|
Photo by Ken Gallagher
| |
Grip Optimization for Guitarists
Optimization of the grip is something that is overlooked by most teachers.
However, having too tight a grip on your fret board can have some pretty serious
consequences.
Here are some of the most common problems caused by too tight a grip:
 | Tendonitis: Gripping the neck too tightly can cause tendonitis in
both the fingers and forearm. This can not only cause your practice time to be
cut short, but pain in the fingers and forearm often transfer to the back. The
pain and stiffness in the back often transfer to the neck and legs, eventually
causing the entire body to ache. |
| Fret Damage: Pressing the strings too hard against the frets will
eventually cause notches to be formed in the frets. This will destroy your
action and intonation and may also cause some strings to buzz. |
| String Damage: Strings pressed hard against a notched out fret will
begin to fray and eventually break. If your playing requires string bending,
each time you slide a string across a notch in a fret to bend it, the notch
cuts a little chunk out of your string. Wound strings will begin to
unwind at that point and unwound strings will just break. |
| Intonation problems: Even on a new set of undamaged frets, gripping
the strings too tightly will cause the pitch to go sharp. When the pressure of
your finger exceeds just enough pressure to have the string make contact with
the fret without buzzing, the string will begin to bend and the pitch will
increase slightly. The more tightly you grip it, the sharper the notes under
your fingers will play. |
There are a number of ways to relieve some of these problems.
| Yoga and/or massage: The practice of yoga or getting a therapeutic
massage will help relieve the tendonitis and allow you to play longer. |
| Replacing frets: Replacing your frets with a tougher material will
prevent fret and string damage. If you have an extra strong grip, you might
want to consider custom titanium frets to avoid replacement every year. |
| Grip optimization: Optimizing your grip will be the most effective
method for preventing all of the above problems. There are exercises that you
can do to improve the optimization of your grip. |
For complete music lessons,
email me.
|
