Lesson 5 - How to hold (and choose) and pick
The Pick
A guitar pick (plectrum) is used to get a bright sound out of the guitar. It is going to be good to start using this early because even with it being difficult to hold at first, it will be one of the greatest tools in your guitar-playing toolbox.
Pick vs. Thumb or Fingers: Using your fingers will be implemented later in our class. Using fingers is generally for other styles of guitar or for a more muffled and low sound on the guitar. We will explore those options in later lessons when we start adjusting our playing volume. Remember it's one of your most excellent tools!
Which size pick should you choose?
Plectrums are gauged, sized by thickness, in millimeters. The thickness is often printed on one side of the plectrum. The thickness will impact the sound of your guitar.
Light Gauge Plectrums (.40mm to .60mm)
These are great for acoustic strumming (which we will do very often in this course. Because of how bendy they are, they make strumming easy and your sound light and bright.
This is also great for acoustic singing in small spaces.
Medium Gauge Plectrums (.60mm to .80mm)
These are going to be well-balanced picks, great for all types of playing but not extremely well in strumming or leading.
These are often the most popular because they are the most versatile.
Heavy Gauge Plectrums (.80mm to 3mm)
These are generally better for leading and producing a heavy sound on the guitar. Usually used by electric players
They will not be great for mellow strumming, so we won't have a need for this throughout the majority of our course.
Homework: Get your own light or medium gauge picks.
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