Guitar finger stretching exercises. Exercise for fingers (Warm-up). Left hand fingers
EXERCISES
If you landed on this page for a query related to exercises for the development of guitar technique, then know that in addition to exercises on the site there is also educational literature for beginner guitarists(Section "Guitar Lessons"). And significant musical collection covering all types of guitar activities (Section "Guitarist's Library").
Thoughts about…
guitar exercises, presented on this page are part of my textbook "A. Nosov's Guitar School" and are intended for the development and improvement of guitar technique, including the development of playing techniques, increasing the mobility of the fingers of the left and right hands, their strength and endurance. The exercises, with the exception of standard scales, are exclusive and are the fruit of many years of teaching. Having played all of them, you will be best prepared for the performance of works of any level of complexity.
Exercises designed for a wide range of performers, from beginner guitarists to students of secondary and higher musical educational institutions. All the necessary information on playing them is placed on the title page of the documents.
The bulk of the exercises goes beyond amateur guitar, so I did not consider it possible to supplement them with tablature (as I did, for example, in the exercises on "Arpeggio" on the "Accompaniment" page), rightly believing that advanced guitarists do not need such hints. If you are not one of them, or, alternatively, do not know musical notation, then it's time to fill this gap by studying at my guitar school. The first 5 lessons are available for free download (Section "Guitar Lessons").
Change of positions. Position, in relation to playing the guitar, is the fixed position of the fingers of the left hand (which by default is responsible for changing the pitch) on the fretboard. Therefore, a change of position is an action associated with moving the fingers of the left hand from one part of the fretboard to another ("Positions" is the topic of the 15th lesson of A. Nosov's Guitar School).
In the guitar, there are four ways of changing positions (Substitution, Sliding, Jumps, Leading), which have common patterns. Knowing these patterns and, most importantly, their skillful application just allows you to make the transition from one part of the fretboard to another not only technically (quickly and silently), but also qualitatively (without interruption in sound and extraneous overtones). And this skill, in turn, will be in demand in any kind of guitar activity, regardless of whether you accompany or solo. Therefore, if you have not heard anything about the rules for changing positions, then before starting the exercises, I would advise you to read the 51st lesson of A. Nosov's Guitar School, in which detailed information on this subject (section "Guitar Lessons").
Scales- an excellent tool for the development of fine performing technique (fine technique, in turn, is when each next sound is taken on the next fret or through the fret). Where is fine technique used when playing the guitar? When performing melodic lines (including with the support of accompanying guitar voices) and in passages. Passage - a sequence of sounds in rapid movement - is not a frequent guest in guitar literature. Why? Because there are few guitar virtuosos, and authors, including myself, are forced to focus on the average performing level, only occasionally allowing themselves to embody a flight of fantasy in notes, expressed by a cascade of virtuoso sounds. However, talent, multiplied by diligence, can work wonders. And, I really hope that you will become the performer who can handle the works top level difficulties.
Do you know what is the secret of the magical charm of the music of Niccolo Paganini, the unsurpassed Italian violinist and composer? In the most beautiful melodies and ... incredibly difficult passages, close in spirit to the improvisational style (I mean his violin works, not guitar ones, which are also written a lot). And improvisation is something that is interesting to listen to, play and watch live. Improvisation is a stream of creative performing fantasy, embodied by muscular efforts, which are based on ... fine technique. However, learned improvisation also produces a stunning effect, which is proved by the immortal creations of N. Paganini for several centuries in a row. Conclusion, if you want to be interesting to your listeners and enjoy playing, pay more attention to scales - a magical ladder on the way to passages and virtuosity, and I will help you with this with my advice (see the "Guitar Lessons" section).
Arpeggio on the guitar, in a simplified way, it is string picking. The success of this type of technique, by and large, depends on the actions of the fingers of the right hand interacting with the strings in order to extract sound. Participates in the performance of arpeggios and left hand, whose fingers form chords (not always typical ...).
Any guitar player who plays at the everyday level considers himself an outstanding performer if he knows a few brute force. And I propose ... 60 species, each of which is considered not only as separate exercise, but also has a purely practical meaning, serving as a template for song accompaniment. Moreover, views can be combined (within the same time signature) and get more large quantity searches. Details in the document "Arpeggio" and, of course, in my lessons (see section "Guitar Lessons").
barre- This is a technique that consists in simultaneously pressing several strings with one finger. The reception, of course, is powerful, simplifying the game and allowing you to act in various keys without much hassle (provided that you press the strings with your index finger). If… the guitarist knows how to do it right. That's right, this is when the finger involved in setting the barre acts with a force not exceeding the limit necessary for high-quality pressing of the strings, and the remaining fingers are completely free and ready to participate in extracting additional sounds (barre can be performed with different fingers, so their name is not specified here ). There is no other approach to performing barre for anyone, neither for lovers of accompaniment, nor, especially, for classical guitarists.
And here the question arises, how to learn how to take a barre (or teach, as an option)? In short, you need at least a normal gap between the strings and the fretboard (the topic of the 1st lesson of A. Nosov's Guitar School) and the tension of the strings, which does not interfere with the development of this technique. Exactly. Loosening the standard string tension for many is the only way to master the technique correctly and painlessly. Everything else is quite educable: both the strength necessary to simultaneously press several strings, and endurance, and the ability to freely act with the rest of the fingers while holding "Barre". Details in the document "Barre" and, of course, in my lessons (see section "Guitar Lessons").
Legato- a playing technique that is part of the scope of the left hand, which by default is responsible for pressing the strings to the fingerboard, with little or no participation of the right hand. Legato, conditionally, is divided into ascending, descending and mixed, and differs in the way it is performed. I will not go into details, all this is done in lessons with examples and exercises. I'm just going to point out that the downstroke is the most difficult, and I suggest you set up synthetic strings to learn it if you haven't already. Otherwise, you will suffer... I am writing here for those who are interested in understanding all types of guitar technique, including melismas - grace notes, mordents, groupetto, trills, found in advanced pieces. Although, the legato technique is certainly useful for all guitarists, regardless of the goals and objectives that they set for themselves. It is useful in that it facilitates performance and diversifies the sound, softening the sound.
Melismas. In the 68th lesson, the study of melismas begins - melodic ornaments (if you like, original musical vignettes). Let's start with grace notes, then master mordents, gruppettos and trills. What can be said about melismas in a review article? Firstly, the fact that they really decorate the melody and are used in almost any work of the romantic style. Therefore, if you are a fan of Spanish authors or dream of playing Hungarian, gypsy music, Russian romances, then this is for you. Although, of course, the presence of melismas in the text does not depend on the nationality of the author or his geographical location. Secondly, the fact that they are written in small notes (more precisely, notes in a smaller font) or ... are indicated by special icons that require decoding. I'm sure you've seen melismas if you've ever browsed sheet music for "advanced" guitarists. And, no doubt, we asked ourselves a couple of questions, such as: "How to calculate the length of small notes?", "How to combine them with notes related to other guitar voices?". So, for a successful reading of melismas, you need to know that each guitar voice is independent in the recording (namely, the melody, bass, middle voice and the rarely seen 4th voice are independent). And that all small durations are included in the main note following them. In short, everything, and the details in the lessons.
flageolets- sounds that imitate the singing of a flute. But this is not their only use when playing the guitar. Harnesses are also used to produce ultra-high sounds that are not available with conventional sound production. Does this mean that the flageolets are taken in a special way? - Exactly. Therefore, if you are not aware of their performance, I would advise you to study the key lessons on this topic (141st - natural harmonics, 146th - artificial harmonics, 150th - combined harmonics), which spell out everything you need to know about this type of guitar technique. I would advise because it is impossible to guess about the features of extracting flageolets and their designations on your own. For example, if you do not know that the harmonics are taken not within the fret (as can be understood from the Roman numeral used to number the frets), but above the fret, they will not sound. The same will happen if you interact with the string with the wrong force and the wrong duration. And this is only the most light look flageolets - natural. But there are also artificial and combined ones, which are much more difficult to perform. In general, read my lessons, if not already in the subject.
Arpeggio and techniques such as glissando, staccato, vibrato, string pull, pizzicato, tambourine, tremolo, tremolando are very often used when playing the guitar, regardless of its type (acoustic, electro), the style of music performed (classical, jazz, flamenco, chanson ), the method of sound production (fingers, a special plate). They are used, of course, with varying degrees of intensity. But this does not mean that an electric guitarist should not master, say, the "Tambourine" technique, and a classical guitarist should not master the "String Pull" or "False Vibrato" technique. Must! At least in order to expand the horizons of your instrument. And then… no one knows what they will have to play tomorrow.
I really hope that I could be useful to you.
Beginning guitarists always need to warm up for 10-15 minutes before playing. This is necessary for stretching fingers. Guitar in this case will be your main assistant. In this article, we will analyze some exercises for fingers on the guitar - both for the right hand and for the left.
Most self-taught people make a lot of mistakes in the early stages of learning (the most common is brute force with just one finger).
Ideally, all fingers except the little finger should be involved (although there are exceptions).
Exercise 1. "Swing"
First of all, we distribute the fingers along the strings: the thumb will control the sixth string, the index finger will control the third, and the middle and ring fingers, respectively, the second and first.
We are trying to play the introduction of the famous Metallica ballad called Nothing Else Matters (this will not be difficult even for the person who picked up the instrument for the first time). Thus, we play the strings in the following sequence:
Note: The thumb can play not only the sixth string, but also the fourth and fifth. So experiment with it. You can also periodically change the sequence of strings and, for example, play like this: 6 3 1 2 3 1 2 3. At this time, the left hand does not clamp anything, that is, open strings are played. Of course, you can experiment and play some simple chords.
Exercise 2. "Waltz"
We distribute the fingers in the same way as in the previous exercise.
The game is an alternation of bass strings and a "pinch" of the three lower strings, which is done simultaneously with three fingers.
Exercises for the left hand
Important: The main task when working with the left hand is the correct setting of chords, adaptability to their change, as well as roughening of the skin on the fingertips.
Incorrect placement of the fingers of the left hand brings the most problems, since the harmony and quality of the guitarist's playing depends primarily on the left hand.
Exercise 1
We choose 3-4 any chords (see article:) and play them sequentially. It turns out an uncomplicated melody. It is better to play them by brute force, because in this case (unlike a fight) we will hear the flaws better if some finger of the left hand is placed incorrectly or the string is not pressed hard enough.
We set and play chords as if a master is listening to us at the moment (you can imagine that this is some kind of celebrity or even your idol) and we are trying to create a chord standard for him.
To do this, you need to monitor the correct setting of the fingers. They should clamp their strings at a right angle (often young guitarists pull them down, thereby knocking down the tuning and creating the illusion of an out-of-tune guitar), not too hard, but not too weak (if we press the finger too lightly, then in this case the string will simply emit the sound of a taut rope).
Should not be given special attention playing speed, since at first we just need to hone the transitions between chords.
After this is done, you can diversify or switch to, as well as increase the speed of the game.
Note: already in the early stages of learning, it is worth devoting a little more time to setting bare chords (see lesson: ).
Exercise 2. On the first string
Let's start with the fifth fret. We put our index finger on it. On the sixth fret - the middle, on the seventh and eighth, respectively, the ring and little fingers.
We play the following sequence of frets:
And then in reverse order:
Then we move one fret to the right. We play the same game all over again.
When the little finger reaches the twelfth fret, we begin to play our melody in reverse order, to “fade out”.
Conclusion
Some exercises make it possible to develop two arms at the same time. Currently, there are even entire collections and individual courses containing hand exercises. for guitar it is important that it is configured correctly (see lesson:).
There are no clear instructions for performing these exercises. The guitarist is only required to try to combine in his playing the components for the development of both hands.
All these exercises are designed for beginners who are just starting to learn how to play the guitar. Experienced professional guitarists, of course, use more difficult exercises, and they do them constantly, every day. But for you and me, for beginners, the above exercises are quite enough.
Do them periodically and do not be lazy. Good luck! 🙂
Hello fellow guitarists. Today I want to offer you a simple, but at the same time very effective warm-up exercise.
Before starting the game (if you are already playing) or before learning the lessons (if you are still learning), it will be useful to spend 15 minutes warming up.
What is this workout for? And it is needed at the beginning of learning to play the guitar, first of all, so that the hands get used to the instrument and movements, in order to fill calluses on the left hand with the help of simple exercises in order to work out the simplest elements of the game.
Now about how to do the exercises. The tablature below should be played slowly at first. It is not speed that is important, but accuracy and clarity of execution. The strings should not rattle, keep up the pace. To do this, turn on the metronome (download). Set the metronome to tempo 60 to begin with, and increase the tempo as you progress. Every day you will play faster and faster, but I repeat once again - it is very important to play correctly, that is, clearly and accurately.
Now the tablature itself. These are the so-called chromatisms. The numbers indicate the numbers of the fingers. Played all over the neck of the guitar, i.e. start with 1st fret 6th string, then 6th string 2nd fret - 3rd fret 4th fret, 5th string 1st fret - 2− 3− 4... 5th fret and play in reverse order. And so on throughout the neck.
Game example (slow):
Exercise 1. The simplest. Fingers alternately extract one note at a time.
Exercise 2. Already more difficult. Finger coordination required.
Exercise 3. An even more difficult exercise, but you need to master it too.
Greetings! For novice guitar virtuosos, coordinating the movements of the hands and fingers when playing the guitar is quite difficult.
I would like to offer you a few simple exercises to coordinate fingers and hands! It is advisable to practice under a metronome and start at a slow pace. If you are already a seasoned guitarist - do not run away - try also to perform these simple exercises. Perhaps you will discover something new in the behavior of your fingers. To make the guitar sound, finger exercises are simply necessary.
Exercise 1
Place your hands on the table with your palms down and with your left hand pat slowly and evenly on the table, and with your right hand draw big circles on the table! Then hands change tasks!
Exercise 2
Under the metronome, and lightly touching the table with the palms of the hands, simultaneously left and right hand draw a square on the table. Synchronously and asynchronously.
Exercise 3
Thumb of the left hand at a moderate pace touches the pads of the remaining fingers in the direction from the index to the little finger and vice versa. The thumb of the right hand "walks" in the same direction and pace, but touches each finger twice! Then the hands change!
Exercise 4
We complicate exercise 3! We “walk” with the thumbs of both hands at the same time in the following sequence:
| Check | Left hand fingers | Right hand fingers |
| i |
||
| i |
||
| m |
||
| m |
||
| 1 | 3 | a |
| 2 | 2 | a |
| 3 | 1 | e |
| 4 | 2 | e |
Exercise 5
It is important to have good stretch for the left hand! Suitable for stretching next exercise: with the right hand, pull the adjacent fingers of the left hand, namely fingers 1-2, 2-3, 3-4.
Exercise 6
At first, when I was just starting to learn to play the guitar, I did this exercise for the fingers of both hands, while there is a slight tension in the tendons of the fingers. This exercise was shown to me by a tutor, and for some time I tried to repeat it, until it started to work out. If you manage to do this feint with your little fingers, it will be just brilliant! I still can't control my little fingers!
Exercise 7
And finally, running finger exercise, also coordinating hands and fingers together!
In the video, I presented my achievements. Now you!
Do you want to receive fresh blog posts? Just on the secret page of my site)))
If you are enlightened, it makes no difference if you are the best guitar player in the world or not. George Harrison
In this video I will give you some finger stretching exercises and one exercise for the development of finger motor skills.
Now you are trying to play chords where you need a good stretch of your fingers. Your fingers are probably trembling, you can’t reach the right frets on the guitar and all this is very annoying - isn’t it?
Everyone goes through this. These exercises will help you get through this stage. much faster.
Let's start with stretching! First you need to warm up your hands. Close your hands and rub vigorously together (as you do in winter to keep warm). Next, imitate washing your hands (how you lather your hands) - all this warms your hands and fingers well.
Exercise!
Stretch every day. Before stretching, do not forget to do warm-up exercises.
For every exercise take 2-3 minutes- you don’t need to fanatically engage in “hours” - you will injure your fingers and you won’t be able to play the guitar for a long time.
