Always preferred the sound of flesh over nail - beautiful! A quote from Vahdah Olcott-Bickford courtesy of Rob Mackillops excellent website - "nails do not make it louder, only tinnier, and more metallic sounding. Magnum est veritas et prevailabit: 'The purer the tone, the better it carries'.”
i find the rasp of the triplet with the ring to index finger throw with nails really give a great contrast too, can't really do that one without nails at any level of speed, but there's plenty ways to "sweep" them with flesh. on nylon and lower string tension allowing for it, you can one finger the quick stuff on index finger flesh quite easily, then move up to index/middle and thumb alternation on flesh for more power to then east the listener into, nail throws for even more brightness with very staccato start and stop playing, i like building up the tension with velocity that way a lot i do think flesh sounds richer too, but it does sacrifice speed a bit as you kind of have to prime and pre-tension your strings before you release them to get that proper resonance, not to the point it does not intuituively feel like a single action, it just takes longer to prime the only way i can smoothly transition from thumb hopping a 2-string pattern bass part, then joining in 3 other strings with 2 fingers in between seamlessly, is by clawing those 2 outside fingers around those starting strings long before or iw ouldnt'be able to find them in time and not get inbetween nicely , so sually it works out fine one the complex strumming patters you already claw your fingers around to "hold" their position anyway :D
I think you’re doing a great service posting this series and letting us follow your journey. While the instructors where I’m studying are supportive of no-nails playing, they’ve all committed to playing with nails and are simply not equipped to help those who want to go without. Which is one of the issues you mentioned- whether nails or no-nails, you pretty much have to commit to it. Rather than the lack of no-nails guitar heroes, I’d guess it’s the lack of instruction, guidance, technical how-to etc that might discourage us “foolish amateurs” from taking the no-nails journey.
Awesome analysis, Jared. I've been playing without nails for years, it's the only way I've played! (I'm self taught). I never had any problems getting different tones, or volume. The few "lessons" I took were a disaster, because the guy couldn't comprehend how I got such good sound when I was doing everything so wrong! I finally just had to ditch him, because we just weren't getting anywhere. Yeah, I could dig in when I wanted, snap the strings to get a "sassy" or sarcastic feel when I wanted. I had complete control over the notes. And yes, I can roll those chords just fine! Now that I'm playing again (had nerve damage to get past), I've picked it back up. Thank you for the validation! 👍
After 3 years, I am still at a loss as to the snobbery and "this is not how it's done" attitude. Yes, there are some things that must be performed a particular way, but humans are SO closed minded! Ugghhh!!!!! I get so angry!!!
Hey man, just letting you know I am in the process of learning no-nail on my new classical guitar, though I have been playing guitar (mostly electric) for about 20 years so I never learned nail playing to begin with. This series has helped a lot. The biggest difference for me was detuning a half step. I was immediately able to get more consistent loudness with the trebles, and it's just overall easier to play now. Thank you.
3:01 I feel pretty validated as a folk musician who plays finger style without nails. I’ve had my hand angle questioned a lot and under the strings just helps the muting a ton as well
Thank you for making this series’s. I have a severe nail filing habit (previously nail biting) that is a result of OCD. At 32 I’m finally looking into treatment options but the fact is that’s a very long and complex path to go down and I currently have no nails and am getting back into guitar after a 14 year hiatus. When I used to play guitar I played rock and metal but always with a pick although this time I’ve decided I want to go for nylon string tones and learn more fingerpicking type stuff. When I started looking into these techniques I was initially worried that I was going to be incapable of playing these styles without nails. Watching this series has been very reassuring that I have options available regardless of my lack of nails.
Welcome back to guitar, Scott! So glad to have you with us :) And I'm really glad to hear that this series has opened up options for you. I'm sure you'll be great no nails. I'm loving it. Best of luck! :)
Really enjoyed this series. I, too, like to play different styles - and do yard work...nails were a pain to keep...I had seen Brandon Acker's video on this topic and came across your series. So glad to hear I can cut them off for good. I was always self-conscious about my nails in public. Thanks for the instruction! Now back to practice~
Cheers, thanks for watching! I'll have more coming the future. I've come a long way in my no-nails playing since this video even so I'm excited to share more.
No nails im discovering is extremely under-rated. It's harder to play in many ways, but the sound is really nice in a lot of ways. Nails has a very obnoxious sound to me a lot of the time. I feel like many guitar players took a shortcut by playing with nails, and by making that the culture. It hurt the classical guitar genre.
I’m glad you like the sound of it! I totally agree and prefer the no nails sound now when done well. It’s so warm and round and smooth. Thanks for sharing your thoughts, cheers -Jared
That is why Tarrega cut off his nails in the first place, he also told his students to do the same ( Fortea, Pujol, Llobet, Roch) and they did without questions.
I can't play with nails. They always stuck in strings even short ones or else I get super flat tone. Started to learn guitar 4 month ago and opted to start without nails. Now I'm trying to experiment and struggling. Lol
These videos are great, I hope they help more guitarists discover their way, be it with or without nails..! It's lovely to see and hear your discoveries and progress as you explore this technique. For me the trick with nonail plucking is not necessarily to pluck from under the string, but to have a stroke that is as perpendicular to the soundboard as possible, whether that means apoyando, pushing into the string, or plucking from underneath.
Hit the calluses with brush stroke of 60 grit sandpaper in a cross hatch pattern to keep them soft and grippy. I learned this from softening a billiard cue tip.
Great video, thanks! I also play many different genres and styles. I did play classical guitar for about a decade when I was younger but frankly never liked the sound of nails. Even today, there's only about a handful (pun intended) of guitarists who, for me, sound great with nails. But by and large, I would say that playing without nails adds a more visceral immediacy to the sound that is lacking with nails. In other genres of guitar playing, I think this is also true: there are a number of players who really get a great sound with a plectrum, but many don't, or they can only get one sound with very little tonal range. And by the way, I do use a plectrum when I play in, say, jazz, fusion, or rock styles, but nowadays I do also favour a 'hybrid' pick-and-fingers approach to playing, though my choice of doing so is always for sonic, rather than technical, reasons. Anyway, I do really like the sound you're getting here. I realise this video is from a year ago, so I imagine it's also evolved considerably. All the best, cheers!
Dear Jared, I thank you for posting this video about No-nail playing. I just wanted to say that the right hand position can also be the same as Segovia, which means attacking the strings with the left side of the fingertip. I see you playing attacking the string with the right angle of the fingertip, while it can produce a warmer tone it has some disadvantages such as the loss of stability in the arpeggio and in running scales. The hand like Segovia, Ghiglia is the same that Tarrega used, and his pupils such as Llobet and Pujol. Pujol in escuela razonada de la guitarra explains why he played with the Tarrega hand and he even says that he played without nails. So there is no need to keep the hand like a lutist would, on the contrary it can be said that what matters is sound and if your hand gives a better tone than that is the best way to attack the string. I wish you the best on your journey.
I play primarily bass guitar, and recently picked up a classical guitar. I kinda went into it with the thought, well, I need short nails for the bass guitar, so no mater what I'm gonna have to go no nails on classical. Saw a lot of hate online about it, but I was like, eh, I'm gonna do it anyway. It's been good to see someone out there that's not a noob trying it as well, and as a new classical guitar player, the tips have been nice.
Jared, thanks for this lesson. I’m going to try changing my picking angle as you suggested, it sounds rich and full when you play. I’m pleased you played Milonga, that’s piece I had down once upon a time and I’d like to pick it up again. I’m also going to try down-tuning as you suggest. Just listening to you playing, I couldn’t (except maybe for Recuerdos) pick it up until you mentioned it. I have arthritis and it makes big chords murder, I think that this may be a great solution for me. 🤗
I've been playing guitar for a year now and from the get-go, I learnt to play without long nails because I never liked them and always kept them short. My first teacher assumed that I'd grow them over time... so did the second... ain't happening. Good video but I am dubious about a few things: 1. How do you manage with a contorted arm? You produce the sound by vibrating the string, that's correct, but you achieve that same effect by gliding your finger along the string instead of hooking and plucking. The results are good quality sound and a straight, relaxed wrist with fingers over the strings without applying some weird angles or trying to pluck from the bottom. And no, even with nails you don't strum perpendicular to the strings but under the angle to improve the sound quality. 2. I like Rob but as far as I remember he wasn't much of a guitarist in the past but a lute player so I assume that retuning the guitar is some sort of adaptation to make it closer to the experience of playing the lute. But I also didn't know that there are weird and special ways of playing without nails. I use high-tension strings in standard tuning and I'm still waiting for those callouses on the right hand... What the hell? 3. You don't plant more or obsess over planting just because you don't use nails. You adapt the stroke to the piece and phrasing. 4. Inability to strum all notes in the chord in sync is just a lack of skill. I bet it's easier to do it with nails because you compensate for different finger lengths with nails, while without nails you need to plant the fingers equally on the strings. Chopping nails off most likely exposes poor technique here that has been all along. It also helps if you don't apply some weird angles. Regardless, having had a great experience with no-nails playing (including teachers and examiners complimenting the sound quality) I'm not growing them. Some say that you get a louder sound with nails with chis actually a bull... as this is due to the technique, not nails; in fact, with nails, you get a loud twang and thin sound, not to mention occasional scrape barely a trade-off. It'd be great though to see more teachers actually take time to learn to play without nails so they can support a wider range of students instead of insisting on growing nails but that's a totally different topic. :) Thanks for sharing your experience, much appreciated.
My pinky bone is so much sharper than my other fingers that I can use it on the high strings to help with voice separation. Its worth trying out rectified strings, they can give your fingers a lot of grip.
Wow cool! I've been experimenting with using the pinky as well. Glad that's working for you! Also, thanks for the recommendation. I've never tried rectified strings before, I'll give it a shot. Cheers, -Jared
Thanks again for your videos, I started to cut my nails smaller and smaller, it allows tapping, and as you demonstrated add new color to the tone. I would have to rewatch this video multiple times to fix my position issues.
This decision has been such a struggle. I've committed to no nails playing, coming back to guitar after a lenghty hiatus. Having to maintain nails makes playing seem almost conditional on making sure one's nails are in excellent condition. One of the biggest challenges (for me) with no nails is avoiding that thumping sound on string attack. So working on planting is critical. It helped to.work through Guiliani's right hand exercises. As well, it's okay to shift the angle of the guitar a bit to get the correct attack, versus having to bend the wrist in what might feel like an unnatural position. A spruce top guitar also seems to add more definition when playing no nails. I have a Jose Ramirez 4NE in cedar and it can sound a little boxy with no nails. But, I'm still.experimenting with string choice and tension. With too low of tension, I feel like I'm losing tone around the mid register on the G string. As far as maintnance of the finger tips, Nivea makes these cool little one ounce tins that can be throw in a guitar case and it's great stuff for keeping finger tips soft. Well, a Hermanos Camps CL-18 in spruce is arriving today. We'll see how it goes. Rob MacKillop's "Sound of Bells" by Pernambuco was on a Camps and it sounds wonderful. Thank you for making this video!
I've switched between nails and no nails for a few years. No nails tremolo and the fast p.i.m.a.m.i arpeggio (think Giuliani's harp study) has proven to be extremely difficult for me. Given more time I think I will get it. I practice the tremolo p i m a and p a m i with the former feeling very awkward but it's improving. I think it has the potential to be slightly louder - in my case. Fast scales also seem to be easier to do with 3 fingers rather than i m. I use modern technique for fast scales and tremolo. For slower pieces I play from under the string, sometimes the pinky touches the soundboard. It doesn't surprise me that you switch your hand position for tremolo.
If you read El dilemma del sonido de la guitarra by Emilio pujol he explains that tremolo should not be played as a machine gun ( like many nail players do ) but as an ethereal voice in the background
This is very helpful. I’m a fingerstyle folk guitarist, but I practice some classical etudes and the Carcassi book to practice reading. Usually I’m playing 12-string or steel-string 6. I don’t keep long nails and I recently acquired a nylon-string guitar and I’m trying to optimize my tone. I will try the change of hand position to see how it works for me.
At your level and breadth of playing I can't imagining every having to justify nails or not. Nails are such a pain to maintain, and not practical for normal life activities. I have short nails as a compromise (for other styles of music) which allows for a little more firmness in the fingertip without a nail pluck. Who cares what "they" say at this point, we aren't living in the 1800s anymore. Rock on Jared!
Yes, dig in! Love it. Here are some ideas, I am unsure if they are classical though, I am self taught: I can do tremolo down-stroke up-stroke with any one individual finger except for pinky, alone or combinations. I can even play with nails, playing with back sides of my fingers. Still further, if you hit strings with hard skin at the base of your nail as well as portion of your nail you can play artificial harmonics with one finger. And you can take it further still and play with your knuckles as if they were picks. Which is awesome.
Wonderful video! Thank you for this. Side note: After decades of picking, I started to Travis pick on a steel string about 5 years ago. I play an hour or so every day, and my plucking fingertips have yet to develop any noticable calluses.
For me, tremolo is only achievable with a good tone and the right angle of attack is if i use p m i m (i think this is how Anna Vidovic does her tremolo). It took a while to lose the old muscle memory and it still feels slightly awkward on the b string but time will tell i suppose. love the video :)
My classical guitar teacher started me out on a steel string acoustic (because that was what I owned) and it allowed for more genres, while learning basic classical techniques. Obviously, one would switch to a classical later as I did.
Really enjoyed the series. I cannot grow nails on my right hand(no prob on the left! go figure!), and this helps, if only to keep my confidence up. Incidentally, I am not playing a guitar. I am playing a baritone body/tenor neck Uke, which is more like a four string renaissance guitar.
Without the nails, the lower frequencies come through by shear force it takes to play any note. Try playing at a lower volume without nails. You'll hear how it would be better with some nails to get the higher frequencies ring out. I hear more harmonics with nails.
Hi, self taught player here. I've tried the standard tremolo, PAMI, and just have a really hard time with it, especially when on the B or G strings. I seam to have an easier time doing it PIMI, like Ana Vidovic does. Would like your opinion on that technique. Thankyou. Awesome video btw
That should be the only way to go for classic guitar. I also play without nail and I can't handle any more the sound with nails when I hear other guitar players.
Great. How you deal with resting the fingers on the strings? Cause without nails my fingers slip below the string an mute other stings below. With classic guitar is not a problem but with steel acoustic/ electric it is.
I watched the whole series. Very imformative. Thank you! I only play with my fingertips, for 25 years already. I have only used a spruce top guitar and I'm wondering if a cedar top would sound better with fingertops? You have any insights on this? Or any other insights on the 'perfect' guitar for fingertop playing?
Thanks, Mark! In my opinion there's not a perfect guitar for the technique but any decent guitar will do. I'm positive others would have very different opinions though.
I have been playing classical guitar for more than three decades and fingernails has been my obsession. great video but playing without nails is not for everyone. I found the length of the fingers and plays a great role in your choice. that's being said, when you play without nails you shouldn't change the angle of your wrist because your trimmed fingernail still has to hit the string. Don't forget the main reason for this is bcz it helps player to increase speed.
Great video, much appreciated! I never played with nails but from what I have seen it seems to me that a nail player does not need to "dive as deep" into the strings to properly pluck them, and touches them with a harder material, both of which to me suggests that playing with nails would allow for more speed and accuracy. Obviously, if playing steel string guitar, harder picks allow for much more precision and speed then do soft picks. I noticed that I often dive as deep as to make contact with the string on my finger tip at the height where the "front arch" of my nail ends and the "side edge" (for lack of better words) begins. Since you have played with nails before, would you say that playing without nails allows for the same speed and accuracy as does playing with nails, or is there any difference?
Jared. It seems to me that there is an advantage in dynamics here.without nails. As Segovia correctly pointed out, volume can't be achieved playing canonical RH position without nails...but switching between your angle position and "canonical" position may allow flexibility in volume/dynamics for certain situations. What do you think?
If nailess technique was good enough for fernando sor and Tárrega it surely is good enough for me. It changes the technique a bunch tho but once you get accustomed to it gives you SO much more feedback. Btw you can still do picado even flamenco style without nails or with very short nails
my conclusion is that tremolo without nails isn't possible as it should sound. I practiced it for weeks but the result is not what matches my expectations. A clear, even tremolo (e.g. for Morente by Vicente Amigo) simply isn't possible without nails. But I will try with Alaska Fingerpicks. Thanks for your great video presenting the Alaska fingerpicks!
You mention under the chord rolling section people Having trouble hitting the chords evenly at once with 3 fingers plus thumb, I’m curious why more people don’t use their pinky on the high e string for this. It doesn’t require much difficulty as you don’t have to train it for single note picking, just learn to throw it in on certain chords at times. I’m not really a “classical” player, but I’ve been playing guitar for about 9.5 years now and have been finger picking (without nails) almost as long. I never learned any proper technique for it, just kinda did what makes sense for the songs. I’ve been getting into more “classical” stuff lately and find the whole flesh vs nails things quite comical, as i HATE having nails when playing. It has never felt right, but that’s just my opinion lol neither is right or wrong, it’s all about the music.
Also on the note of soft fingertips, I don’t think I have calluses on my right fingers, and I almost entire finger pick. Unless I’ve had them for so long and they’re very soft calluses that I can’t tell. And this has been playing mostly on steel strings, only had a nylon string guitar for about 2 years many years ago.
I have found that use of pinky 4th finger for 1st string (e.g., G in first position) is more efficient than 3rd finger, when the 3rd finger is planted (for example) on A (1st position). This is simply a partial chord anyway, which one must learn so I just do it when the 3rd finger is tied up. Efficiency was what was hammered into me by my teacher.
definitely relate to you on not formally studying guitar and then being shocked to find that no-nails is uncommon. as soon as i got into classical guitar (simply because i prefer the sound of nylon strings so strongly), i started clipping my nails way more often because the tone produced by nails is much worse and kills off the most beautiful tonal qualities of these guitars.... having gone to conservatory for a different instrument, I would guess that no-nails is uncommon for comformity and tradition reasons rather than sonic reasons... and the fact that technique is now often emphasised more than originality and musicality (on average), and nails do probably allow for more consistent technique, despite limiting the potential variety in tone-colour. good luck in your playing.
How often do you have to cut your nails so they don't get in the way? Also it's not fully clear to me how your finger hits the string. What part of the fingertip is in contact with the string, where does it move the string and what does the release look like? Thanks for the video! Tough to find in-depth information on no-nail playing.
Totally! My strings in this video are medium tension, whereas I played with high tension for years. If staying in standard tuning I think going with light strings should help for sure.
Thanks so much for this series. I’ve found it very encouraging. I find that I have to file down to the nail bed, and still have a nail hit the string occasionally. So I find I have go below the string a tad and and pull up, without actually plucking or moving the hand away from the top. I can get very lovely sound doing this. I’m new to this, but I’m finding if I combine the aforementioned technique with a rest stroke, it’ll get me where I want to go. Also if I apply the same technique playing chords of bring the pads just below the string a tad I can generate good volume. For me if I just go across the string my nails still hit the string, no mater how short. Really appreciate the effort, and the interview with Rob.
Jared, is it possible to smoothly transition to perform a proper fan strum (forward and backward) using your different "side" hand orientation? Also, it seems that palm muting is easiermwirh your hand orientation (?).
In regards to planting: What if you are playing something like Avalanche by Leonard Cohen. All of the notes are really supposed to ring out. Is there a way to play stuff like that with more control? Great video btw!
I studied viola at conservatory... randomly bought a classical guitar from a friend because i fell in love with the sound, especially the nylon strings. i think the beauty in nylon classical guitars is in the sweetness and sustain of the tone, especially with low tension strings.... and the variety in timbre you can get based on which angle you hit the string with and the distance from the bridge (something you learn while playing viola is that closer to the bridge is mostly harmonic content, and the further towards the fingerboard, it becomes pure fundamental). after kinda developing my own guitar technique, i started reading and found that no-nails is uncommon. that makes no sense to me. ive been obsessively cutting my nails since i first became interested in this guitar. the tacky, transient-heavy tone from nails takes away from the humanity of a classical guitar tone. I don't even play classical music on it though, just prefer the sound to steel string... so maybe im missing something.
i will admit it took me time to get a handle on how to produce a brighter sound without nails, which is necessary sometimes. also, how moisturised your hands are makes a difference.
ok, that was interresting, you're a good teacher. and i just noticed this is part the fourth, so im excited to check the other three. the one difference, and perhaps this is something i'll need to change later on, but I position my right hand with my fingers almost parallel to the strings, and the flat of my hand at almost a 45 degree angle against the guitar top (where the wrist meets the base of the thumb is ~ above where the D string meets the bridge), with my anchor being either the pinkie or the pinkie-side of my palm. So I can only use my thumb, index, and sometimes middle finger depending on the given passage, but i can pluck in both directions with both the thumb and index finger. Because of how I'm anchoring my hand, I can arpeggiate chords with the thumb easily, using very little force or dexterity (or index finger if i am arpeggiating downward). So that's the technique i arrived at through experimentation. also worth noting i have long and unusually slender fingers, so maybe that's why i can make this odd setup sound pleasant.
You ain't wrong, nails are common only due to some stupid tradition that began last century. Sor (the father of classical guitar) didn"t like nail playing and lots of brazilian bossa nova and mpb composers played on a nylon guitar without nails too, wonderfully.
After decades of struggling with my nails, I really want to like no nail playing; however, I have observed while playing w/o any nails, the tone may be more appealing to the player (behind the guitar) than to the listeners (in front of the guitar). To the player, it is warm, sweet, percussive. To the listeners, it sounds muddy. If only there were a way to produce more clarity with the no-nail technique ! Perhaps we could achieve this by playing on the edge of very short nails ? Or, by using spruce tops instead of cedar ? Or some other witchery ? I really want to ditch my nails, but truth be told, I just want to possess a better set of fingernails (mine really are irredeemable). And IMAO, nail substitutes have always sounded terrible ...
I started playing with my fingers on steel string, and some of this I just kind of intuited now that I'm doing some classical guitar. I wasn't gonna grow nails just for it, I'm not a professional or a performer, you know? Lol
Excellent series. As well as the more intimate and subtle tone produced there are so many advantages to playing without nails and these days with modern amplification volume is less of an issue when performing at eg. weddings etc.. I think the technique is most effective with slower music. I have followed Rob Mackillop for a number of years, a great musician and human being. Virginia Luque is also a great no nails player although it appears she retains the thumbnail. I think a lot to be said for playing with a thumb pick and no nails . I made a vid on how to damp the thumb pick with soft foam nose pads used for spectacles! here : th-cam.com/video/ZALlDqy_vC8/w-d-xo.html
After being dependent on a pick for three decades this transition to fingers is humbling. No way on nails I think it is gross and not practical for someone doing manual labor for a living
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Always preferred the sound of flesh over nail - beautiful! A quote from Vahdah Olcott-Bickford courtesy of Rob Mackillops excellent website - "nails do not make it louder, only tinnier, and more metallic sounding. Magnum est veritas et prevailabit: 'The purer the tone, the better it carries'.”
i find the rasp of the triplet with the ring to index finger throw with nails really give a great contrast too, can't really do that one without nails at any level of speed, but there's plenty ways to "sweep" them with flesh.
on nylon and lower string tension allowing for it, you can one finger the quick stuff on index finger flesh quite easily, then move up to index/middle and thumb alternation on flesh for more power to then east the listener into, nail throws for even more brightness with very staccato start and stop playing, i like building up the tension with velocity that way a lot
i do think flesh sounds richer too, but it does sacrifice speed a bit as you kind of have to prime and pre-tension your strings before you release them to get that proper resonance,
not to the point it does not intuituively feel like a single action, it just takes longer to prime
the only way i can smoothly transition from thumb hopping a 2-string pattern bass part, then joining in 3 other strings with 2 fingers in between seamlessly, is by clawing those 2 outside fingers around those starting strings long before or iw ouldnt'be able to find them in time and not get inbetween nicely , so sually it works out fine one the complex strumming patters you already claw your fingers around to "hold" their position anyway :D
Thanks!
Thanks so much! :) 🙏
I think you’re doing a great service posting this series and letting us follow your journey. While the instructors where I’m studying are supportive of no-nails playing, they’ve all committed to playing with nails and are simply not equipped to help those who want to go without. Which is one of the issues you mentioned- whether nails or no-nails, you pretty much have to commit to it. Rather than the lack of no-nails guitar heroes, I’d guess it’s the lack of instruction, guidance, technical how-to etc that might discourage us “foolish amateurs” from taking the no-nails journey.
Awesome analysis, Jared. I've been playing without nails for years, it's the only way I've played! (I'm self taught). I never had any problems getting different tones, or volume. The few "lessons" I took were a disaster, because the guy couldn't comprehend how I got such good sound when I was doing everything so wrong!
I finally just had to ditch him, because we just weren't getting anywhere.
Yeah, I could dig in when I wanted, snap the strings to get a "sassy" or sarcastic feel when I wanted. I had complete control over the notes.
And yes, I can roll those chords just fine!
Now that I'm playing again (had nerve damage to get past), I've picked it back up.
Thank you for the validation! 👍
After 3 years, I am still at a loss as to the snobbery and "this is not how it's done" attitude. Yes, there are some things that must be performed a particular way, but humans are SO closed minded! Ugghhh!!!!! I get so angry!!!
Glad to find your video. I just cut my sad nails off in frustration. Looking forward to trying these ideas.
Hey man, just letting you know I am in the process of learning no-nail on my new classical guitar, though I have been playing guitar (mostly electric) for about 20 years so I never learned nail playing to begin with. This series has helped a lot. The biggest difference for me was detuning a half step. I was immediately able to get more consistent loudness with the trebles, and it's just overall easier to play now. Thank you.
What happens when you play with other guitarists/musicians though? Or are you just using a capo on the first fret in that case?
3:01 I feel pretty validated as a folk musician who plays finger style without nails. I’ve had my hand angle questioned a lot and under the strings just helps the muting a ton as well
Thank you for making this series’s. I have a severe nail filing habit (previously nail biting) that is a result of OCD. At 32 I’m finally looking into treatment options but the fact is that’s a very long and complex path to go down and I currently have no nails and am getting back into guitar after a 14 year hiatus.
When I used to play guitar I played rock and metal but always with a pick although this time I’ve decided I want to go for nylon string tones and learn more fingerpicking type stuff. When I started looking into these techniques I was initially worried that I was going to be incapable of playing these styles without nails. Watching this series has been very reassuring that I have options available regardless of my lack of nails.
Welcome back to guitar, Scott! So glad to have you with us :) And I'm really glad to hear that this series has opened up options for you. I'm sure you'll be great no nails. I'm loving it. Best of luck! :)
Really enjoyed this series. I, too, like to play different styles - and do yard work...nails were a pain to keep...I had seen Brandon Acker's video on this topic and came across your series. So glad to hear I can cut them off for good. I was always self-conscious about my nails in public. Thanks for the instruction! Now back to practice~
Cheers, thanks for watching! I'll have more coming the future. I've come a long way in my no-nails playing since this video even so I'm excited to share more.
No nails im discovering is extremely under-rated. It's harder to play in many ways, but the sound is really nice in a lot of ways. Nails has a very obnoxious sound to me a lot of the time. I feel like many guitar players took a shortcut by playing with nails, and by making that the culture. It hurt the classical guitar genre.
I’m glad you like the sound of it! I totally agree and prefer the no nails sound now when done well. It’s so warm and round and smooth. Thanks for sharing your thoughts, cheers -Jared
That is why Tarrega cut off his nails in the first place, he also told his students to do the same ( Fortea, Pujol, Llobet, Roch) and they did without questions.
I can't play with nails. They always stuck in strings even short ones or else I get super flat tone. Started to learn guitar 4 month ago and opted to start without nails. Now I'm trying to experiment and struggling. Lol
These videos are great, I hope they help more guitarists discover their way, be it with or without nails..! It's lovely to see and hear your discoveries and progress as you explore this technique.
For me the trick with nonail plucking is not necessarily to pluck from under the string, but to have a stroke that is as perpendicular to the soundboard as possible, whether that means apoyando, pushing into the string, or plucking from underneath.
Yes, I refer to that as being out of phase. The result can be pretty much the same though.
Thanks for sharing your advice and experience here, Steven! Much appreciated - I enjoy your videos! :) -Jared
Thanks!
Wow, thanks so much, Bob! 🙏 :)
Hit the calluses with brush stroke of 60 grit sandpaper in a cross hatch pattern to keep them soft and grippy. I learned this from softening a billiard cue tip.
Great video, thanks! I also play many different genres and styles. I did play classical guitar for about a decade when I was younger but frankly never liked the sound of nails. Even today, there's only about a handful (pun intended) of guitarists who, for me, sound great with nails. But by and large, I would say that playing without nails adds a more visceral immediacy to the sound that is lacking with nails. In other genres of guitar playing, I think this is also true: there are a number of players who really get a great sound with a plectrum, but many don't, or they can only get one sound with very little tonal range. And by the way, I do use a plectrum when I play in, say, jazz, fusion, or rock styles, but nowadays I do also favour a 'hybrid' pick-and-fingers approach to playing, though my choice of doing so is always for sonic, rather than technical, reasons. Anyway, I do really like the sound you're getting here. I realise this video is from a year ago, so I imagine it's also evolved considerably. All the best, cheers!
Dear Jared, I thank you for posting this video about No-nail playing. I just wanted to say that the right hand position can also be the same as Segovia, which means attacking the strings with the left side of the fingertip. I see you playing attacking the string with the right angle of the fingertip, while it can produce a warmer tone it has some disadvantages such as the loss of stability in the arpeggio and in running scales. The hand like Segovia, Ghiglia is the same that Tarrega used, and his pupils such as Llobet and Pujol. Pujol in escuela razonada de la guitarra explains why he played with the Tarrega hand and he even says that he played without nails. So there is no need to keep the hand like a lutist would, on the contrary it can be said that what matters is sound and if your hand gives a better tone than that is the best way to attack the string. I wish you the best on your journey.
I play primarily bass guitar, and recently picked up a classical guitar. I kinda went into it with the thought, well, I need short nails for the bass guitar, so no mater what I'm gonna have to go no nails on classical. Saw a lot of hate online about it, but I was like, eh, I'm gonna do it anyway. It's been good to see someone out there that's not a noob trying it as well, and as a new classical guitar player, the tips have been nice.
Thank you! Really appreciate these suggestions.
You are so welcome! :) -Jared
Jared, thanks for this lesson. I’m going to try changing my picking angle as you suggested, it sounds rich and full when you play. I’m pleased you played Milonga, that’s piece I had down once upon a time and I’d like to pick it up again.
I’m also going to try down-tuning as you suggest. Just listening to you playing, I couldn’t (except maybe for Recuerdos) pick it up until you mentioned it. I have arthritis and it makes big chords murder, I think that this may be a great solution for me. 🤗
I've been playing guitar for a year now and from the get-go, I learnt to play without long nails because I never liked them and always kept them short. My first teacher assumed that I'd grow them over time... so did the second... ain't happening. Good video but I am dubious about a few things:
1. How do you manage with a contorted arm? You produce the sound by vibrating the string, that's correct, but you achieve that same effect by gliding your finger along the string instead of hooking and plucking. The results are good quality sound and a straight, relaxed wrist with fingers over the strings without applying some weird angles or trying to pluck from the bottom. And no, even with nails you don't strum perpendicular to the strings but under the angle to improve the sound quality.
2. I like Rob but as far as I remember he wasn't much of a guitarist in the past but a lute player so I assume that retuning the guitar is some sort of adaptation to make it closer to the experience of playing the lute. But I also didn't know that there are weird and special ways of playing without nails. I use high-tension strings in standard tuning and I'm still waiting for those callouses on the right hand... What the hell?
3. You don't plant more or obsess over planting just because you don't use nails. You adapt the stroke to the piece and phrasing.
4. Inability to strum all notes in the chord in sync is just a lack of skill. I bet it's easier to do it with nails because you compensate for different finger lengths with nails, while without nails you need to plant the fingers equally on the strings. Chopping nails off most likely exposes poor technique here that has been all along. It also helps if you don't apply some weird angles.
Regardless, having had a great experience with no-nails playing (including teachers and examiners complimenting the sound quality) I'm not growing them. Some say that you get a louder sound with nails with chis actually a bull... as this is due to the technique, not nails; in fact, with nails, you get a loud twang and thin sound, not to mention occasional scrape barely a trade-off. It'd be great though to see more teachers actually take time to learn to play without nails so they can support a wider range of students instead of insisting on growing nails but that's a totally different topic. :) Thanks for sharing your experience, much appreciated.
My pinky bone is so much sharper than my other fingers that I can use it on the high strings to help with voice separation.
Its worth trying out rectified strings, they can give your fingers a lot of grip.
Wow cool! I've been experimenting with using the pinky as well. Glad that's working for you! Also, thanks for the recommendation. I've never tried rectified strings before, I'll give it a shot. Cheers, -Jared
Very good video. Thank you!
Thanks again for your videos, I started to cut my nails smaller and smaller, it allows tapping, and as you demonstrated add new color to the tone. I would have to rewatch this video multiple times to fix my position issues.
Thanks for sharing, Vincent!
This is another reason why I don't want nails...right hand tapping!
Thank you!!!
Great video.
Also, your tone is very nice. And you are getting this wonderful string to string and note to note separation.
This decision has been such a struggle. I've committed to no nails playing, coming back to guitar after a lenghty hiatus. Having to maintain nails makes playing seem almost conditional on making sure one's nails are in excellent condition.
One of the biggest challenges (for me) with no nails is avoiding that thumping sound on string attack. So working on planting is critical. It helped to.work through Guiliani's right hand exercises. As well, it's okay to shift the angle of the guitar a bit to get the correct attack, versus having to bend the wrist in what might feel like an unnatural position.
A spruce top guitar also seems to add more definition when playing no nails. I have a Jose Ramirez 4NE in cedar and it can sound a little boxy with no nails. But, I'm still.experimenting with string choice and tension. With too low of tension, I feel like I'm losing tone around the mid register on the G string.
As far as maintnance of the finger tips, Nivea makes these cool little one ounce tins that can be throw in a guitar case and it's great stuff for keeping finger tips soft.
Well, a Hermanos Camps CL-18 in spruce is arriving today. We'll see how it goes. Rob MacKillop's "Sound of Bells" by Pernambuco was on a Camps and it sounds wonderful.
Thank you for making this video!
I've switched between nails and no nails for a few years. No nails tremolo and the fast p.i.m.a.m.i arpeggio (think Giuliani's harp study) has proven to be extremely difficult for me. Given more time I think I will get it. I practice the tremolo p i m a and p a m i with the former feeling very awkward but it's improving. I think it has the potential to be slightly louder - in my case. Fast scales also seem to be easier to do with 3 fingers rather than i m. I use modern technique for fast scales and tremolo. For slower pieces I play from under the string, sometimes the pinky touches the soundboard. It doesn't surprise me that you switch your hand position for tremolo.
Thanks so much for sharing your experience! :)
The scales happening at 3:00 sound very much like Manuel Cubedo's (another no-nails player from the past) sound to me. Very nice!
Thanks, Tate! :)
The down tuning gives such a rich bass and, to me, the softer Tremelo really evokes the sounds of the fountains of the Alhambra.
If you read El dilemma del sonido de la guitarra by Emilio pujol he explains that tremolo should not be played as a machine gun ( like many nail players do ) but as an ethereal voice in the background
This is very helpful. I’m a fingerstyle folk guitarist, but I practice some classical etudes and the Carcassi book to practice reading. Usually I’m
playing 12-string or steel-string 6. I don’t keep long nails and I recently acquired a nylon-string guitar and I’m trying to optimize my tone. I will try the change of hand position to see how it works for me.
And I think with practice, you'll get tremelo and any other technique you want! Look how well you're doing it now!
Thanks for the encouragement, Jeff!! :) That means a lot
At your level and breadth of playing I can't imagining every having to justify nails or not. Nails are such a pain to maintain, and not practical for normal life activities. I have short nails as a compromise (for other styles of music) which allows for a little more firmness in the fingertip without a nail pluck. Who cares what "they" say at this point, we aren't living in the 1800s anymore. Rock on Jared!
Thanks, Brooke! Agreed!! :)
Just do the half moon shape if u are too lazy to spend a lot of time on shaping the nails.. I do it as well
Is it possible to play piano with even short, half-moon nails? I am at a point of it's one or the other...I'm don't like that! Thank you!
Funnily, in the 1800s, no-nails was the norm (look at Sor)
Yes, dig in! Love it. Here are some ideas, I am unsure if they are classical though, I am self taught: I can do tremolo down-stroke up-stroke with any one individual finger except for pinky, alone or combinations. I can even play with nails, playing with back sides of my fingers. Still further, if you hit strings with hard skin at the base of your nail as well as portion of your nail you can play artificial harmonics with one finger. And you can take it further still and play with your knuckles as if they were picks. Which is awesome.
Thank you for this video ,i am a beginner and i can keep my nails long because my work ,this is for me the solution.
Wonderful video! Thank you for this. Side note: After decades of picking, I started to Travis pick on a steel string about 5 years ago. I play an hour or so every day, and my plucking fingertips have yet to develop any noticable calluses.
For me, tremolo is only achievable with a good tone and the right angle of attack is if i use p m i m (i think this is how Anna Vidovic does her tremolo).
It took a while to lose the old muscle memory and it still feels slightly awkward on the b string but time will tell i suppose.
love the video :)
Damn, now I want to learn classical guitar. Thanks Jared
It's a fun journey! :) Even playing with some classical music on a non-classical guitar is worth exploring IMO
My classical guitar teacher started me out on a steel string acoustic (because that was what I owned) and it allowed for more genres, while learning basic classical techniques. Obviously, one would switch to a classical later as I did.
I am really enjoying playing with no nails - for me i love the mellow tone and consistent tone - i never could get my nails 'right'
Really enjoyed the series. I cannot grow nails on my right hand(no prob on the left! go figure!), and this helps, if only to keep my confidence up. Incidentally, I am not playing a guitar. I am playing a baritone body/tenor neck Uke, which is more like a four string renaissance guitar.
I love your video! Do you know if there is a string brand or gauge which allows you to keep the standard tuning, but with less tension?
Without the nails, the lower frequencies come through by shear force it takes to play any note. Try playing at a lower volume without nails. You'll hear how it would be better with some nails to get the higher frequencies ring out. I hear more harmonics with nails.
Hi, self taught player here. I've tried the standard tremolo, PAMI, and just have a really hard time with it, especially when on the B or G strings. I seam to have an easier time doing it PIMI, like Ana Vidovic does. Would like your opinion on that technique. Thankyou. Awesome video btw
That should be the only way to go for classic guitar. I also play without nail and I can't handle any more the sound with nails when I hear other guitar players.
Great. How you deal with resting the fingers on the strings? Cause without nails my fingers slip below the string an mute other stings below. With classic guitar is not a problem but with steel acoustic/ electric it is.
Good question. I just use a slightly different angle on electric to make room. Tricky and takes precision but totally doable smoothly.
I watched the whole series. Very imformative. Thank you! I only play with my fingertips, for 25 years already. I have only used a spruce top guitar and I'm wondering if a cedar top would sound better with fingertops? You have any insights on this? Or any other insights on the 'perfect' guitar for fingertop playing?
Thanks, Mark! In my opinion there's not a perfect guitar for the technique but any decent guitar will do. I'm positive others would have very different opinions though.
I prefere a light and sensitìv guitar with lighttension strings. Spruce use to be more sensitive and has an attack
Seeing your hand position in the hand angle section reminded me of some medieval pictures of lute players. Quod gugleat...
Thanks a lot!
I have been playing classical guitar for more than three decades and fingernails has been my obsession. great video but playing without nails is not for everyone. I found the length of the fingers and plays a great role in your choice. that's being said, when you play without nails you shouldn't change the angle of your wrist because your trimmed fingernail still has to hit the string. Don't forget the main reason for this is bcz it helps player to increase speed.
About the angle of the hand, many portraits of lute players of centuries past show the angle of the hand as demonstrated here for no-nail playing.
hi thanks for the tutorial. what song are you playing at around 13:04? thanks
Thanks! Bach lute suite 1006a prelude
Thank you! I cannot have nails due to job requirements, and I always feel inadequate and insecure playing. This helps!
What guitar are you playing?
Great video, very much appreciated. Question: do you rest the pinky against the guitar, gently, like Rob Mackillop mentioned in his video?
Thanks! Glad you liked the vid. I don't rest my pinky at all, though I know some do.
Great video, much appreciated! I never played with nails but from what I have seen it seems to me that a nail player does not need to "dive as deep" into the strings to properly pluck them, and touches them with a harder material, both of which to me suggests that playing with nails would allow for more speed and accuracy. Obviously, if playing steel string guitar, harder picks allow for much more precision and speed then do soft picks.
I noticed that I often dive as deep as to make contact with the string on my finger tip at the height where the "front arch" of my nail ends and the "side edge" (for lack of better words) begins.
Since you have played with nails before, would you say that playing without nails allows for the same speed and accuracy as does playing with nails, or is there any difference?
Jared. It seems to me that there is an advantage in dynamics here.without nails. As Segovia correctly pointed out, volume can't be achieved playing canonical RH position without nails...but switching between your angle position and "canonical" position may allow flexibility in volume/dynamics for certain situations. What do you think?
I am going to try with no nails, I broke them often while working so this is an alternative. Thanks
If nailess technique was good enough for fernando sor and Tárrega it surely is good enough for me. It changes the technique a bunch tho but once you get accustomed to it gives you SO much more feedback. Btw you can still do picado even flamenco style without nails or with very short nails
my conclusion is that tremolo without nails isn't possible as it should sound. I practiced it for weeks but the result is not what matches my expectations. A clear, even tremolo (e.g. for Morente by Vicente Amigo) simply isn't possible without nails.
But I will try with Alaska Fingerpicks. Thanks for your great video presenting the Alaska fingerpicks!
You mention under the chord rolling section people Having trouble hitting the chords evenly at once with 3 fingers plus thumb, I’m curious why more people don’t use their pinky on the high e string for this. It doesn’t require much difficulty as you don’t have to train it for single note picking, just learn to throw it in on certain chords at times.
I’m not really a “classical” player, but I’ve been playing guitar for about 9.5 years now and have been finger picking (without nails) almost as long. I never learned any proper technique for it, just kinda did what makes sense for the songs. I’ve been getting into more “classical” stuff lately and find the whole flesh vs nails things quite comical, as i HATE having nails when playing. It has never felt right, but that’s just my opinion lol neither is right or wrong, it’s all about the music.
Also on the note of soft fingertips, I don’t think I have calluses on my right fingers, and I almost entire finger pick. Unless I’ve had them for so long and they’re very soft calluses that I can’t tell. And this has been playing mostly on steel strings, only had a nylon string guitar for about 2 years many years ago.
I have found that use of pinky 4th finger for 1st string (e.g., G in first position) is more efficient than 3rd finger, when the 3rd finger is planted (for example) on A (1st position). This is simply a partial chord anyway, which one must learn so I just do it when the 3rd finger is tied up. Efficiency was what was hammered into me by my teacher.
definitely relate to you on not formally studying guitar and then being shocked to find that no-nails is uncommon. as soon as i got into classical guitar (simply because i prefer the sound of nylon strings so strongly), i started clipping my nails way more often because the tone produced by nails is much worse and kills off the most beautiful tonal qualities of these guitars.... having gone to conservatory for a different instrument, I would guess that no-nails is uncommon for comformity and tradition reasons rather than sonic reasons... and the fact that technique is now often emphasised more than originality and musicality (on average), and nails do probably allow for more consistent technique, despite limiting the potential variety in tone-colour. good luck in your playing.
What is the name of the piece you play beginning around 5:08?
Milonga by Jorge Cardosa
How often do you have to cut your nails so they don't get in the way? Also it's not fully clear to me how your finger hits the string. What part of the fingertip is in contact with the string, where does it move the string and what does the release look like? Thanks for the video! Tough to find in-depth information on no-nail playing.
hi which brand string you use for no nial playing?
Thanks for this video. I think it's good to keep the thumbnail and vary the angle to use or not use it depending on the context.
That's great way to go! :)
To piggy back on #3. How about using light tension strings ?
Totally! My strings in this video are medium tension, whereas I played with high tension for years. If staying in standard tuning I think going with light strings should help for sure.
Thanks so much for this series. I’ve found it very encouraging. I find that I have to file down to the nail bed, and still have a nail hit the string occasionally. So I find I have go below the string a tad and and pull up, without actually plucking or moving the hand away from the top. I can get very lovely sound doing this. I’m new to this, but I’m finding if I combine the aforementioned technique with a rest stroke, it’ll get me where I want to go. Also if I apply the same technique playing chords of bring the pads just below the string a tad I can generate good volume. For me if I just go across the string my nails still hit the string, no mater how short. Really appreciate the effort, and the interview with Rob.
Jared, is it possible to smoothly transition to perform a proper fan strum (forward and backward) using your different "side" hand orientation? Also, it seems that palm muting is easiermwirh your hand orientation (?).
In regards to planting:
What if you are playing something like Avalanche by Leonard Cohen. All of the notes are really supposed to ring out. Is there a way to play stuff like that with more control? Great video btw!
I studied viola at conservatory... randomly bought a classical guitar from a friend because i fell in love with the sound, especially the nylon strings. i think the beauty in nylon classical guitars is in the sweetness and sustain of the tone, especially with low tension strings.... and the variety in timbre you can get based on which angle you hit the string with and the distance from the bridge (something you learn while playing viola is that closer to the bridge is mostly harmonic content, and the further towards the fingerboard, it becomes pure fundamental). after kinda developing my own guitar technique, i started reading and found that no-nails is uncommon. that makes no sense to me. ive been obsessively cutting my nails since i first became interested in this guitar. the tacky, transient-heavy tone from nails takes away from the humanity of a classical guitar tone. I don't even play classical music on it though, just prefer the sound to steel string... so maybe im missing something.
i will admit it took me time to get a handle on how to produce a brighter sound without nails, which is necessary sometimes. also, how moisturised your hands are makes a difference.
ok, that was interresting, you're a good teacher. and i just noticed this is part the fourth, so im excited to check the other three. the one difference, and perhaps this is something i'll need to change later on, but I position my right hand with my fingers almost parallel to the strings, and the flat of my hand at almost a 45 degree angle against the guitar top (where the wrist meets the base of the thumb is ~ above where the D string meets the bridge), with my anchor being either the pinkie or the pinkie-side of my palm. So I can only use my thumb, index, and sometimes middle finger depending on the given passage, but i can pluck in both directions with both the thumb and index finger. Because of how I'm anchoring my hand, I can arpeggiate chords with the thumb easily, using very little force or dexterity (or index finger if i am arpeggiating downward). So that's the technique i arrived at through experimentation. also worth noting i have long and unusually slender fingers, so maybe that's why i can make this odd setup sound pleasant.
You ain't wrong, nails are common only due to some stupid tradition that began last century. Sor (the father of classical guitar) didn"t like nail playing and lots of brazilian bossa nova and mpb composers played on a nylon guitar without nails too, wonderfully.
tremolo starts at 15'
After decades of struggling with my nails, I really want to like no nail playing; however, I have observed while playing w/o any nails, the tone may be more appealing to the player (behind the guitar) than to the listeners (in front of the guitar). To the player, it is warm, sweet, percussive. To the listeners, it sounds muddy. If only there were a way to produce more clarity with the no-nail technique !
Perhaps we could achieve this by playing on the edge of very short nails ? Or, by using spruce tops instead of cedar ? Or some other witchery ? I really want to ditch my nails, but truth be told, I just want to possess a better set of fingernails (mine really are irredeemable). And IMAO, nail substitutes have always sounded terrible ...
I started playing with my fingers on steel string, and some of this I just kind of intuited now that I'm doing some classical guitar. I wasn't gonna grow nails just for it, I'm not a professional or a performer, you know? Lol
Have you tried using lighter strings
The technique looks similar to playing baroc lute.
I feel like quitting. My nursing school does let us grow nails. But still haven't decided what to quit.
👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻
To me playing with nails sounds better but i can't play like that since i'm a pianist too. Playing with long nails on piano is near impossible
its how lute players do it.
Excellent series. As well as the more intimate and subtle tone produced there are so many advantages to playing without nails and these days with modern amplification volume is less of an issue when performing at eg. weddings etc.. I think the technique is most effective with slower music. I have followed Rob Mackillop for a number of years, a great musician and human being. Virginia Luque is also a great no nails player although it appears she retains the thumbnail. I think a lot to be said for playing with a thumb pick and no nails . I made a vid on how to damp the thumb pick with soft foam nose pads used for spectacles! here : th-cam.com/video/ZALlDqy_vC8/w-d-xo.html
Sounds incredible without nails. Don't listen to the naysayers
After being dependent on a pick for three decades this transition to fingers is humbling. No way on nails I think it is gross and not practical for someone doing manual labor for a living
But nails allow a wide assortment of sounds verry nice. it's a shame to deprive yourself of it
Rolling chords can become a bad habit.
Rob who?
What's wrong with your nails?
not good
It’s naturally very sweet sounding.
@@therealpalo001 for idiots. can also do with nails. called pizzicato
@@therealpalo001 for deaf
is junk with no nails
It’s better actually
@@therealpalo001 for idiots
@@therealpalo001 for idyots