Guitar Technique Tip of the Month

Copyright Douglas Niedt. All Rights Reserved.
This article may be reprinted, but please be considerate and give credit to Douglas Niedt.

This important principle of left-hand fingering is pretty simple. It is pretty basic. HERE IT IS:

If the goal is to play smoothly, when two notes fall consecutively on two different strings, always use two different fingers to play the two notes.

Here is another way to say it: When you move consecutively from one string to another, always use two different fingers to make the change.

The concept is not complicated. And it is not difficult to apply the principle to your pieces. It just requires a bit of thought when you work out your fingerings.

While the principle is not complicated, WATCH THE VIDEOS to fully understand how to implement it into your pieces.

I don't care how carefully you try to connect the notes, even on adjacent strings, if you try to use the same finger on both notes, there will always be a slight gap between the two notes. We don't want that. Our goal is to play legato. In other words, we want to connect our notes smoothly and seamlessly.

It doesn't matter if the notes fall on adjacent strings, or if they fall on strings that are spaced widely apart. It doesn't matter which fingers you are using. It doesn't matter if a shift is involved. Our principle of left-hand fingering tells us, whenever possible, to use two different fingers to move from one string to the next. Do not hop a single finger from string to string. If you do, your playing will sound choppy.

Jumping a finger from one string to another not only produces choppy playing but also leads to mistakes. If you jump a finger from one side of the fretboard to the other, there is a good chance the finger will miss the jump. By using two separate fingers, you improve your accuracy.

In printed music, and music you come across on the internet, you will often find editions with substandard or flawed fingering. You will find countless instances where this important principle of left-hand fingering is ignored. In most cases (but not all), those instances can be fixed.

Let's have a look at how to use this principle of left-hand fingering in actual pieces in the videos that follow.

Specifically, I will use examples from:

• Minuet by Georg Philipp Telemann
• Lágrima by Francisco Tárrega
• Leyenda (Asturias) by Isaac Albéniz
• Julia Florida (Barcarola) by Agustín Barrios Mangoré

Minuet by Georg Philipp Telemann

These musical examples are all in the video. However, I have reprinted them below in case you want to examine them more carefully.

For those who might want to learn the entire piece, go to the downloads section at the end of the article. Two versions are available, one in standard notation only and one in standard notation plus tab.

Part 1: Measures 1-8

Measures 2-3

Measures 4-5

Part 2

Measures 12-14

Measures 21-22

Lágrima by Francisco Tárrega

These musical examples are all in the video. However, I have reprinted them below in case you want to examine them more carefully.

Part 2: Measures 9-11

Leyenda (Asturias) by Isaac Albéniz

These musical examples are all in the video. However, I have reprinted them below in case you want to examine them more carefully.

Measure 25

Measure 41

Measures 48-49

Julia Florida (Barcarola) by Agustín Barrios Mangoré

These musical examples are all in the video. However, I have reprinted them below in case you want to examine them more carefully.

Measures 6-7

BONUS FINGERING Julia Florida (Barcarola)
by Agustín Barrios Mangoré

These musical examples are all in the video. However, I have reprinted them below in case you want to examine them more carefully.

Measures 18-19