Clean Alternate Picking Basics

This is where I’d start if you want to play faster, and it’s the first workout I use to warm up. Before speed, you need clean notes and a steady picking hand. This exercise stays on one string so you can focus on both.

Quick facts

• Goal: Play every note cleanly while alternate picking the entire exercise.
• Difficulty: Beginner
• Required techniques: Alternate picking (down-up), one finger per fret, basic string muting
• Practice time: At least 5 minutes a day this week

The exercise

The pattern runs up and down the A string, using all four fretting fingers. Pick strictly down-up-down-up the whole way, starting with a downstroke. Keep your picking hand moving in the same alternating motion, even when you’re slowing down. The exact frets are in the tab below.

Set up your muting first

Clean playing comes from what you don’t hear. Before you play a single note:

• Fretting hand: Let your fingers lightly rest against the higher strings (D, G, B, and high E) so they can’t ring out.
• Picking hand: Rest the edge of your palm on the low E string to keep it silent.

When both hands are muting, the only sound you should hear is the note you meant to play.

How to practice (5 minutes)

1. Minute 1: Set the tab player to a slow speed. 50% or slower is fine. Play the pattern focusing only on clean notes.
2. Minutes 2 to 4: Repeat the pattern. If a note buzzes, rings, or gets missed, slow down and fix that spot before moving on.
3. Minute 5: If you played it cleanly several times in a row, raise the speed one notch and try again. If not, stay put.

Don’t increase speed until the notes are clean. Rushing just builds sloppy habits.

If it is too easy

Play the same pattern up and down every string, one string at a time. Your muting changes with each string, so pay attention to which strings need to be covered. It’s harder than it sounds.

Common mistakes

• Not muting the other strings. This is the biggest one. Extra strings ringing out make the exercise sound sloppy even if your fingers are right.
• Rushing the tempo. Speed you can’t control doesn’t count.
• Breaking the down-up pattern. If you catch yourself using two downstrokes in a row, slow down and reset.
• Tensing up. A tight picking hand or squeezing the pick too hard will slow you down. Keep it relaxed.

Track your progress

• Write down the player speed you reached each day.
• Your goal for the week: play the full pattern cleanly at the same speed several times in a row before bumping it up.
• At the end of the week, record yourself and compare it to day one.