The Jazz Guitar Chord Dictionary
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  1. #26

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    There's a video with Jody Foster interviewing Tal Farlow and it was noted that when playing chord melody type things he plays with almost all upstrokes, so as to impart the most energy to the top strings where the melody is. Interesting technique, I've been trying it a little bit.

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  3. #27

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    I've heard from some pros that the main case against comping with a pick is that all the notes should 'sound' at the same time, which is kind of impossible with a pick...we can't get that same simultaneous sound that a piano can get and I think piano comping is held out as the point of reference.

    My thoughts are that I've heard enough amazing comping with a pick to feel that any lag in some of the notes 'sounding' is totally acceptable and, personally for me, I appreciate the additional intensity and range that a pick brings to the table. This applies both to me as a player and as a listener. I also feel that comping is more about rhythm than the specific notes...I guess it's really about "feel"...and I think a pick helps achieve that better.

    @Irez87: not sure if you'd agree, but to me it seems that Bernstein is often very subdued/minimal in his comping for pianos (lol probably because inevitably they comp for themselves anyway)...so a great album to check out for some higher-intensity Bernstein comping is Brain Dance where he does not hold back in comping for organ.

  4. #28

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    I love Pete B's work with Bill Stewart and LARRY GOLIDINGS!

    I tried out some pick comping with the triads I've been woodsheding (not necessarily 1 3 5 voicings, just 3 note voicings) and I liked the sound a lot.

    Like I said, if you highlight part of the chord with an up stroke--it sounds nice.

    I've always liked what Howard Alden did here with a pick, watch at 2:30:


  5. #29

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    I love Pete B's work with Bill Stewart and LARRY GOLIDINGS!

    I tried out some pick comping with the triads I've been woodsheding (not necessarily 1 3 5 voicings, just 3 note voicings) and I liked the sound a lot.

    Like I said, if you highlight part of the chord with an up stroke--it sounds nice.

    I've always liked what Howard Alden did here with a pick, watch at 2:30:



    I dunno, but playing an archtop with a good pick (I play with the Jazz BC 80) has a sound that I really like. The pick pulls the sound out of the guitar and projects it into the air differently than fingers alone. There's some great players that really take advantage of playing with fingers. A recent example would be Sid Jacobs--but he plays some mean classical guitar as well. But I still think that a pick pulls the sound out of an archtop better than fingers alone. But, that's just my opinion. I see this "pick only" as a challenge. Maybe I'll go back to using my fingers to comp, but I want to see how far I can go with a pick-a-roni.

  6. #30

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    I played another jam session today. I began by going back to my habit of comping with my fingers--BUT, I caught myself. Remember, I said I would try comping only with a pick--indefinitely.

    I switched back to the pick and I was glad I did. All the horn players at the session were called to the stage for a blues. It got LOUD. So I comped with a pick. I did the same for Invitation--damn that form is confusing during the solos... Anyway, playing everything with my pick forced me to focus on my groove. You can definitely groove with your fingers, but you can also get away with playing pretty harmonies that float. With a pick, by design (almost), you are forced to commit to some sort of rhythm.

    Plus, when you dig in with a pick (and your guitar is setup to allow you to dig in--I learned that 2 years ago when I opted to get jumbo frets--my Eastman didn't have those before) it just sounds different than when you dig in with fingers. When you lock in with the drummer and do that snap with your strums in just the right way... it feels so groovy that you wanna dance (I almost ended up dancing to the groove we all setup as a band).

    Looking at the other side. Lenny Breau was a harmony monster and he used his fingers. Ted Green, he used his fingers and he used his pick as well. Steve Herberman can groove like it's no one's business with his fingers. But when I'm at a jam and things get loud, I think playing harmony with a pick can be more... I dunno... useful?

  7. #31

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    Quote Originally Posted by Irez87
    But when I'm at a jam and things get loud, I think playing harmony with a pick can be more... I dunno... useful?
    Or, you'll learn that the sound you want to get, makes you sound more like....you.

  8. #32

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    that's true too.

    COSMIC, how are you?!?

    I see the alfalfa is still sticking up like a weather vein.


  9. #33

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    Just wanted to say that this thread made me learn to hold my pick between two fingers and switch back and forth between fingerstyle and pick. First thing I got from this forum that I can actually use right away

  10. #34

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    Got my thinking.

    Before I left for Washington State, I really wanted to take a lesson with Jonathan Stout--but I didn't know what I wanted to focus on.

    Now I have an idea--his right hand. The way he approaches the strings when he strums.