In today's lesson, we are going to learn to elevate your guitar skills with finger tapping. Mastering this dynamic technique will allow you to produce sounds that will have people turning their heads and saying, "Wow, how did you do that?"
Finger tapping is a popular technique that adds flair and complexity to your playing. It involves using your picking hand to tap notes on the fretboard, allowing you to play rapid sequences and achieve a unique sound. Here, we will guide you through the basics and offer tips on mastering this awesome technique. A tool you definitely want to have in your guitar-playing toolbox of tricks.
Reaching With Your Picking Hand
Finger tapping is a technique that allows you to reach beyond the span of your fretting hand. By tapping with the fingers of your picking hand, you can create fast, fluid runs and arpeggios. This method is popular in rock, metal, and classical guitar.
Basic Technique:
- Positioning: Hold the guitar as you normally would, and allow your picking hand to move freely up and down the fretboard.
- Tapping motion: Use your index or middle finger to tap down on the strings with enough force to sound the note.
- Pull-off: After tapping the note, pull the finger off the string in a downward motion to sound the note that your fretting hand is holding.
- Practice regularly: Start slow and make sure the note sounds clear and the technique is executed properly before increasing speed.
Tips For Mastering Finger Tapping
Although the concept is not too difficult to perform, mastering it is something else. It will require practice. Here are some tips that will help you master this technique.
- Start slow: Focus on clarity and precision before attempting to increase speed. If not, your notes will not sound clear and pleasant to the ear when playing at faster tempos.
- Use a metronome: This will help you to develop timing and a consistent tempo. Not to mention ear training and mastery of rhythm and cadence.
- Isolate movements: Practice the tapping and pull-off motions separately before combining them. This will ensure that you have a full understanding of the concepts of the technique.
- Build strength: Practicing finger exercises daily will help to build finger strength and dexterity, which is very important for executing the technique of finger tapping.
- Experiment with different fingers: Although most guitarists use the index or middle fingers, you can also try using the ring finger. This will allow you to come up with creative ideas.
Finger Tapping Exercises
These exercises will introduce you to the proper procedure for executing this technique. Make sure you start slow and take it one step at a time for the best results. With time, you can speed up and go faster. As you do, you will hear how extraordinarily cool it sounds.
Exercise #1:
In this exercise, you play the 5th note on the 3rd string as normal, then tap the 12th fret with your index or middle finger of your picking hand. Then pull-off to sound out the fretted note at the 5th fret. All on the 3rd string.
Exercise #2:
In this exercise, you play the 7th fret as normal, and tap as before, all on the 1st string. The difference here, though, is that you move the tapped note from the 12th fret to the 14th, 15th, and 17th. This provides an extension of the first exercise.
Exercise #3:
In this exercise, you execute a hammer-on, pull-off, and then tap the note. As you do this, you will move both hands up the fretboard. This is a bit more advanced than the previous exercises, but it builds on them to add variety by utilizing more techniques.
By practicing these exercises, you will develop the coordination and timing needed for more advanced finger tapping passages. As you begin to develop this skillset, allow your creativity to grow. Try different areas on the fretboard. Keep one hand stationary while moving the other.
Patience and constant practice:
Work on moving both hands in a certain sequence. As you progress with your study of this technique, you will begin to create some really cool sounds. But remember, it's patience and constant practice that are the key to mastering finger tapping. Listen to players who use this technique in their music and see how you can apply it to yours.
Dive Deeper:
If you'd like to dive deeper into finger tapping and other areas of lead guitar playing, I suggest you check out the book I authored on the subject, Lead Guitar Wizardry.
This book will show you what you need to know to become not only a lead guitarist, but a lead guitar wizard! Packed with diagrams and notation for easy learning, it takes you on a journey of self-discovery. Showing you all the lead guitar secrets that all the master guitarists use. People such as Jimi Hendrix, Jimmy Page, Slash, Angus Young, SRV, and many, many more.
Designed in a simple step-by-step format that anyone can learn from. Just start with lesson 1 and proceed forward. Before you know it, you will be producing sounds with your guitar that you never thought possible. All in an amount of time quicker than you thought as well. So, if you are serious about perfecting finger tapping and exploring the realm of playing lead guitar, this book will show you how to do it.
Sold in both digital and paperback formats, available where all books are sold.
Thanks for your time learning today.
If you need any help, feel free to reach out.
I'm always available to help.
Best of luck, sincerely, Dwayne
