Speed Picking vs. Legato: The Real Approach to Shredding
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Speed Picking vs. Legato: The Real Approach to Shredding
If you're anything like me, your social media feed is probably filled with people working on their chops—specifically speed picking chops. It’s easy to think that the goal is to pick every note as fast and as cleanly as possible. While that’s a noble goal, it’s not always the smartest thing to do. In fact, it’s almost never what happens./p>
The Reality of Speed Picking
So, you saw me play that pretty standard neoclassical harmonic minor run. It sounds like it's all done with fast picking and staccato, right? It’s the kind of thing you might expect someone to practice picking for 15 years and then end up playing. But that’s not really what’s happening in this run.
Personally, on a good day, I pick maybe 70 or 80% of the notes. The other notes are played in another way, and most of the time, that’s going to be legato—hammer-ons and pull-offs. Let’s break it down:
Breaking Down the Example
Let’s look at a simple example. Most of you are probably comfortable with an E minor scale, especially if you’ve done some shredding. We’re going to play the 12th, 14th, and 15th frets on the high E string. This would be the starting point for such a run: 12-14-15, then back down: 14-12.
At a slow pace, it’s easy to pick every note, but as you speed up, it gets harder. At a certain point, it’s easier to add hammer-ons and pull-offs. Why? Because that technique helps prepare for the string traverse.
So, it looks like this: pick, pick, pick, pull-off, pull-off, and then a pick again as you move to the next string.
The Power of Legato
This is the essence of a lot of cool neoclassical runs. Most of the time, especially if there’s any improvisation, they contain a good chunk of legato. The thing is, you often can’t hear the difference between picking and legato because the sound is usually distorted and compressed. That difference becomes minimal.
Check the video where I compare:
- All picking on one string:
- [All picking sound]
- A mix of picking and legato:
- [Picking and legato sound]
To the untrained ear, those sound almost identical. So, don’t stress about picking every note. If you want to play these runs well and soon, you should practice both picking and legato.
Even the Pros Don’t Pick Every Note
If you're a perfectionist and you just want to be the guy who picks every note, sure, you can go for that. But even players who are famous for picking every note—like Paul Gilbert—don’t actually pick every note in their runs. And he's open about that. There’s nothing wrong with it. In fact, it’s smart. It’s more flexible and allows you to play those runs even on days when your picking isn’t perfect.
Putting It Together
The key is to practice both picking and legato to make your runs smoother. In time, both your left and right hands will be more synchronized, and you'll be able to pull off these runs even on days when your picking is off.
So there you have it: it’s all about balance. You don’t have to pick every note, and in fact, using legato can make you more flexible and give you more control over your playing.
--Kris
