Slow

In my effort to convert to Benson picking, here's a current quick speed test, followed by my best attempt at alternate picking chromatics. What am I doing (or not doing) to prevent me from achieving that natural speed when it's time to address strings?
Uploaded: Dec 24, 2023 12:00 AM
Scratch to tremolo

Scratch to tremolo

Using a Bensonish 3 finger grip and position, going from scratching to tremolo on string. It's gotten pretty reliable and I can easily get to even sixteenths at 170 BPM.
Uploaded: Dec 29, 2023 12:00 AM

Status

Closed on Jan 23, 2024 4:30 AM

Comments

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