must the right hand float?

matty42

How important is the floating pick hand to the Gypsy style? I find it one of the less comforatable technique adjustments. I like to generally let my fingers lightly brush the guitars body, not a hard "anchor", but just kind of brush around. Would not using the floating style make you a Gypsy poser if you will? haha... I read somewhere once that sometimes Django's fingers would lightly brush his guitar so maybe there is a loophole?

Thoughts?

rimm

Jimmy Rosenbergs fingers stay in contact with the top of the guitar almost all the time when he's soloing..or at least work as an anchor of sorts-all depends on if you are using the downstrokes in the right place.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RVf9sZP7 ... re=related

matty42

That is true, I have noticed that myself while watching some of his videos. I just wasn't sure how important to the style it was. I have read that a reason behind the "hand off the guitar" technique comes from not having amplification and therefore not wanting anything to dampen the sound.

noodlenot

i believe that most of us touch the soundboard in some way (albeit lightly) when soloing in the gypsy style - i do it with the knuckles of the pinky and (sometimes) ring fingers - as it helps positioning the pick-holding fingers.

while touching the soundboard would in fact dampen (lightly) the sound, so will adding a pickguard (in a different way, granted) and that hasn´t prevented people from doing it. the practical difference isn´t much, unless you really press the soundboard.

cheers,
miguel.

klaatu

The "floating hand" idea doesn't necessarily mean that you absolutely cannot touch the guitar top. Rather, it means that you should not anchor your hand in one spot, as many acoustic players do (e.g., it is common practice to rest the palm of the hand on the bridge and just move the fingers.) You can brush the top and still "float" quite easily. If you look at a lot of well-used gypsy guitars, you will see wear patterns caused by the fingers brushing the top.

Jazzaferri

+1 on what Klaatu said

Jon

I started using a free right hand trying to copy Tchavolo's. It was a real pain to learn how to do, and I sacrificed a lot of accuracy in the short-medium term. I found later that he doesn't hold his hand in a simple closed fist, but spaces the fingers out at the base, which redistributes the weight in the hand and gives you much more stability (just my explanation and experience of an observed phenomenon - not any kind of real physics...). Interesting to compare with Romane's and Robin Nolan's.

Heaps of the best players seem to use an semi-anchored, or a brushing right hand though - in fact, it's probably more than half, and from the J'attendrai video, it does look like Django does it. You do get a different tone depending on whether you do or don't do it. For one, you can get a much more aggressive attack with a free floating hand - which I personally like, but many don't. I just think that the decision should be made based on what sound you're going for though, not how difficult it is to adjust.

Jon

bryanology

The right hand, I think, is the most important part of the GJ sound. Mine is NEVER touching the guitar during a hard pompe rhythm, this is a hard habit for my friends, trying to learn gypsy rhythm, to break. During lead playing I've noticed some players like Andreas Oberg with what looks like a closed hand totally airborne above the strings all the way to Jimmy Rosenberg, like Rimm said, usually anchored to the top of the guit. I'm somewhere in-between, softly resting my pinky and ring finger on the B and E strings when playing the low strings and on the top of the guit when on the high strings. For a big attack I will temporarily pick up the hand and come down hard. Like mentioned before, it helps for the attack.
I believe (on reason I love GJ) that if you have the attack, with the sound YOU want, and it swings, then whatever feels comfortable is right.
Personally, I think one good rule is the wrist should never follow the path/line of the forearm, it should tilt slightly in towards the guitar (or dramatically, depending on the length of your hand).
Angelo Debarre's method book has 3 drawings of right hand styles. The second picture down contradicts my wrist rule, but I don't read french so I'm not sure whats it's saying there. I'm attaching pdf now.

jimmyl51

Check out a friend of mine who played with Merle Haggard for years named Clint Strong. Granted he is not a gypsy jazz guitarist, but is probably one of the greatest bebop guitarists on the planet. I am a bebop guy who is getting into gypsy jazz guitar and frankly Clint IMHO has one of the cleanest techniques in the world. I am trying to get away from any kind of anchoring and now finally I find that my right hand is alot cleaner both to myself and to others. Look at Clint's right hand on the video below! jim in Maine
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GI5yThqi2KA

jimmyl51

Check out a friend of mine who played with Merle Haggard for years named Clint Strong. Granted he is not a gypsy jazz guitarist, but is probably one of the greatest bebop guitarists on the planet. I am a bebop guy who is getting into gypsy jazz guitar and frankly Clint IMHO has one of the cleanest techniques in the world. I am trying to get away from any kind of anchoring and now finally I find that my right hand is alot cleaner both to myself and to others. Look at Clint's right hand on the video below! jim in Maine
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GI5yThqi2KA

jimmyl51

Sorry about the duplicate post regarding Clint but I just had to post this other clip that was taken at the Dallas Guitar Show recently............this guy's right hand has always amazed me and he CAN play gypsy jazz also! jim
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=brInmnSBCFY