Lesson: 1 Free Strokes

The basis of good scale technique is releasing tension between

the fingers. Most, if not all of us, were taught to develop a
walking motion between i and m when playing scales or single
note melodies. While this, in principle, is correct, the finger
exchange must come from the release of tension between the
fingers rather than the imposition of the exchange. The
following exercise will help you see the difference.

Exercise 1:

Begin by placing your thumb on the third string. Place the i
finger on the first string with the mid-joint below the string
being plucked. (Below the string means that the joint should be
closer to the floor. Another way which produces the same
results is to position the hand knuckle over the string you are
playing.) Using free strokes, pluck the i finger. After plucking
the string, immediately release the tension needed to pluck
the string, and let the finger return to its original position. Be
aware of how this feels. Repeat this several times and then
practice the exercise using m and then the a finger. It is
important to train the pinky and a finger to move with the
middle finger. This will minimize unnecessary tension. Again,
make sure the mid-joint or hand knuckle is in the correct
position. Always begin by placing the finger on the string. This
will allow you to feel the movement and tension better. It is
important to relax the tension in the finger, rather than pushing
it back to its original position.

Exercise 2: 

Begin by placing your thumb on the third string. In the first
position, slowly play a chromatic scale on the first string using i
and m. Remember to train the pinky and a finger to move with
the middle finger. After each note is played, release the
tension needed to pluck the string and allow the finger to
return to its original position. If you are playing slowly enough,
you will see that there is no walking motion between the
fingers. When you are comfortable playing this exercise
releasing the tension in the finger, slowly increase the speed
but continue releasing the tension in each finger. You will
discover that when you reach a certain tempo the walking
motion has returned to your finger movements. The difference,
and it is great, is that the release of finger tension is now
creating the walking motion.

Note: It can take up to four weeks of practice before you feel

comfortable playing this way. Once you are comfortable, warm
up with these two exercises before playing your scales. If you
find that you are hitting the lower string when playing free
strokes, your mid-joint is not over the string you are plucking.

For more information regarding playing free strokes see my

book, Classic Guitar Technique Volume 1, published by
Professional Guitar Publications.

Good luck and happy practice.

Lesson: 2 Rest Strokes

Lesson One of this series presented scale exercises using free

strokes. Let’s look at how the principles discussed in Lesson
One can be applied to rest strokes. The rest stroke follow
through occurs by releasing the plucking tension and directing
the finger motion of the plucking finger to the next lower
string. When the finger comes to rest on this string, it must
immediately rid itself of the tension used in plucking the string.
The following exercise will help train the release of finger
tension.

Exercise 1: Begin by placing your thumb on the third string.

Place the m finger on the first string with the mid-joint over or
slightly below (bass side) the string you are plucking. Using the
m finger, play a rest stroke on the first string. Remember to
move the pinky and a finger with the middle finger. After
plucking, become aware of how much pressure you are using to
keep the finger on the adjacent string. Practice immediately
releasing the tension needed to pluck the string as it comes to
rest on the lower string. (Don’t be discouraged. You are
developing a greater tactile awareness of your fingers.) When
you can feel the release, practice this exercise using the i then
a fingers.
Exercise 2: 

Place the i finger on the first string. In the first position, slowly
play a chromatic scale on the first string using i and m rest
strokes. Remember to move the pinky and a finger with the
middle finger. After plucking, observe the tension left in the
finger. The goal is to leave just enough tension in the finger to
keep it on the next string. As each finger plays, immediately
release the tension in the finger resting on the string and allow
the finger to come out to its playing position. (The release
should occur exactly when the string is being plucked.) When
you are comfortable with this exercise on the first string, apply
this concept to a first position chromatic scale. When
comfortable, practice this exercise alternating between i and a
and then m and a.

Note: It can take up to four weeks of practice before you feel

comfortable playing this way. Once you are comfortable,
always warm up with these and the previous weeks exercises
before playing your scales. It is important to keep the mid-joint
of the plucking finger over or slightly below the string being
played.

For more information regarding playing rest strokes see my

book, Classic Guitar Technique Volume 1, published by
Professional Guitar Publications.
Lesson 3: Preparation Technique

Preparation technique, the ability to place the finger that will

pluck the next note on the string, is an important and valuable
technique. It is an important step in developing a good walking
motion between the fingers as well as an important tool for
developing speed, greater right hand coordination, control, and
tone. Preparation will also assist you in creating a greater
articulation palette. When you use the preparation technique,
you are actively controlling not only the type of attack you
produce but also the duration of the note. This allows you to
produce different types of staccato and legato articulations. By
now you will have gotten comfortable with the first two
lessons, relaxing the finger tension immediately after you have
plucked a note. We will use this skill to develop the preparation
technique.

Exercise 1:
Begin by placing your thumb on the third string and the index
finger on the first string. It is important to position the finger in
the manner discussed in the first two lessons. Using free
strokes, pluck the i finger. Immediately release the tension
needed to pluck the string, but this time allow the finger to
return to the string. Do this several times and then repeat the
exercise using the m then a finger. (It is important to relax the
tension in the finger rather than pushing it back to the string.
Do not be concerned if, at first, the finger goes beyond the
string. If this happens, relax the finger tension and let the
finger go to the string.) Now practice this exercise using rest
strokes.

Exercise 2:
Begin by placing your thumb on the third string. In the first
position, slowly alternate between i and m playing free strokes
on the first string. When i plucks, release the tension in the
mid-joint of the middle finger and allow it to go to the string.
When m plucks, immediately release the tension needed to
pluck the string and allow the finger to return to the string.
Practice this slowly until the movements are comfortable. (Do
not be concerned if the finger produces a staccato sound. We
are developing the technique not controling the sound.

Now play a chromatic scale on the first string using i and m.

After you play each note, release the tension in the non-
plucking finger and allow it to return to string. It is important
that keep the finger that just played in the hand to maintain
the walking motion between the fingers. You are coordinating
the release of tension between the strokes and the finger
exchange.. When you are comfortable, practice the same
exercises using rest strokes.

Note: It can take up to four weeks of practice before you feel

comfortable playing this way. Once you are comfortable, warm
up with these two exercises before playing your scales.

The following exercises will allow you to develop the necessary

coordination to control the duration and attack of each note. It
is important not to attempt these until you are comfortable
with the previous exercises.

Exercise 3:

We control the length of the note by preparing the next finger

on the eighth rest. We will be coordinating the release and
placement of the finger in the same manner that we
coordinated the walking motion in Lesson One. It is important
to:

1. Hold the note for its duration.

2. Alternate between the index and middle fingers.
3. Always have the nail resting in playing position on the
string.
4. Verify that when you pluck you are producing a good
tone.

Practice this exercise using both rest and free strokes.

When you are comfortable doing the above, apply the

technique to a first position chromatic scale. When playing the
scale, you will notice that as you change strings the last note
on the string continues to ring. This happens because you are
preparing the next note and not stopping the note you played.
Using your left hand, shorten the note to match the others
played. After a little practice, this will occur naturally.
It is important that you are comfortable with the previous
exercises before attempting Exercise 4. Playing legato uses the
exact techniques but with greater control. Though the next
exercise may appear silly, it is perhaps the most important one
of the series.

Exercise 4:
Using the sound Ta, sing any series of scale-wise notes as
legato as possible. Concentrate on when your tongue touches
the back of your teeth. You will discover that the tongue is
against the teeth a fraction before the sound is produced.
Contrary to what you may believe, there is always a slight
space between the notes in legato. We will now practice
coordinating our fingers with our tongue to achieve this space.
Playing the open E string with i and m, pluck the string exactly
when your tongue touches the back of your teeth. (You can do
this, but it’s not as easy as it sounds.) While doing this
exercise, listen to the sound you are producing on the guitar.
Make sure it is as legato as what you are singing. When
comfortable doing this exercise using free and rest strokes,
apply the technique to the chromatic scale we have been
using.

Again, use both rest and free strokes.

Lesson 4: Moving the Forearm

The forearm placement will keep the fingers and mid-joints in

optimum position when playing each string. There are two ways
that we can use the forearm to keep the fingers in position.
One, is to slide it and the other is to pivot at the point where
the forearm touches the guitar. Both approaches are used by
professional guitarists. Originally, I was taught to position the
fingers by pivoting the forearm. In recent years, I switched to
sliding the forearm. I made this change because I found that
sliding kept my wrist at the same angle when playing each
string. Pivoting creates a greater wrist angle when playing the
bass strings as opposed to playing the treble strings. Sliding
also minimized the pressure that I was placing on the point
where my arm touched the guitar. In my teaching, I have found
that students who adopted the sliding technique seem to have
a faster more fluid scale technique. If you want to learn this
technique, try the following:

Establish your right hand position and place your i finger on the
sixth string. Raising the forearm from your elbow, lift it off the
guitar so that the forearm is even with the top of your hand.
(The forearm should be about two to three inches off the
guitar. It is important not to change your hand position when
raising the forearm.) Alternating with i and m rest strokes,
slowly walk up and down the open strings. Be aware of the
movement in your shoulder and forearm as you pluck each
string. When moving to the higher strings, release the tension
in the shoulder and allow gravity to move the hand with the
fingers. Arriving to the first string, reverse the process.
Returning to the bass strings requires that you raise the
forearm as you move to each string. Remember to move the a
finger and pinky with the middle finger. It is important to keep
your thumb off the bass strings when practicing this exercise.
When comfortable, practice this exercise using free strokes.

Practice this exercise five minutes daily. After a week, return

your forearm to the guitar but as you practice the exercise
maintain the same freedom of forearm movement that you had
with the arm off the guitar.

I would recommend daily reinforcing the feeling of movement

with the arm off of the guitar. After practicing sliding the
forearm while playing scales for three or four weeks you should
have developed a good sense of the required movement and
ease of movement.

Good Luck and enjoy your practice.

Lesson 5: Positioning the Thumb
In the first two lessons, I had you always place the right hand
thumb on a lower string. Positioning the thumb on a lower
string when playing scales adds to the stability of the right
hand and serves as a preparation for learning to use the thumb
to mute out unwanted overtones. (More on this in a later
lesson.) When playing scales, we usually keep the thumb on the
second string below the one that we are playing. Exercise 1 is a
simple exercise to get the feel of this technique. You will begin
playing with the index finger always alternating between i and
m.
Exercise 1:

!
Begin by placing the thumb on the sixth string and the index
finger on the fourth string. Using rest strokes, play the notes in
the first measure and stop. Place your thumb on the fifth string
and the middle finger on the third string. Play the second
measure and stop. Place your thumb on the fourth string and
your middle finger on the second string. Play the third measure
and stop. Continue this approach for each measure until you
have completed the exercise. When you get comfortable with
this exercise, slowly play itwithout pause moving your thumb
as you change strings. It is important that while focusing on
moving your thumb, you are equally aware of the appropriate
movement in the forearm. When you are comfortable playing
the scale this way, go back and practice the exercise using free
strokes. Remember to always play slowly so you can
comfortably execute the movements. When practicing with
free strokes, use the technique you learned in Lesson 1. When
using rest strokes, use the technique learned in Lesson 2.
Lesson 6: Refining Left Hand Shifts

During the previous five lessons, we have concentrated on

refining the right hand. Let’s look at perhaps the most critical
left hand issue to developing a strong scale technique, shifting.

In order for the improvements that you have made in your right
hand technique to come into play, you must be able to go from
one position to another easily. While shifting involves moving
the hand from one position to another, the movement itself
comes from the weight of the arm and not directly from the
hand and fingers. To develop fluent shifts, we must work on
integrating the necessary shoulder, elbow, and arm movements
to support the hand movement. The wrist must never be
allowed to deviate right or left. It must always form a straight
line from the side of the fourth finger to the elbow.

Using whatever right hand stroke that is the most comfortable,

play the A on the third string fretting it with your first finger.
Making sure that your left hand knuckles are parallel to the
edge of the fingerboard, release the pressure on the finger and
thumb but do not lift the fingers or thumb from the string or
back of the neck. Release the tension in your shoulder and
allow the weight of the arm and elbow to move the hand up
the fingerboard. It isn’t important what note you land on, but
that you release the tension in the shoulder and feel the weight
of the arm to achieve the movement. Practice this movement
until you are comfortable. Now practice the same movement
from A but now stop on the fifth fret C. If you find that you are
going beyond the C, you are probably using the correct
movements. If you are landing before you get to the C, you are
probably not fully releasing the tension in the shoulder and
trying to control the movement with the hand. When shifting,
either up or down, we are in effect traveling a prescribed
distance. If the distance from one position to the next is
accurately felt, the shift will be fluent and accurate. If not, it
will be tense because you will have to stop the movement to
land on the right note. (I know that this is a bit confusing, but
if you work on this and think about it, it will begin to make
sense.)

The following are some exercises to practice to get more

comfortable with the movement. Always alternate using i and
m:
Exercise 1:

!
Descending shifts work the same way but are a bit more
difficult to feel since we are working against gravity. I would
suggest not practicing descending shifts until you are
comfortable with the ascending shifts in Exercise 1. We will
begin by shifting from D on the third string to C. Play the D
using the first finger in the left hand. Release the pressure on
the thumb and finger. With your first finger still on the string,
relax your shoulder and elbow and allow the elbow to move the
hand stopping on C. It is important when leading with the
elbow, not to lead too much as excessive movement will pull
the hand out of position. Lead only as much as will allow your
left hand knuckles to remain parallel to the edge of the finger
board. It is equally important not to allow the wrist to move
sideways. When you are comfortable with this movement,
practice the following exercise. When playing these exercises,
always keep the first finger lightly on the string during the
shift. Though you may not be using the first finger, leaving it
down will help you maintain good hand balance.
Exercise 2:

!
For more information on shifting see my book Classic Guitar
Technique, Vol. 1, published by Professional Guitar Publications.
Lesson 7: Right Hand Balance
By now you should be noticing an increase in not only your
technical facility, but also the ease which you play. The next
step along the road to developing a good scale technique
involves balancing the right hand. You may have read or heard
discussed in a master class that you need to tilt your hand
toward the left when you play scales. While this is true for
some guitarists, it is not true for others. What many guitarists
do not realize is that the length of our index finger relative to
the other fingers in our hand is not uniform. Looking at your
hand from the palm side, you will find that you have an index
finger that is either shorter, the same length, or longer than
the a finger. While there is some tilt of the hand when playing
scales, the degree of tilt is determined by the length of the
index finger.
The simplest way to determine how much tilt you will need for
your right hand is to place ima on the first string. Now add the
thumb. That is the tilt you need to use when playing scales.
Guitarists with shorter index fingers will need a somewhat
greater tilt than those with longer index fingers. From this
position, practice Exercise 1.
Exercise 1

!
Begin on the middle finger, alternating between m and i.
Concentrate on maintaining equal pressure between the m and
i fingers. Remember to move the a finger and pinky with the
middle finger. Listen carefully to what you are playing. If you
are maintaining equal pressure, both notes will be at the same
volume. If one note is louder than the next, you are using
greater pressure on the louder note.
Most students feel more comfortable beginning this exercise
using rest strokes. It is important that you practice this
exercise, with the stroke
that is most comfortable. When you attain comfort with that
stroke, practice using the other. Again use the principles
presented in Lessons One and Two.
Good luck and happy practice.
Lesson 8: String Crossing

The previous lesson focused on finding and maintaining the

hand balance based on your hand structure. If we only played
scale passages on one string, this would be enough.
Unfortunately, music contains many scale passages that
employ more than one or two strings. The following exercises
will help you develop the necessary hand while crossing strings.

Exercise 1:

!
Practice this exercise slowly being aware of these four points:
• Smooth forearm movement
• Right Hand Stability
• The fingers moving the forearm and shoulder when
ascending
• The forearm and shoulder moving the fingers when
descending

When you are comfortable playing Exercise 1 move to Exercise

2.

Exercise 2:

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As with the previous exercise, be aware of the four previously
mentioned points.

Good luck and continued success.

Lesson 9: Developing Speed

This, the final lesson in this series, will focus on integrating the
various lessons into your scale technique. Assuming that you
know the left hand fingering for the scales you will practice,
there are two important components in developing an efficient
scale technique. They are: smoothly refined finger, hand, and
arm movements and endurance. The following two octave C
major scale is divided into five note groups. By working with
small note groups, it is easier to integrate the material
presented in the previous lessons and detect any weaknesses
in their application. In addition, developing and controlling the
necessary motions with small note groups will begin to develop
the necessary endurance to play longer passages with equal
ease. Practice the following exercise using first rest strokes
and then free strokes. It is important to practice the exercise
equally with each stroke.

The following are five major points to observe and refine:

1. Never play faster than you can comfortably control the
finger movements.
2. Release the tension in the fingers between notes to allow
them to be come out in position to play.
3. Prepare the right hand fingers so that the notes sound
staccato. Let the finger prepare. Don’t force the
preparation. Be aware of a fluent right forearm movement
when playing each group.
4. After each half note position the right hand thumb and
fingers for the next group.
5. Be aware of the correct left hand mechanics when
fingering notes or making shifts.

Use whatever left hand fingering you have learned for this
scale. If you do not know a good left hand fingering, see my
book Classic Guitar Technique Vol. 1 published by Professional
Guitar Publications. Refer to this book for additional scale
exercises.

Depending on your level of playing and attention to details, you

should expect to ultimately play this exercise at a tempo
between quarter note

!
equals 120 to 160.

For a more in-depth and detailed discussion, refer to my book:

Classic Guitar Technique Vol 1, published by Professional Guitar
Publications.
Lesson 10:

Muting
Muting is perhaps the least discussed technique in guitar playing. Muting
refers to the damping of unwanted overtones usually generated by the
bass strings. In Chapter One, I introduced the concept of placing the right
hand thumb two strings below the one you were playing. This served to
stabilize the right hand as well as beginning to develop independence
between the thumb and fingers.
One of the simplest muting techniques is to place the thumb so it
touches two strings. i.e., Place the thumb on the fifth string (A), and lean
against the sixth string (E). This is accomplished by either placing the
thumb deeper into the string or by slightly lowering the wrist. (Fig. 10)
By now, you should be comfortable playing with the thumb positioned
two strings below the one you are playing. The following exercise will help
you get comfortable positioning the thumb to touch two strings.

!
X = Place the thumb on this note but do not play.
Figure 10

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Notice how the hand position is virtually unchanged.
Each measure should be practiced separately until it can be executed
comfortably with the thumb placed to touch both strings. i.e. Measure
one, the thumb is placed on E. Measure two, the thumb is placed on A
and touches E. Measure three, the thumb is placed on D and touches A
etc.
The thumb moves to the string in the same way that it would if you were
to pluck the bass, but lightly rests there to dampen unwanted overtones.
When you can execute each measure comfortably, begin combining them
in the following manner:
• first two measures and stop
• next two measures and stop
• next two measures and stop
• next two measures and stop
When this can be comfortably executed, practice:
first four measures and stop
next four measures and stop

Move the thumb and fingers smoothly to the next group/string. If the
hand bounces or becomes tense, practice the exercises slower until you
gain greater control.
Now practice the entire exercise without stopping. When comfortable,
apply this technique to scales. Figure 11, shows the thumb placement for
a C major scale. It is a good idea, when first using this technique, to mark
the thumb placement for each scale form.
Figure 11

For a more detailed discussion on this topic see my book : Classical Guitar
Technique, Vol 1, Chapter 4. This is available from GSP in San Francisco.