Fingerstyle speed

[Ross]

I use 3 fingers to achieve this.
It kind of came naturally to me, don't think about it too much, and use your fingers like they were paintbrushes.

I find using the pinky impractical as it is significantly shorter than the other fingers and to do so you would have to put your hand in an awkward position, wheras the first 3 are similar in length.

[Lfalex v1.1]

Not being overly familiar with Dragonforce, Nile etc., the question begs;

Did the bassists in question use their fingers originally, or were they using a plectrum (presumably striking up/down alternately)

As previously mentioned, there are many dynamic aspects to composition, loud/soft, FX/No FX, chord/key changes/Modality etc. etc. and [b]Fast/Slow[/b] an oft-overlooked tool.

It's all about dynamic contrast. There is no "fast" without a "slow" with which to compare it.

[dmccombe7]

[quote name='urb' post='1251427' date='May 31 2011, 01:21 PM']+1 to those saying play lighter - lower your action (not too low mind) and turn the volume of the bass up - I use 4 fingers for playing fast 16ths (there's a fairly ancient vid on how to do that I made [url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-PigAe4VIMI"]here[/url] - I have to admit playing it with two fingers is a hell of a lot of effort and very hard to do accurately. The 4 fniger style is tough too but it's about economy of motion - either way let your technique develop over time - it takes a long time to build up the muscle memory and stamina to do this stuff effortlessly - and that's the goal, not to have to force it - and like other have said - make it musical!

Good luck, practice regularly and be patient

Mike[/quote]

I've been watching some of your vids on youtube and had no idea it was all the same person.
Incredible playing and great learning technique on the vid.

I've picked up a lot from these so many thanks.

Cheers
Dave

[dc2009]

[quote name='Lfalex v1.1' post='1251958' date='May 31 2011, 07:55 PM']Not being overly familiar with Dragonforce, Nile etc., the question begs;

Did the bassists in question use their fingers originally, or were they using a plectrum (presumably striking up/down alternately)

As previously mentioned, there are many dynamic aspects to composition, loud/soft, FX/No FX, chord/key changes/Modality etc. etc. and [b]Fast/Slow[/b] an oft-overlooked tool.

It's all about dynamic contrast. There is no "fast" without a "slow" with which to compare it.[/quote]

The ex-nile bassist, who i think has been replaced by a session player, looks like a natural fingers player (check out the execration text video for some mad skills)

The old dragonforce bass player, adrian, was a fingers player, think he also taught/teaches bass for a living so is probably technically quite good
fred, the new guy, seems like a guitarist that can also muck along on a bass, he alternate picks, though quite often I think the bass gets away with playing 8ths when the guitars are on 16ths, especially live.