Bokyung Byun - Ask me Anything about Guitar Technique!

Ron 

Daniel Hi Daniel! It's always such a pain when we have to change a playing position, but I think in this case it will be totally worth it to make the switch. The reason why people are staying away from the Segovia-style right hand position these days is because it can cause pain in the right hand. The idea is to keep the wrist at a neutral position (straight) so that there wouldn't be any tension built up. Whenever I have to make a dramatic change like this, I start with a completely new piece. With a new piece, you won't have any old habits built up from previous practices, so you just have to make sure to watch out for the right hand position at all times. Before you know it, by the time you are done with the piece, the new position will have become your second nature! I hope this helps! ☺️

Bo Byun Thanks! That gives me encouragement and some ideas for how to get there. Will try.

CARLOS GUTIERREZ Hi Carlos! Would you mind sharing what kind of pieces you are currently working on so that I can give you a better recommendation on the method books? My guitar is made by Dieter Mueller in 2019, and I was born in 1994. 😄

Oscar Leonardo Molina Sierra Hi Oscar! I really wish I could give you a great answer to this, but unfortunately, I don't have a lot of experience on plucked instruments with courses. I'm going to summon martin here so that he can bring an early music expert for this Q&A in the future! 😊

Barney 

Bo Byun Thanks very much for your reply about scales.  One point you did not respond to was keeping noise to a minimum while playing ascending or descending fast scales.  How do you eliminate noise from the string changes, and form unwanted resonances while executing the runs?  Do you make your right hand thumb follow to mute the previous string, for example, on ascending scales? and what about muting on the descending ones when the passage is very fast?

Bo Byun Sorry Bo. I did not see your response to this part of my questions:

Best way to practice Scales it as part of daily warmup or technique routine.  Thanks again!

Best regards, Barney

Barney I think it depends. Usually a scale passage is fast enough that the resonance doesn't bother me. It all depends on the context but one way to eliminate resonance is to use rest stroke for scales as it will naturally mute the previous strings. Best way to practice scales is as I mentioned in the video. Take out the scale passage and turn it into an exercise that you can practice part of your warm up.

Bo Byun Thanks again, Bo!  I really appreciate and value your advice!

rhettcollier Hi there! This happens to me from time to time. Although my pain doesn't usually last for any longer than 10 days, I was very worried that the pain kept on reoccurring so I went to see a doctor. It turned out it was a nerve-related pain. I was told to take a lot of water and do stretching exercises. Here is an exercise that I personally like: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l1Qr3m_Qk-g&list=WL&index=7&ab_channel=%EB%8B%A5%ED%84%B0%EC%A7%80%EB%85%B8%EC%9D%98%EB%B3%91%EC%9B%90%ED%83%88%EC%B6%9Cwith%EA%B8%B0%EB%8A%A5%EC%9D%98%ED%95%99 (it's in Korean btw, but you can follow his motions. The exercise starts at 2:32). I hope this helps!

Bo Byun 

THANK YOU SO MUCH!  FIRST, I WILL increase my water intake (does a body good) and focus more of my stretching exercises in the hands and arm areas.  And thanks for the heads-up on the Video.  I will definitely view the video.   The link works!

I've just come too far in playing guitar to allow this to prevent me from  continuing.  AGAIN THANKS SO MUCH!

Rhett