pinky under fire

[dacks]

hey you guys.. had a real quick question...

so.. I'm a HUGE fan of Petrucci (number one favorite), Vai, Satriani, Malmsteen, Gilbert.. all of those guys REALLY into the whole "let's play it faster" mentality... (well sort of)... but.. two of my favorites would have to be Petrucci and Gilbert... by now you're probably thinking "what does that have to do with his pinky?".. easy..
I've taken on Petrucci's picking style (as in.. anchor the pinky.. tighten the thumb knuckle.. loose wrist) kind of thing.. but one thing I noticed is that.. when I play like that.. after a few minutes of playing some faster stuff.. my pinky on my right hand ACHES from being moved on the pickguard so much... during that case.. I'll switch to the gilbert style.. but can't play as fast... so.. my question REALLY is.. what can I do.. with my current picking style.. that would allow me to play both FAST... AND not cause pain in my picking hand pinky... if you have ANY ideas on this.. or on what I can DO with that little thing (being the pinky that is).. just let me know.

[rmuscat]

playing fast is wicked coz you're putting your muscles under tension to gain tight control which is not suggested!

That said - you can still pick fast without pressing harder against your guitar or putting your right hand under tension. So pick fast, practice control and monitor tension. The real tough part in picking is synchronisation and control, not speed, that is a side effect of these two, not the goal.

Sometimes i note that when my right hand is tired i naturally have to keep it relaxed so i try use that state of mind when i am picking with a fresh right hand.

well IMO at least - did that make any sense?

[dacks]

that would make sense considering that when I'm playing, my goal is for SPEED, when it really should be on accuracy and control. I mean, don't get me wrong, I'd LOVE to be able to do some of the runs that Petrucci does, and have the accuracy and dexterity that so many other players have, but what you have brought up is a good point; I think I need to concentrate (when I play) on maintaining consistency and not putting pressure on my right hand (too much anyways), that way I can work it up, so that when I DO play those lightning fast chops it won't end up with my pinky in agonizing pain. Thanks for the help. Any other comments/suggestions/questions feel free to post (considering that's your god given right on this forum).