"Why Do The World's Best Guitarists Play On the Round Corner?"

[MarkRhodes]

Not ALL of them.
Maybe none of your favorites, maybe one or two.
But a surprising number of excellent ones who perform in a variety of styles.
Handy set of references.

[fep]

I'll play but first I'll list my favorite off the top of my head:

Wes Montgomery
George Benson
Pat Metheny
Jim Hall

And not jazz

Joey Landreth
Chris Buck
Matteo Mancuso
Larry Carlton
Lee Ritenour
Eddi Van Halen
Eric Johnson

Now to watch the video

Okay... Those that were included in the video.... Larry Carlton and Pat Metheny. Also, Robben Ford who should be on my list.

[Sam b]

I wish that was all it took, cuz then I'd be golden

[henryrobinett]

I've used the rounded side of the pick since I was in high school. I've never heard anyone else ta;l about it. When I was teaching I encouraged my students to do the same.

[Otterfan]

Some even play picks that only have round corners.

[pauln]

Does playing on the round corner tend to steer one's techniques away from rest strokes?

[Alter]

It makes crossing strings extremely easy, as the pick has to hardly move. However you have less definition and a much rounder tone with less treble. Yet another thing to puzzle us when trying to decide how to hold the pick...

[Christian Miller]

Does playing on the round corner tend to steer one's techniques away from rest strokes?

Absolutely not. All the Manouche guys play with the round end.


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[Christian Miller]

I play with the pointy end to give me an excuse for my abject mediocrity


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[Mick-7]

Some even play picks that only have round corners.

Yes, one can buy picks that don't have a sharp tip, mandolin picks are often round: Mandolin picks

[m_d]

Absolutely not. All the Manouche guys play with the round end.


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Never knew that, but there must be some exceptions. Joscho Stephan and Olli Soikkeli definitely do not in Troy Grady's extensive filming of their technique.

[mr. beaumont]

It's funny, when I hung with the local "gypsy jazz" crowd I found the better players often (not always, but surprisingly often) used simple cheap picks (1.5 and 2mm Dunlops were a hit)...and yes, turned around, particularly when playing rhythm.

[Christian Miller]

Never knew that, but there must be some exceptions. Joscho Stephan and Olli Soikkeli definitely do not in Troy Grady's extensive filming of their technique.

Well it’s a thing I was told, so … but the guy who told me SHREDS


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[Christian Miller]

After years of messing around with picks of all materials and prices I have come to the conclusion that the 1.5mm - 2mm tortex is best for most things. 0.75 for (American style) rhythm.

Birelli uses 1.5mm IIRC?

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[lawson-stone]

Joe Pass used the pointy end, but he got small picks and then BROKE them, and used the pointy half of the broken pick.

[Greywolf]

I round off the tips of mine a bit and it sure makes picking smoother and faster

[Cunamara]

Gypsy

A 1" circular pick. Of all the V Picks that I have tried, this is the best sounding, along with the Fusion; otherwise, I find their picks clanky and overly bright. They might be better with some overdrive or distortion rather than a clean, pretty dry signal. I think I don't tend to like polycarbonate as a pick material- I haven't liked any polycarbonate picks from other manufacturers, either.

As for using a plectrum with a rounded shoulder or nose, it makes tremolo easier. That's why mandolin players use rounded picks and I suspect is also why gypsy jazz players use them, as well. Their tradition uses a lot more tremolo. Somewhere out on the Internet there is a PDF of a contemporaneous letter that includes a drawing of Django's own pick; it looks exactly like the Django Guitars USA pic above.

[Mark Kleinhaut]

I only play with the pointy end. It has better tone.

[Rob MacKillop]

Both sound different, therefore I use both, adjusting as I go. There's no point in restricting yourself to one sound. It's nice to play, for example, an echoing phrase with a different pick attack.

[sgcim]

because only squares play with the square end?

[AllanAllen]

because only squares play with the square end?

I clap on 1 and 3.

[Mick-7]

Joe Pass used the pointy end, but he got small picks and then BROKE them, and used the pointy half of the broken pick.

I'd never heard that but if it's true, it may have been unintentional, because Joe used to stick the pick in his mouth when he switched to playing fingerstyle (the pick came out for single line soloing), i.e., he may have bitten off, not broken off, the tip of the pick.

Joe was way ahead of his time, he had microplastics in his body long before everyone else, however not from environmental pollution but from plastic picks.

[NewNewcastleBud]

No, Joe had said in a number of interviews that he broke his picks to make them smaller, he said it was just a habit he developed.

[unkajonet]

No, Joe had said in a number of interviews that he broke his picks to make them smaller, he said it was just a habit he developed.

Yup - he said it made him feel closer to the strings.

[grahambop]

It’s mentioned here and there’s a photo of Joe holding the pick: