How to Play “Perfectly” (or at least more perfectly!)
No one plays perfectly all of the time of course (except Segovia, and he’s gone…), but you can attain a very high level of consistency through proper and plentiful repetition.
Author: Mark Hanson
Beginning Fingerstyle Improvisation
By Mark Hanson January 8, 2025 Fingerstyle improvisation is a multi-faceted undertaking. Improvising on a wind instrument (saxophone for instance) requires you to play a new melody, one note at a time. In fingerstyle guitar, you need to do that plus keep the chord and rhythm going underneath. It’s a workout for the brain! A way to get started: First, memorize the chord progression of the tune you want to use. Do this by writing (by hand!) a chord chart of the tune. Early on I discovered that writing by hand has a special connection to the brain; plus you […]
Anticipating Fretting Hand Movements
During a recent lesson I noticed my student intermittently looking at his picking hand directly before his fretting hand moved several frets to another position. He continually missed the second position. Studying a bit what I do in a similar situation, I realized that I look directly at the new position moments before I move there. This gives my fretting hand a target. If you were to watch me play an entire two-hour concert you would never see me even once look at my right (picking) hand. My picking-hand position is so secure and the motions so minimal that I never […]
“Sheep May Safely Graze” Arrangement
This is my solo guitar arrangement of J.S. Bach’s beautiful “Sheep May Safely Graze.” I use it when I play for the hospitalized ‘premies’ (babies born before the full gestation period) in Portland. Play it as smoothly and gently as you can. Suggestions: 1. To make the parallel thirds in the opening measures consistent in tone I pick EACH PAIR OF TREBLE NOTES with my index and middle fingers, including the low C on the fifth string; 2. In measure 2, sustain the low C note throughout; on beat 2, lift the middle finger silently (relax!) and place it along with […]
“America, the Beautiful”
Mark’s solo fingerstyle guitar arrangement of the classic “America the Beautiful.”
House Concert P.A. Setup
Mark Hanson’s house concert P.A. setup.
Acrylic Nails? Yea or Nay
To use acrylic nails to fingerpick, or not! Mark Hanson’s current approach.
Develop a “Babe Ruth” Thumb!
Tip From Mark Hanson As a fingerpicker, if you are having any trouble producing good, consistent tone and accurate string selection with your thumb, consider this: Think of your picking-hand thumb as a baseball bat. It is powerful and accurate when it’s straight, in its natural relaxed position. If you find that you bend your thumb’s first knuckle when you pick, visualize a baseball bat with a hinge in it a foot from the end: You have no power and no control! (Babe Ruth and Shohei Ohtani would refrain from having a hinge in their bats, of course!) For maximum power and accuracy, your thumb […]
“Semi-Circle” of Fifths!
In the acoustic guitar world — outside of jazz and strict classical — we seldom use certain parts of the “Circle of Fifths.” We prefer to stick to the half of the Circle that uses open strings. Hence my “Semi-Circle of Fifths” term.
“Pull-Off” a Misnomer!
The term “Pull-Off” is a Misnomer!