Beginning Guitar → Picking Out A Guitar Pick
If you are just starting out playing guitar and have the need to purchase a guitar pick, you may have found that there are almost endless possibilities of these little plastic items for sale at your local guitar shop. What the heck are these things, what is the difference, and which kind should you buy?
A pick (also called a plectrum for some reason) is a small, flat, usually triangular tool used to pluck individual strings and to strum chords on the guitar.
For the most part, choosing a pick is a completely personal choice. There isn’t necessarily a specific type of pick required for a particular style of music, but there are a couple of things to keep in mind when deciding which type of pick to purchase.
The first thing you want to look at is the thickness of the pick. Depending on the thickness of the pick, it will feel slightly different when you strum it across the guitar strings. Thinner picks may seem a bit easier to handle for beginner students, but they may be harder to control when trying to play individual notes. They also tend to break more easily, forcing you to shell out another 25 cents (which could ultimately break a starving guitarist). If your style of guitar play lends itself to more chord strumming than individual notes, you may prefer a thinner pick.
Thicker picks may be a bit harder to wield for a beginner. Since the thicker pick does not bend very much, some beginning players may find that it tends to get knocked out of your hand more frequently when strumming. This will stop happening after you learn to relax your wrist when strumming. A thicker pick can be used to play harder (louder) on the guitar since it is firmer, and some find it easier to pluck individual notes with a heavier pick.
Note that there is no universal standard to the thicknesses or sizes. For example, each brand of pick may have a different way of specifying a pick’s thickness. Some brands use the scale Heavy, Medium, and Light. Some use Thick, Medium, and Thin. Others specify the thickness in millimeters.
The next thing to consider is the size of the pick. Again, this is completely a personal choice. Some players like a large triangular pick that they can really grip in their hand. Others prefer a smaller rounded pick that enables them to very acurately pick individual strings.
The final thing to keep in mind when purchasing a pick is how smooth the material it is made out of is. You will find that some picks are very smooth. Smooth picks tend to slide around in your hand, especially if your hand starts sweating. Others will have ridges or indentations that prevent the pick from sliding around even if your hands are sweating.
Well, that’s about all you need to know about picks. Now off to the guitar store with you to purchase your own unique, individual, tailor-fit pick. You can see some of my personal ones above.
Happy Picking.
Tags: Begining Guitar, Pick, Playing Style, Strumming