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Ring finger nail... "ringing"
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gj Michelob
Posts: 1531
Joined: Nov. 7 2008
From: New York City/San Francisco
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RE: Ring finger nail... "ringin... (in reply to Ricardo)
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quote:
as I play more "straight on" to the strings, the ring finger nail I use has more material on the LEFT side than the right (exact opposite of the pictured ramp). My middle finger is more straight across and the index indeed as the one pictured. So they ramp i m a like this / / / and I ramp like this /- \. Because of the wrist and angle of attack I imagine. I don't know how you play so all I can say is experiment. I am so glad and relieved you wrote that, Ricardo, because I was afraid I had it all wrong. I will experiment with a more focused shape of the nail. Thank you. GB, you bring up another good point, and like that of Ricardo, quite refreshing: "Lots of people play terrifically with profoundly different nail shapes and wrist angles. I think that what they have in common is sensitivity in the moment to what feels right at the instant the string is struck." As i said, I will experiment, but knowing that my right hand angle is not in blatant contravention of any dogma of guitar faith... I don't feel as dumb as I did when I asked the question. Hasta luego, amigos, y muchissimas gracias
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gj Michelob
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Date May 11 2014 4:24:56
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gj Michelob
Posts: 1531
Joined: Nov. 7 2008
From: New York City/San Francisco
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RE: Ring finger nail... "ringin... (in reply to Ruphus)
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quote:
Still, what remains is that in dependence of how you plant there will be a single most accomodating nail shape. You can duplicate that shape by "playing" your file. Once you have shortened nails roughly to where you like them in general, hold the file horizontally as if it was a strings and let your finger tips hit and brush it like when playing the guitar. It will let you feel where exactly the protruding section is that causes the brittle tone that you dislike, and you can then "play it away" on the file. Then give it a final smoothing with your flexible buffer and enjoy the slipping with only final nail edge. - Regarding technique, I have observed that spaying out considerably enhances less suitable planting. From there, watching out for I,M,A to stay laterally close to each other ( which they will if only there be no lateral apparatus engaged. And that again will usually be the case at trying to bypass the string untouched on return, whilst a rectangular posture however keeps your returning finger on collision course) and basically being well lined up behind each other helps the fingers with retaining a planting angle that will allow sliding and well dosed flesh ramp. May that help, Giacomo. :O) A solid and helpful post, indeed. Thank you dear Ruphus. I particularly like your tip on "playing" the file to identify the section of the nail responsible for the undesired tone. I will certainly try. I am afraid I generally file my nails in a fashion that is geometrically uniform, as these things are already "offensive" to the general public, I can't imagine the reaction when they start pointing different directions
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gj Michelob
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Date May 11 2014 14:11:58
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gj Michelob
Posts: 1531
Joined: Nov. 7 2008
From: New York City/San Francisco
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RE: Ring finger nail... "ringin... (in reply to mark indigo)
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quote:
I can't claim to be among the "learned musicians", but like z6 I put a nail file over the 1st string and play on it to mark where I need to file the nail, and I get a resulting shape similar to the one Ricardo describes, index angled one way, ring the other, and middle more or less flat (actually mine is angle slightly the same way as index, but the angle is almost flat). Thank you, Mark, this is really the point. I hadn't realized how critical my IMA asymmetric directions really are, until Ricardo pointed out the issue. So, I followed the filing procedure with an immediate and significant improvement. Erik, point well taken regarding the effect of playing in proximity to the bridge or sound hole, and how each will affect sound and tone, the former emphasizing a thinner, and the latter a warmer tone. As always, this forum is quite a resource, and I am grateful for the prompt and helpful replies. Thanks, y'all.
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gj Michelob
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Date May 12 2014 15:09:15
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gj Michelob
Posts: 1531
Joined: Nov. 7 2008
From: New York City/San Francisco
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RE: Ring finger nail... "ringin... (in reply to Miguel de Maria)
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quote:
GJ, David Russell has a little book of advices ("consejos") floating around the internet. One of them is that the a finger requires a different angle than the others, a slight rotation of the hand. It seems a rather untidy and inefficient way to address the problem. We have this idea of the hand staying in one absolutely still position, and are horrified by the concept of having to deviate from this perfect, ergonomic place for a slight advantage in tone for a single finger. But David Russell is a man quite as obsessed with tone as you! Perhaps it will be worth it for you. A slight pronation of the forearm while playing the a finger rounds it out. Thank you, Miguel, I found the text, in Spanish, yet clear enough. I agree that there is no such a thing as an "unmovable" right hand position. Moving the hand, by anchoring the thumb over the E string or anchoring a finger to the sound board for certain effects, facilitates playing and adds to the tone and color of the notes. I broke my nails recently, and am starting growth from scratch; so I am experimenting with Rico nails. I tried the technique suggested in the video, and it does help to smooth the edges in the appropriate points. Ah... nails... sometimes I really wish we could play with a bow, instead...
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gj Michelob
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Date Sep. 5 2014 14:33:49
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Miguel de Maria
Posts: 3532
Joined: Oct. 20 2003
From: Phoenix, AZ
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RE: Ring finger nail... "ringin... (in reply to gj Michelob)
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I too, have spent who knows how much time and energy obsessing about nails, getting acrylics, making my own with pieces of fabric and superglue (but only fresh superglue, treat it like food, right?), different types of picks, ping pong balls, different lengths, files of glass, of metal, of a variety of grades, and of course the elusive finest grade of sandpaper for final finishing. Time was, I'd file flat, file angled, file round, do the Duncan thing. Now I use my natural nails and just kind of round them off, smooth them with the fine sandpaper, and go with it.
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Connect with me on Facebook, all the cool kids are doing it. https://www.facebook.com/migueldemariaZ Arizona Wedding Music Guitar
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Date Sep. 8 2014 14:59:36
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