Really struggling with fingerstyle

[Kitsto]

Plucking the strings hard - apparently Chris Wolstenholme of Muse does this ('harder than I've ever seen anyone do,' according to one studio engineer) - but I wouldn't be able to do that. Reasonably softly and smoothly is the way to go.

 

Suggestions above about alternating fingers (index and middle) - I do this (I started on classical guitar and that's how you're taught) unlike Jack Bruce and Geddy Lee who play mainly with one finger, very fast - but, hey, I'm not them and never will be.

[Thor]

Some really good advice on this thread, when I started playing I always used a pick, then I joined a blues band and the aggressive tones produced weren’t appropriate and the band leader asked me to play fingerstyle, it seemed to put me back massively when I tried at first, but as others have said, for me the only way to get it was to practice over and over, slowly at first, crossing strings is really important and alternating between index and middle fingers, nowadays my right hand technique takes care of itself and I don’t even think about it.  Also. I tend to anchor my thumb on top of the pick up cover, I find having an anchor point really helped me get a feel for what I wanted to achieve and was probably the most important thing to building up speed.

 

 Be patient, it will happen, don’t give up - it’s totally worth persevering with😊👍🏻

[Guest]

Practice, practice, practice, time, time,time, repetition and persistence will eventually retire your brain and form those neural pathways.

 

I recall that I got it figured out in two or three days - and then a year to perfect- which is unusual for me as I have the natural coordination of a one legged cat burying a turd on a frozen pond.

[Cliff Edge]

On 09/01/2024 at 11:12, gjones said:

 

This...

 

And when you're practicing playing with fingers don't bother plugging the bass into the amp. It's discouraging when you hear all the clanky noises and mistakes when you're starting off playing fingerstyle. Just get used to playing with your fingers first of all and when you start to get the hang of it, plug the bass in.

 
Playing an electric bass, especially a solid body, acoustically is not a good idea. You end up plucking the strings too hard in order to hear yourself, which is a bad habit to get into. Plus you get blisters very quickly. Use an amp of some kind, even if it’s just a headphone amp.