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Technique:
Right hand & left hand coordiantion
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An area of technical expertise in which many guitarists are
weak is that of left hand-right hand coordination. Unless the
movements of the hands are exactly together, the player produces
a disjointed or non-legato sound whether he is playing "flown
in the Valley" or the Bach "Chaconne."
Usually the problem is that the player's left hand moves ahead
of the right hand. When he plays E, F, and G in sequence on
the first string, here is what generally happens. First, the
open E is played. Then to play that, the first finger of the
left hand presses or touches the first string just slightly
before the right hand finger makes its plucking motion, cutting
off the ringing open E. Finally the F is plucked by the right
hand finger. Then the left hand first finger is lifted off the
F and the third finger placed on the G, again, before the right
hand finger makes its plucking motion, cutting off the F prematurely.
The player's problem is simply that his right hand doesn't trust
his left hand! In other words for fear of making a mistake,
the right hand finger waits for the left hand finger to press
down the proper note before plucking the string.
Although most players' (except for beginners) hand coordination
is not extremely far off, the slightest errors in coordination
produce very audible unmusical results in passages that should
sound very legato. Due to a lack of hand coordination many intermediate
and even advanced players are unable to play a simple scale
absolutely legato. Although this lack of hand coordination can
easily be heard, it is even more easily felt if the player keys
in on his hand and finger muscles and particularly his sense
of touch in his fingertips. The player should feel the tips
of the fingers on both hands touch the strings absolutely simultaneously
in a legato passage. Here are some preliminary exercises to
work on to perfect your own hand coordination.
Holding the guitar in normal playing position and using the
left hand first finger at the first fret and the right hand
"i" finger, simply try to touch, not press down or pluck, the
first string with both fingers simultaneously. Close your eyes
and concentrate very hard on the sense of touch in your fingertips
to determine whether or not the fingers touch the string exactly
together. It is not as easy to do as it sounds. I have found
many fairly advanced students who lack a good sense of touch
in their fingers and when doing this exercise insist they are
touching the string with their two fingers simultaneously when
in fact, the coordination is far enough off that I can actually
see the left hand finger touch first. (Unfortunately in a case
such as this where the student can neither feel nor hear his
lack of coordination, there is little the teacher can do to
help until the student's senses of hearing and touch grow more
acute.) Consider this exercise with the following combinations
of left and right hand fingers:
| 1 with i |
2 with i |
3 with i |
4 with i |
| 1 with m |
2 with m |
3 with m |
4 with m |
| 1 with a |
2 with a |
3 with a |
4 with a |
Once these are mastered try alternating two right hand fingers
but still using only one finger of the left hand.
Once you can consistently touch the string simultaneously with
any combination of fingers, try all the combinations again but
this time try pressing the string down and actually plucking
it. But remember to feel both fingertips touch the string simultaneously.
For most students, mastery of this preliminary step in establishing
good hand coordination will take anywhere from one week to two
months. But take the time and practice slowly and carefully
to learn the technique well. Once learned, your overall sound
will take on a much more musical, connected quality rather than
the "plucky" detached sound typical of many players. Additional
steps and problems in establishing better hand coordination
will follow in future issues.
Practice only touching the string with both simultaneously,
then practice actually plucking it.
| Ex.1
Using a single rigth-hand finger |
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