So, today we going to focus our attention on something that I think is very much overlooked in guitar playing circles- the little finger.



…wait…what?! I hear guitarists talk all the time about “taming” their pinky fingers and trying to stop them flying all over the place! Technical efficiency and economy of effort depend on making the smallest (and there for shortest, and quickest) movements possible when you’re playing. The little finger flying up in the air kinda goes against this- it’s well known!

OK, hold your horses, let me clarify that a bit…

You see, over the past week, I’ve really been focusing in on my own playing accuracy. I mean, there’s outright speed as one thing, but it’s a bit useless as a measure on it’s own. Imagine a racing car. Now, the car has a huge engine, and it’s pretty light- in other words, it’s extremely fast! That wont make it win races, though- not even close! It needs a few more ingredients: a good driver (for one), and good handling to match that speed. Without those things you’re still going to lose every time- no matter the speed.

So, as I was working on my spider exercises, and string skipping- the usual, standard stuff. As I said, I was really focusing on making each note ring out- not just hitting the right notes, but hitting them well. I just think it sounds so much better when every single note is as clear as it can be- none muted, muffled, or “cut short”. Well, I noticed a pattern- and it kinda flys in the face of the perceived wisdom about little finger strength being the main issue.

What did I notice?

When I was going through fingers in this order: “1, 2, 3, 4” I found that the most difficult notes to make sound clear were the ones under my 4th finger. No surprise there…BUT when I played in the opposite order: “4, 3, 2, 1” (coming down from the little finger to the first finger), the problem note was under my third finger!

So…What does This mean?

First, let me explain a bit of basic anatomy (sorry in advance for the technical jargon). I’m not a physicist or anything, and this quote is taken from Yahoo Education (here), but it seems in depth enough for our purposes (any doctors out there feel free to correct me…). I’ve highlighted the interesting parts.

The Lumbricales (Fig. 427) are four small fleshy fasciculi [a small bundle or cluster, of nerve, tendon, or muscle fibers], associated with the tendons of the Flexor digitorum profundus. The first and second arise from the radial sides and volar surfaces of the tendons of the index and middle fingers respectively; the third, from the contiguous sides of the tendons of the middle and ring fingers; and the fourth, from the contiguous sides of the tendons of the ring and little fingers. Each passes to the radial side of the corresponding finger, and opposite the metacarpophalangeal articulation is inserted into the tendinous expansion of the Extensor digitorum communis covering the dorsal aspect of the finger.

The Lumbricales are a group of muscles that you use to move your fingers when you’re playing guitar. From the same source:

the Interossei, in conjunction with the Lumbricales, flex the first phalanges at the metacarpophalangeal joints, and extend the second and third phalanges in consequence of their insertions into the expansions of the Extensor tendons

Translation: The Interossei and Lumbricales (both groups of muscles) move your fingers at the knuckle joint.

So, why is this important? Notice how they are attached (the first quote). There are four tendons (tendons attach muscles to the things they need to move): the first goes to the index finger; the second goes to the middle finger. All good so far, yes?

Well, the third tendon goes to the middle AND ring fingers, and the fourth goes to the ring AND the little finger. So the first finger has a muscle all to it’s own, and the third finger has to share with the middle and pinky fingers (obviously there are more muscles involved, but this is a guitar blog, not a medical lesson!).

Now, as we evolved from tree-climbing apes, it would have obviously been more useful for the thumb and first finger to be the strongest digits (for gripping and pulling us up when climbing). However, we’re not monkeys, we’re guitar players [insert drummer joke here], and so what’s happened is: we’ve been left with a weak little finger, and a compromised ring finger (in terms of independence).

Who is to blame?

That’s “who” as in which finger. Try this yourself, play some of those spider, or specific finger independence exercises, and notice which fingers are the most difficult to separate. I bet it’s between the 2nd and 3rd, and/or the 3rd and 4th fingers that you have the most trouble with!

This makes sense, if you consider the science from earlier- the third finger is the real problem finger when playing the guitar, not the pinky! The pinky is only small and weak, it can be trained up, but the third finger is always going to be a bit stuck, due to design.

So, the solution is to work on your third finger independence a little bit more than the others- with trills, and independence exercises. The little finger has had a bad press for long enough!

If you have any questions, please leave them as comments below.

Rob.