Lesson 4: Your First Fingerpicking Pattern

Jan 7, 2019

Let’s learn your very first fingerpicking pattern on guitar. So far we learned how to position your right hand and how to name the fingers. Today I want to show you a very simple fingerpicking arpeggio you should practice for the next couple of days. In this fingerpicking pattern we are going to use the P – i – m – a fingers pattern over a simple chord progression in D major. I am sure you will love this exercise.

Your First Fingerpicking Pattern Guitar TAB

1. Learn the Chords

The Chords in this Lesson

In this lesson you will learn how to play chords and extended chords.

The chord progression goes as follow: D Dsus2 D Dsus2 | Em | A7 | D

I know that this is one of your first lesson but you shouldn’t really worry too much about playing so many chords.

Extended chords can be easy to play (such as the one we are learning in this lesson).

1.2 – Learn the Basic Chords

In this lesson you will play a basic D major and E minor chord.

If this is the first time you are playing these chords, spend few minutes trying the two chords before playing them with the fingerpicking pattern.

One simple exercise could be strumming the chords a couple of times.

1.3 How to Practice Basic Chords

If you are a beginner, you should spend a good amount of time practicing chords. Chord changes is one of the things beginners struggle the most.

You should learn how to connect the D major and E minor chord smoothly using the fingerpicking arpeggio shown in the video.

At this stage you could consider practicing the fingerpicking pattern between the D and E minor only. By doing that you will be able to isolate the two chords for a better improvement.

2. Extended Chords with Fingerpicking Technique

When I tell my students they will be played extended chords along their very finger fingerpicking pattern, they freak out!

In this lesson you will be playing a Dsus2 and A7 chord. These type of chords are called “Extended” chords, because they use additional notes from the scale.

I am not going to go too deep into music theory but you should definitely know that a chord is made of three notes. The root note, 3rd and 5th. Every other note we add on top of those three notes will be called an extension.

Let me show you how to go from a D major to Dsus2 by lowering the note on the E string.

2.1 – From D major to Dsus2

The Dsus2 is a chord in which the 3rd is lowered down to a 2nd.

Let me explain.

The notes that make the D major are: D (root note), F# (3rd) and A (5th).

With the Dsus2 we will lower the F# (3rd) down to a 2nd, the E natural.

Check the diagram down below.

2.2 – From A major to A7

The A7 is another extended chord you will have to learn in this fingerstyle lesson.

The notes that make the A major chord are: A (root), C# (3rd) and E (5th). The A7 will have an additional note, the 7th, added to the basic chord. A – C# – E – G.

Notice from the diagram below how the note A on the G string is lowered down to a G note.

The transition is very simple.

2.3 – Left Hand Position for Chords (and Melodies)

If you are a beginner chances are that this is probably the first time you are playing chords.

Learning chords is a great way to getting started but you have to understand how to play them correctly.

In this section I am going to show you the left hand position you should use to play chords. You will also learn how avoid the awful string buzzing.

There are two left hand approaches: The Classical and Modern approaches. Learn how to position the thumb behind the neck to switch between the different approaches.

Left Hand Position – The Classical Approach – Low Thumb Position

With the Classical approach you should keep the thumb down behind the neck.

This is the left hand position classical guitar players develop by playing classical music.

With this approach you will develop finger stretch, control, finger dexterity and speed. It is the perfect position for both chords and melodies and it works beautifully with fingerpicking technique.

Left Hand Position – The Modern Approach – High Thumb Position

With the modern approach you will have to position the thumb on top of the neck.

This approach is perfect for chords because it allows you to have full control of your hand in a small position of the neck and mute the low E string (6th string) for the chords that don’t need this string.

The Modern approach will change the left hand angle and limit your stretch and dexterity.

My advice, learn both of them!

3 – The Rolling Fingerpicking Pattern

In this lesson you will learn the most simple fingerpicking pattern every beginner learn called “Rolling” pattern.

You should practice this pattern slowly and as evenly as possible. If this is the first time you are practicing an arpeggio, don’t forget to follow the right hand golden rules that shows you how to position the right hand correctly.

The fingerstyle pattern you will learn in this lesson is: Thumb, index, middle and ring also knows as P – i – m – a.

What it the Pima?

We name the right hand fingers after the Italian language. Pima stands for Pollice, indice, medio and anulare.

Letter “P”: Pollice, thumb
Letter “i”: indice, index
Letter “m”: medio, middle
Letter “a”: anulare, ring

You should memorize the name of the fingers as explained in this article as this is the way you’ll find it written on the sheet music.

3.1 – Learn the Right hand Golden Rules

Thumb in Front of the fingers, 45 degree rule and Articulation

Let me show you how to position the right hand correctly.

Right Hand Rule 1. Thumb Position

The thumb should be positioned in front of the fingers and it will always pluck downwards. For this reason, you must have distance between the thumb and the index finger.

I always pluck the strings with the side of the fingertip and even though I use nails, I never really pluck the strings entirely with the nails. Instead, I use a combination of fingernail and flesh.

Remember that the thumb is indicated with the letter “P” from the Italian word “Pollice”, thumb.

Right Hand Rule 2. 45 degree rule

Once you feel comfortable plucking the strings with the thumb, you should then learn how to position the index, middle and ring finger.

I like to refer to this as the 45 degree rule in which you should always position the fingers at a 45 degree angle.

This position will make the plucking smooth and easy. You should be able to achieve a beautiful tone, control and finger dexterity from the very beginning.

Overall the 45 degree angle is the best way for beginners to really get started.

Right Hand Rule 3. Articulation and Plucking

Last but not least, the golden rule number 3. Articulation and plucking.

Thumb and fingers use a different articulation movement to pluck the strings. Once you understand how those differences you will be able to practice better and improve faster.

This is how it works: When you pluck the strings with the thumb, only use the big knuckle (the one that attaches the thumb to your hand). When plucking the strings with the fingers use both big knuckle and small knuckle.

With the thumb the movement is pretty simple. Just pluck downwards using the big knuckle.

For the fingers things are a little bit more complex because you will start the movement with the big knuckle but right after plucking the strings you should then articulate upwards with the small knuckle. Let me show you how to pluck the strings correctly in this video.

4 – Learn Common Fingerpicking Patterns

One you learn a chord progression with one fingerpicking patter, you should then be able to add simple variations of the same pattern over the same chord progression.

In this section I am going to show you a bunch of commong fingerpicking patterns for beginners that you should be able to practice and play over the chord progression explained in this guitar lesson.

4.1 – Reversed Fingerpicking Pattern

The easiest variation of the rolling pattern could be its reverse. Playing a reversed fingerpicking pattern should be simple and straight forward.

In this exercise we learned the pattern Pima so all you have to do now is play Pami.

Notice that the thumb will remain the very first plucking finger. Check the tab below.

4.2 – Combine Fingerpicking Patterns

In this example we are going to combine two fingerpicking pattern.

This step could be challenging at first because this is now a six notes pattern, instead of four. You should count in three.

The pattern goes as follows: P i m a m i

4.3 – Classical Fingerpicking Pattern

The next step could be playing what I call the “Classical Fingerpicking Pattern”.

This is a very common fingerpicking pattern played with eight notes (rather than four). Notice how each chord is played over two beats instead of one.

The Classical fingerpicking pattern goes like this: P i m i a i m i.

5 – Musical vs Mechanical Fingerpicking Patterns

When I started playing guitar I was struggling a lot with the fingerpicking technique.

I remember I couldn’t pluck the strings smoothly and the tone was awful. I also had bad coordination and the only thing I could play were simple melodies on one or two strings.

One of the reasons why I was struggling a lot came from my teacher. He was an old school classical guitar teacher with no smile on his face. His teaching method was also old school and mainly entirely mechanical.

It took me a couple of months before I played my first exciting melody and I spent several lessons plucking open strings.

If you are a beginner approaching fingerstyle for the very first time chances are that you came across mechanical exercises. Even though I think they can be really beneficial, I would recommend a combination of mechanical and musical exercises.

Musical exercises can be simple songs, simple melodies, basic chords played with fingerstyle and other exercises that sound musical. You can also spend a good amount of time practicing the old school mechanical exercise.

Which Fingerpicking Exercise Should you Practice

As a beginner, I recommend you practice both mechanical and musical approach.

If you are familiar with my teaching style, you probably know that I am always talking about practical and musical exercises.

As I kid I had to practice a lot of mechanical fingerpicking exercises and I didn’t like it at all so as guitar teacher I feel I want my students to focus more on the melodic and musical side of music.

Technique is something you can develop with time but you’ll be way more motivated by practicing music rather than mechanical exercises.

Let’s Wrap this Up

There are a lot of different fingerpicking exercises for beginners online.

Some students like to start by simply plucking the open strings others prefer a much more musical approach.

It doesn’t really matters which type of exercise you prefer practice as long as you are consistent with your daily practice routine.

Actually, I wouldn’t really waste too much time considering which type of exercise, song or music you should play.

As a beginner, you should just play! Play as many things as possible and learn as many things as possible.

As you become better, you can then decide which style of music you really want to learn. Which type of guitar player you want to become and how to get there.

For now, just practice, practice and practice.

Enjoy this lesson guys. Move on the the next fingerpicking lesson when you feel ready.

Get in touch at marcocirillo@blitzguitar.com if you have questions about this or other lessons on the website.

Thank you for watching.

Marco

Lesson 5: How to Play Chords with Fingerstyle

Watch Now

The Most Simple Fingerpicking Pattern for Beginners with Simple Chords

Aug 18, 2018

In this fingerstyle lesson, I want to show you one of the most simple fingerpicking patterns you can practice on the guitar. This is also, one of the most common and essential fingerpicking patterns every beginner should learn.

It’s important to start with basic patterns if you want to build a solid technique and dexterity.

You will also learn a beautiful chord progression in E minor to practice this patter. Practicing guitar with musical ideas will keep your motivation high, and you will achieve your goals easily.

These are the things we will be learning in this lesson:

A simple fingerpicking pattern played with thumb and ring together followed by middle and index.
A beautiful and simple chord progression in E minor.
An Italian music command called “Ritenuto”, which is sudden and temporarily decrease of the tempo.

Good luck with this lesson guys.

Tab Available on Patreon!

Get the Tab here!

About the Fingerpicking Guitar

The Fingerpicking technique (also called fingerstyle technique or fingerpicking guitar) is the technique of playing the strings of your guitar by plucking them with the right-hand fingertips or nails. Some of the most common genres where we see the fingerpicking technique a lot are folk, jazz, blues, country and modern percussive fingerstyle.

One of the awesome things about fingerpicking technique is the fact that we can arrange a song including chords, arpeggios, melodies, walking bass, rhythm and percussion, as well as other less used technique such as harmonics, hammer on, pull-offs and horizontal playing.

Some fingerpicking guitarists are able to combine all the aspects of the fingerstyle technique which enables them to write a song using all these important elements within a song.

Fingerstyle guitar is indeed one of the most creative and complete forms and art you can have on classical and acoustic guitar.

What is a Fingerpicking Pattern?

Guitar players refer to fingerpicking patterns as a specific finger combination that can be used to play chords or melodies. The are hundreds of different patterns that a guitar player can use depending on the rhythmic and melodic connotation of a song.

Patterns such as alternate fingering are mainly used to play single note melodies or solos as they don’t need other elements such as accompaniment or rhythm.

When performing chords or rhythmic accompaniments patterns like the famous P i m a (thumb, index, middle and ring finger) are way more used than alternate fingering.

The famous Fingerstyle Guitar Association came up with one of the most accurate definitions of the fingerpicking technique:

Physically, “Fingerstyle” refers to using each of the right hand fingers independently to play the multiple parts of a musical arrangement that would normally be played by several band members. Deep bass notes, harmonic accompaniment (the chord progression), melody, and percussion can all be played simultaneously when playing Fingerstyle.

What’s the Most Simple Fingerpicking Pattern?

On guitar, there are five most simple fingerpicking patterns that every guitar player should learn. If you are a beginner, you should definitely start with those.

Check the patterns below. The examples are all in C major but you can transpose it to other chords.

Fingerpicking pattern 1: P i m a
Fingerpicking pattern 2: P a m i
Fingerpicking pattern 3: P i m a m i
Fingerpicking pattern 4: P-a m i a m i
Fingerpicking pattern 5: P-i-m-a

Fingers to Use for Fingerpicking Technique

Classical guitar music notation is well known to provide the most detailed fingering for both hands.

Memorize the difference between the right hand and left-hand symbol and numbers.

Left Hand	Notation	Right Hand	Notation
Thumb	T	Thumb	p
Index	1	Index	i
Middle	2	Middle	m
Ring	3	Ring	a
Little	4	Little	not used

In guitar scores, the four fingers of the right-hand (which pluck the strings) are designated by the first letter of their Italian names namely p = thumb (pollice), i = index finger (índice), m = major finger (medio), a = ring finger (anulare). For the left-hand we use numbers, index = 1, middle = 2, ring = 3 and, little finger = 4.

The Best Way to Pluck the Stings

Learning how to correctly fingertip the strings can be challenging for beginners.

For this reason, I laid down two fingerpicking rules that every beginner should follow.

Rule #1: Thumb in front of the fingers.
Rule #2: Index, middle and ring at a 45-degree angle.
Rule #3: Picking hand position for best timbre.

#Fingerpicking Rule 1: Thumb in Front of the fingers

Position the thumb in front of the fingers and pluck the strings downwards.

I prefer to pluck the strings with the side of the fingertip and use a combination of fingernails and flesh. I don’t like the sound of the fingernails alone, which is way too bright.

Pluck the strings downwards using the big knuckle.

Fingerpicking Rule #2: Index, Middle, and Ring finger at a 45-degree Angle

Position the index, middle and ring finger at a 45-degree angle for better fingers dexterity and smooth tone.

Plucking the strings with the fingertips give to the guitar player the ability to create its own tone and timbre.

Use the big knuckle to begin the plucking movement then the small knuckle for plucking the string.

Fingerpicking Rule #3: Where Along the Strings Should you Pluck?

There are a lot of different factors that influence the technique, tone, and timbre. Factors include:

The right-hand position and where you pluck the strings affect the tone. Pluck the strings near the bridge (ponticello) if you need a hard, bright sound. Energetic strumming usually prefers this position. For a smooth, dull tone, play the strings closer to the frets. This position is perfect for the fingerpicking technique.
Use of nails also affects the tone a lot. Usually, classical guitar players use a combination of nail and flesh which is a technique also used by modern acoustic guitar players. Overall nails give you better control and fluidity in your playing. One of the downsides of using nails is that guitarists have to keep their fingernails smoothly filed.

The Fingerpicking Pattern #4 Used in This Lesson

Let’s have a look at the fingerpicking pattern number #4 and how we can use it to play a beautiful chord progression in E minor.

The fingerpicking pattern is called P/a – m – i.

We are going to assign a finger to each string.

The thumb plays either the 4th, 5th or 6th string.
The index plays the 3rd string G
The middle plays the 2nd string B
The ring plays the 1st string E

These three steps should help you get started with this exercise.

1. Learn the Chords

The chord progression goes as follows: Em, Am, D, G, C, B7, Em.

In order to make the chord progression more interesting, I decided to play some of the chords in a different position of the neck.

Practice each chord individually.

Check the diagrams below to learn the chord shapes.

2. Practice the Fingerpicking Pattern

Once you learned the chord progression, it should be easy to start practicing the fingerpicking pattern.

One of the things I recommend to all of my students is to practice the pattern on each chord individually and repeat it several times before moving on to the next chord.

Follow the three fingerpicking rules we talked about in this article and keep the plucking hand as steady as possible.

The triplets should be played as evenly as possible with an emphasis on the first note of each triplet.

3. Put it Together

The last step should be playing the exercises fluently.

You will also focus on playing the chords with musicality.

Watch the beginning of the video several times and try to reproduce the same tone and musicality. As your technique becomes better, you should be able to add more and more color into the chord progression.

Pluck the strings in a different position to find the timbre you like.