About Legato technique.

[jalguitarman]

Hi all. In the last 2 months I have been working on developing some legato technique as I have used mostly speed picking but have found I really like the sound of fast legato playing. What I asking is; I am using a 2 note per string whole tone run across all 6 strings, when I pick each starting note on each successive string should I be playing downstrokes only as I ascend and upstrokes only as I descend or should I use alternate picking to sound each picked note as I play across the strings. Any guidance would be appreciated. Thanks in advance.

[GuitarStv]

Re: About Legato technique.

First play the piece without legato using strict alternating picking. Once you have that down comfortably, add in the legato but keep your pick strokes the same. This way you can switch more easily between fast legato and fast picked runs.

For example you might go from:

Up - Down - Up - Down - Up - Down

to

Up - (Hammer) - Up - (Hammer) - (Pull) - Down

[Warheart]

Re: About Legato technique.

For me, it would depend on if its on the beat or not.

If you're using steady 8th notes, I would down pick everything that's on the beat, regardless of ascending or descending riffs. If you're starting on the up beats, pick every upbeat up.

[jalguitarman]

Re: About Legato technique.

For me, it would depend on if its on the beat or not.

If you're using steady 8th notes, I would down pick everything that's on the beat, regardless of ascending or descending riffs. If you're starting on the up beats, pick every upbeat up.

What about 16th notes?

[Warheart]

Re: About Legato technique.

What about 16th notes?

Same thing, I would maintain the picking pattern as if I had picked the notes, if you have down up down up, and you're skipping the 3rd note, I'd go down up miss up.

Most of the time when you're doing gallop rhythms thats the kinda stuff that ends up happening, why change it for your lead playing?

[jalguitarman]

Re: About Legato technique.

Same thing, I would maintain the picking pattern as if I had picked the notes, if you have down up down up, and you're skipping the 3rd note, I'd go down up miss up.

Most of the time when you're doing gallop rhythms thats the kinda stuff that ends up happening, why change it for your lead playing?

I will give this a shot.
I know I have worked out a legato exercise that I practice almost every day that is a little more complex than the whole tone run that I talked about that I have to use some alternate picking due to how the notes fall. I have been trying to find the most efficient way to play and the one that will allow me to get it up to insane speeds with the greatest amount of ease. So far what I have come up with thus far I also do a couple of hammer -ons from no where and after I play the phrase a few times I do a reverse sweep as I think it sounds cool. With that lick though I would like to use it in a song. I also want to use the whole tone thing as well as I think it will sound very Holdsworth.

[TimmyPage]

Re: About Legato technique.

As said above, I find the best way to do it is to first learn it strict alternate picking, picking every note. The key with legato I think is that you want to keep your right hand moving as if you were picking the note to keep momentum. Legato shouldn't be used as a trick to play faster than you can pick, but instead as a colour that you are using instead of picking a line.

[jalguitarman]

Re: About Legato technique.

As said above, I find the best way to do it is to first learn it strict alternate picking, picking every note. The key with legato I think is that you want to keep your right hand moving as if you were picking the note to keep momentum. Legato shouldn't be used as a trick to play faster than you can pick, but instead as a colour that you are using instead of picking a line.

That's exactly why I want to develop some real legato technique. I really like the sound of it more than I realized. I listened to Allan Holdsworth for the first time a couple of moths ago plus an instructor at GIT named Allen Hinds and it made me want to use legato a whole lot more. It just so happens that I also want to attain Shawn Lanes speed as well and did before I decided I wanted to develop an awesome legato technique.

[jalguitarman]

Re: About Legato technique.

First play the piece without legato using strict alternating picking. Once you have that down comfortably, add in the legato but keep your pick strokes the same. This way you can switch more easily between fast legato and fast picked runs.

For example you might go from:

Up - Down - Up - Down - Up - Down

to

Up - (Hammer) - Up - (Hammer) - (Pull) - Down

Thing is, when I alternate pick I tend to start with a downstroke. Perhaps I should start with and upstroke?

[GuitarStv]

Re: About Legato technique.

Thing is, when I alternate pick I tend to start with a downstroke. Perhaps I should start with and upstroke?

No, I was just giving an example. It doesn't matter what direction you start with when you alternate pick (although you should really practice both ways as just starting all your alternate picking runs with a down stroke is limiting). The key thing is to remember that each hammer-on/pull-off is going to replace a picked note. That way when your legato bit is done you can smoothly return to playing your picked notes . . .

[jalguitarman]

Re: About Legato technique.

No, I was just giving an example. It doesn't matter what direction you start with when you alternate pick (although you should really practice both ways as just starting all your alternate picking runs with a down stroke is limiting). The key thing is to remember that each hammer-on/pull-off is going to replace a picked note. That way when your legato bit is done you can smoothly return to playing your picked notes . . .

That makes sense. In all actuality the while the way you stated in your previous answer feels a bit awkward I could see where it would be easier to time the pick strokes when descending more accuratly that way.

See the way I am playing the run right now is down - hammer, down hammer ect then when I descend it's up - pull, up - pull ect. Which once I start pushing the speed the descending part gets hard to play accuratly. Thanks for your advice.