Hybrid Picking

Hybrid Picking Course Introduction

Hi, it's Marcus Bonfanti here, and thanks for looking at this course, which is all about hybrid picking.

Overview of Hybrid Picking

Hybrid picking is not an essential technique, but for me, especially when playing acoustic blues, it's very necessary. The technique involves:

• Playing with a plectrum
• Using the three fingers that aren't holding the plectrum to participate in playing the guitar

This combination gives you the ability to:

• Play really nice lines within your chord playing
• Achieve a different way of playing certain lines during solos

The Song: Sliding Delta

We'll center this lesson around an arrangement of mine of a song by Mississippi John Hurt called Sliding Delta. This piece will serve as a way of using hybrid picking to play melody and chords at the same time, creating a nice instrumental tune or backing for singing.

Key and Chords

The song is a blues, but it's not a 12-bar blues. We'll change the key to E, involving these chords:

• E
• B7 (the V chord in this context)
• A (the IV chord)
• A7
• Back to E (the I chord)

Melody Line

The melody line of the tune should sound like this:

(Insert melody line here)

Combining Melody and Chords

Now, I'll put the two together and explain a bit about what the right hand is doing to achieve this.

Here's a quick overview of the intro.

Understanding the Right Hand Technique

The beauty of hybrid picking is that it allows you to pick out a bass line and chords while playing the melody simultaneously. This technique is great for:

• Playing solo
• Playing with a band

The Role of the Plectrum and Fingers

With your technique, the plectrum portion of your hand does the following:

• Palm Muting: Rest your palm at the back to create a tight sound.
• Picking: Pick out the bass note and jump to play a portion of the chord.

Fingers' Role: While you might forget about the little finger for now, the other fingers take care of the melody line.

Playing Slowly

Let's play it slowly to highlight how the right hand operates.

• Focus: Pay attention to what the right hand is doing, as it's where most of the rhythm is found.
• The left hand will not be doing much during this exercise.

Wrist and Technique

It's important to keep the wrist on the right hand loose. The fingers will be working hard, so:

• Practice making your wrist relaxed and letting it become second nature.
• Start by letting the sound flow before adding melody.

Adding Skips

Adding a few skips can enhance your playing, creating a lovely technique that we discussed with raking back on certain chords.

Practice Tip:

• Focus on your right hand while adding a few skips to get comfortable.

Summary of Hybrid Picking

Hybrid picking is a core skill that opens up many possibilities in your playing.

Playing Faster

To tidy this up, I'll play Sliding Delta one more time, a bit quicker, to show how it all fits together.

(Plays example)

Using Hybrid Picking in Solos

Now, a quick overview of how hybrid picking can work within solos, particularly focusing on double stops.

What are Double Stops?

A double stop involves playing two notes at once, typically on the G and B strings. Chuck Berry is a fantastic example of this technique in action.

Technique in Detail

• Use your plectrum for the root note.
• Utilize your fingers for the melody notes.

This combination provides a nice, rhythmic sound, enhancing your playing.

Experimentation

Try taking licks you already know and experiment with combining:

• Plectrum-only
• Finger-style
• Hybrid style

Conclusion

That's an introduction to hybrid picking. If you're interested in more techniques or lessons, feel free to get in touch with me through the website. There will be more on this in future courses.

I hope you find this information helpful!