Practicing Legato, Any thoughts on doing this effectively? Options

[djohnneay]

Hey guys!

I lately noticed that my legato playing is way below what I want it to be. I always thought that I could use picking instead of legato, and that this would/could be a trademark of my own style. However, there are situations in which I can't pick every note, like tapping.
Recently when doing some kind of these licks, I discovered that :

- My pinky is very, very weak for legato (it is nearly impossible to get any sound at all)
- Muting is hard while tapping (for normal legato muting I use picking hand)
- Ring and pinky finger are almost inseparable (they move simultaneously almost all the time).

Basically, hammer-on-pull-offs between index-, middle- and ring finger is all i can do.
Some while ago I saw a video of a guy playing legato and not picking AT ALL. On the long run, should I be able to do this ?
The ring finger and pinky are almost inseparable, how should I approach this ?
And finally, to get ANY strength out of my pinky, I am forcing my other fingers.
Should the strength come from the finger alone, or am I allowed to do this ?
Or does it pass with time ?

Reading all this, where should I begin ? Perhaps some lesson advice? It's just so frustrating!
I can pick almost anything I need to, but as soon as I need to play legato, I feel so incompetent!
Will it take as long as it did with AP to get to the same level?
Would I have to go through the same process, but with a different technique this time?

I hope you guys can help me, as I'm really struggling!

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[Damir Puh]

Thank you

I notice, as I mentioned earlier, that I am forcing my other fingers doing this with the pinky. Is this wrong?
My middle finger tends to "lean backwards". It does this automatically, but only when using the pinky.
It is also like this with AP, do I need to change this ?

To be honest, I never analyzed this in my playing. One theory is that you should play with your fingers hovering over the fretboard as close as possible, the other is to try and find a comfortable position that works for you. My advice is - combine the two. Find a posture that is comfortable, then try to correct it bit by bit so you don't "waste" your finger motions. If your playing improves, you are on the right track.

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