Comments on: What is Anchoring, and Why is it Bad?

By: Hidden Valley obsession

Hidden Valley obsession — Wed, 24 Nov 2010 16:14:20 +0000

Then there are those of us whose picking hand is so strong and quick that the fretting hand cant keep up. I actually learned to play guitar left handed picking with the weaker hand, the left hand, to combat this problem. When I play right handed the fretting hand is the slow one, not the picking one. So what I have done is started doing drumming drills to get the hands better synchronized as well as finger picking with all four fingers of the right hand when playing right handed. The central problem remains that I can play faster than I can think, I can play almost asleep, but then while I am playing fast, because it is too easy, my timing is not correct. So a metronome, extreme concentration and lots of practice is required.

By: Guitar Lessons: Picking Technique FAQ | Chainsaw Guitar Tuition

Guitar Lessons: Picking Technique FAQ | Chainsaw Guitar Tuition — Tue, 06 Jul 2010 22:24:59 +0000

[...] Anchoring is when you fix your strumming hand or arm on the guitar body. It restricts the movement of your arm and hand, and you shouldn’t be doing it! For more on this, please read my blog post on why anchoring is bad. [...]

By: Ben

Ben — Wed, 07 Apr 2010 11:03:45 +0000

It was just near the elbow area I thought I might be anchoring yea, thanks , I think I may anchor slightly on my pinky but obviously not much as I can play pritty much the same (I think maybe even faster) when I focus on not touching the body at all with it, so I’ll just have to work on that a bit.

Thanks for the fast reply, good teacher xD

By: Rob

Rob — Mon, 05 Apr 2010 17:35:25 +0000

No problem, I’m glad to help

If you can play fine without touching the guitar with your pinky, and when your pinky is touching the guitar it’s only just touching, then it’s probably not anchoring. So that part’s good.

When you say your “forearm”, do you mean down by your wrist it’s touching just above the strings? If you anchor your wrist to one spot when you play then this is anchoring. Lift your arm up so that your wrist is straight and free to move from your elbow. The strumming/picking motion should come mainly from your wrist, but you should be able to move your arm at the elbow too.

If you mean you are touching the guitar nearer your elbow then it’s likely you’re fine- just remember that if your arm/hand has to be held against the guitar at any point for it to work then you’re anchoring. “Gripping” the guitar is bad, “touching” the guitar is ok.

Hope that makes things clearer? If not then I’m happy to answer any further questions, and I’ll try the best I can to help

Rob.

By: Ben

Ben — Mon, 05 Apr 2010 16:19:40 +0000

hey, thanks for the advice, I’ve been playing for a while now and still struggle to get the speeds I want, and am now wondering if it’s because I’m anchoring, I only just touch the body of the guitar with my pinky, but seem to be able to play fine without doing it, but I also use my forearm to grip the top of the guitar? is that also anchoring?? thanks for the help, if this is wrong technique I want to fix it asap.

By: Rob

Rob — Sat, 27 Feb 2010 11:04:51 +0000

I never said the picking hand had to be hovering, it just shouldn’t be “holding on” to the guitar. You are allowed to touch (for muting etc..) as long as there is no pressure.

I hope that makes sense of things- contact is OK, as long as you are not “anchoring” your hand to a specific point on the guitar.

By: Chris

Chris — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 17:31:17 +0000

Hrm, so you’re saying the picking hand literally has to be hovering above the guitar? The only contact being the pick and the string?
Basically I’m attempting to pry anchoring from my technique, and I find that if my pinky isn’t extended and anchored below the strings and is instead curled up, it still rests on the strings somewhat if I’m picking the sixth/ fifth/ fourth string. I’m actually getting used to it quite quickly but I suppose I was just wondering if that contact between my hand and the strings is alright? Or would you consider that to be a sort of adaptive habitual anchoring?

Haha sorry if that’s a all a little bit convoluted.

By: Rob

Rob — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 09:41:11 +0000

Many people anchor to give them “more control”, but the downside of anchoring is that it creates unnecassary tension.

You can, in fact, get just as much control by picking from the wrist- but that doesn’t mean your hand needs to be curled up. The whole problem with anchoring is you are holding yourself on to the guitar body, which is limiting your movement.

I’ve always found the “fingers alone” method an awkward way of picking, but I’ve heard it work for some people…

By: Chris

Chris — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 21:54:57 +0000

I don’t know man. I find anchoring to be quite liberating. Why would you pick with the wrist? You can make more precise cuts with the motion of the fingers alone and anchoring keeps them balanced. Surely putting your wrist into picking leads to great big diving pickstrokes and hence sloppyness. I always see players with their picking hands curled up, and it just seems too uncomfortable.

By: Rob

Rob — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 08:50:23 +0000

If you’re able to play without putting your thumb on the strings then it’s likely you’re not anchoring.

The thing about anchoring is: you become dependant on putting pressure against the guitar to be able to play. So I would suggest that you try playing without using your thumb to mute (yes, I know it wont sound as good, but it’s just a test), and if you start to miss strings and lose accuracy then you’re anchoring.

If you don’t have a problem playing like then then you’re not anchoring and can go back to your normal playing technique, otherwise you’ll have to adjust your way of playing.

Muting is a different subject entirely. It’s usually done with the side of the palm of the picking hand, but if you’re technique doesn’t anchor then your way could be fine too.