Right Hand Basics On Classical Guitar

Our string picking hands are not only important, but actually the lifeblood of our playing. We need them to be accurate and resilient, not to mention strong.

In classical guitar playing, accents are played with the right hand. So are ghost notes. This means that we need to not only have strength but also the ability to pluck with subtlety. 

The first, biggest mistake I see in guitarists new to the classical guitar is that they tend to rest their hands against the strings. Playing a classical guitar is nothing like playing an electric guitar.

In fact, resting your palm against the strings only hinders your ability to properly finger the strings. If a floating hand is uncomfortable, try resting your thumb against the low E string and your ring finger, middle finger and forefinger against the B string. Your pinky is never to make contact with the strings, so consider it exiled.

The simplest technique involving your right hand is playing a guitar chord. Before you go and try to strum, listen up; strumming is not a technique within the world of classical guitar. When you play a chord, you will take the strings involved designating a finger per string, the lower the string, the further from your pinky the designated finger will be.

When you play the chord, you grab the involved string and, like turning a key in a door, twist the strings. Be sure to let go; if you don’t the strings are apt to twang out loudly, or snap back at your fingers.

The next basic right handed technique is proper fingering. As stated earlier, your pinky will never be involved in any fingering. The reason for this is that it is such a fragile digit that there is more chance of injuring it than there is of actually achieving a usable technique. 

Your thumb will always be designated to the lower notes, or the ‘bass notes.’ This is because, among other reasons, your thumb is the strongest of the fingers. It is also the most naturally independent. The most used fingers will be your forefinger and your middle finer.

Proper ring finger technique will take a lot of practice, as the pinky and ring finger are highly dependent on one another, and isolating the ring finger for clean playing is a whole other task in and of itself.

More often than not, you will be alternating between your forefinger and middle for the treble notes. When you finger the notes, you don’t want to use your nail, but the meat of your fingertip. The best tip for finger independence on your right hand is to practice fingering even when you aren’t playing your instrument. If you know the pattern, half the battle is already won. Application is only a smaller part.

Finally, the best way to perfect your right hand classical guitar techniques is to practice. Be sure to set aside a block of time each day to not only practice finger, but practice power as well. You don’t want to snap strings or crack your nails; picking power is extremely important. Have fun, but most of all, work hard.

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