Decades ago, a friend handed me his cherished guitar and said, “Let’s see if you can play a D chord.” He patiently taught me the basics, allowing me to practice and discover the joy of making music. Since then, every time I pick up my guitar, I silently thank him for introducing me to this beautiful art form and I wondered how to pay back such a favor.  Gifts hardly seem enough, and I started thinking of how to do it, and applied lessons learned from my career.    Having sent gifts, I started thinking of ways to pay the joy of making music forward. 

My musical journey began with a basic flat pick, but my friend also showed me the classical fingerstyle technique.  As I played songs, I found my fingers more adept than the pick.  Over time, I transitioned from a beginner to an intermediate guitarist, favoring fingerstyle.  Occasionally, due to minor cuts or abrasions, I even learned to use the thumb pick.  I’ve also experimented with finger picks.

Curious about the best playing method, I sought advice.  Surprisingly, even instructors, guitar stores and guitar salespersons lacked data on the subject. Should I follow the lead of renowned guitarists in my preferred musical genre and use the pick and method they used, as some people suggested?  At the time I liked playing Blues music, so looked to Three Kings of the Blues: BB King, Albert King, and Freddie King.  Their choices varied:  BB mastered the flat pick, Albert used his bare fingers, and Freddie employed a thumb pick along with a metal finger pick on his index finger and also used his middle and index finger.   It’s clear we need some research to address this and related questions. 

Researching plectrums,  educating beginners, leveraging the internet, providing links to experts on plectrums – all these steps will help more people experience the magic of playing music, and pay the gift of making music forward!