| The act of playing a guitar can be divided | | | | of control over the musical dynamics, |
| into three basic techniques: strumming, or | | | | texture, volume and timbral characteristics |
| brushing the fingers over the strings to | | | | of the instrument. As with the original |
| create chords; flatpicking, or picking | | | | technique created for ragtime, classical |
| individuals notes with a plectrum; and | | | | fingerpicking allows the musician to produce |
| fingerpicking, or picking the strings | | | | harmony and polyphonic music. |
| directly with the fingertips, fingernails or | | | | |
| picks attached to the fingers. This last | | | | Jazz fingerpicking is used primarily with |
| technique, fingerpicking, is also referred to | | | | electric guitars, and the technique's |
| as fingerstyle guitar, although this term can | | | | proponents are often known for their |
| refer to the music produced as well as the | | | | innovation and unorthodox styles. Most jazz |
| technique of producing it. Fingerpicking is | | | | musicians who use fingerpicking play in all |
| useful in that it allows the artist to | | | | keys. This forms a notable contrast to those |
| perform several musical elements | | | | musicians who play folk, classical and |
| simultaneously. Techniques such as | | | | flamenco music, as they tend to favor keys |
| flatpicking, during which the hand works as a | | | | that provide open strings. The electric |
| single unit, do not allow for such scope. | | | | guitar is often used as a solo jazz |
| Fingerpicking is utilized by musicians of | | | | instrument, the musician playing a series of |
| multiple genres and is an important element | | | | chords on the bottom strings and the melody |
| in the music of each. | | | | line on the top. |
| | | | |
| The technique of fingerpicking originated in | | | | Traditional Celtic music does not make much, |
| the late 1800s and early 1900s in the genre | | | | if any, use of the guitar. However, when the |
| of blues music. Musicians of this genre were | | | | music of Ireland experienced its revival in |
| trying to imitate the sounds of ragtime piano | | | | the middle of the 20th century, guitar |
| music. The result was a method in which the | | | | accompaniments to traditional folk songs were |
| thumb plucked a steady rhythm of bass while | | | | often devised. These accompaniments used a |
| the index and middle fingers picked out a | | | | fingerpicking style that allowed for solo |
| melody on the high strings. This technique is | | | | guitar versions of music originally intended |
| still used today, most commonly in folk, | | | | for bagpipes or harps. |
| country-jazz and blues music. As time has | | | | |
| gone by, fingerpicking has been adapted to | | | | Slack-key guitar fingerpicking originated in |
| suite many different styles of music, | | | | Hawaii. This technique is nearly always used |
| including classical guitar, jazz guitar, | | | | on instruments with open or altered tunings. |
| Celtic guitar and Hawaiian slack-key guitar. | | | | The basic theory of slack-key is like that of |
| | | | the original ragtime style: the thumb is used |
| The classical guitar is probably the most | | | | to create an alternating bass pattern while |
| commonly played style of guitar. It is | | | | the fingers play the melody on the higher |
| capable of producing a wide variety of music, | | | | strings. The main difference with slack-key |
| and the classical fingerpicking technique has | | | | is in the music, which is rooted in |
| evolved to accommodate that variety. | | | | traditional Hawaiian tunes. |
| Classical fingerpicking permits a high degree | | | | |