To Much Pickangle, Help? Options

[jstcrsn]

over the last couple of years i've been trying to figure out why i can not play alt picking . my original guitar teacher did not realize that i was not alt picking but rather down up down change strings down up down etc. I developed to much pick angle ,so that when i alt. pick correctly , i get to the point where i am playing outside the strings on string changes , the pick plucks the string so hard it either plays it to loud , i miss the string completely or i play the note off time . no matter what happens i am not playing very fast . Have i been playing with bad habits for so long that i will never be able to alt pick? been playing 20 years , can play live solos like crazytrain, symphony of destruction,perfectly but these solos don't have alt picking played outside the strings and it get frustrating seeing someone who's been playing 2 years do something i can mentally see and hear but can't get my fingers out of there bad habits. When i practice with correct pick angle i can not play faster then 120 notes per minute without loosing the pick. tried practicing with pinky down , pinky not touching guitar ,with metronome, will someone please shoot me! orrrrr tell me how to get over this hump

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[Pedja Simovic]

I agree with Muris here.

Picking angle is changed mostly to determine some sort of special effect in sound. Whether its pinched harmonic, warmer or sharped sound, it all depends where you play and how you hold the pick.
Remember also that sound that you produce is also in left hand. Think about how hard or soft you are pressing the string, what finger you are using etc. All this determines the sound that you get.
Don't even get me started on picks ! Playing the same passage on the same place with different pick gives you different sound !

What I am trying to say is, don't feel discouraged at all. I have seen many students that hold pick in a very weird way (in my opinion) but since they were practicing that way for long time, it became normal to them. I would never be able to pick that way , it would take me ages to do it , as it would take them the same to relearn my way of holding pick !

Things aren't bad as you think just focus on the sound itself and expression, picking is just a tool that lets you express yourself. If you are unhappy with your sound, change it, if on the other side you are happy with your sound - stick to it - no matter what others might tell you.

Best of luck

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