The Serious Guitarist: Right-Hand Picking: Guitar Book & Online Audio

The book guides you through a methodical unlocking of efficiency, starting with the foundation of how to hold and move the pick, then building momentum as you navigate increasingly complex string patterns. The musical licks transform what could feel like dry technical work into real phrases you'll want to use.

Rock, blues, and jazz guitarists who recognize that picking technique directly shapes tone quality and speed but haven't found focused instruction on right-hand mechanics. Private studio students preparing for ensemble work or performance contexts benefit from the systematic progression, as do self-taught players looking to diagnose and correct inefficient picking habits.

• Slow down the online audio demonstrations using playback software (like Amazing Slow Downer or your device's native speed control) to hear exactly where the pick strikes and how the hand moves through direction changes.
• Work through the single-string exercises with a metronome, increasing tempo by 5 BPM increments only after you can execute each lick cleanly at the current speed.
• Record yourself playing the musical licks and listen back specifically for consistency in tone across strings, not just accuracy of notes.
• Practice the string-crossing passages without the pick first, using your finger to trace the path your picking hand will take, building muscle memory for the motion before adding tempo.

Assign this to individual guitar students as a semester-long supplementary text, working through one section per week. It also works well as small-group material for a jazz or rock ensemble when multiple guitarists need to tighten their picking together.

• Efficient pick grip and hand position
• Directional picking control across single strings
• String-crossing technique with consistency
• Two-string and three-string picking patterns
• Ascending and descending runs across all six strings
• Translating picking exercises into musical phrases