By Philip Hii

Outline

There are three parts to this informal essay on playing three-finger scales. The first part is a brief account of how I evolved my personal approach to the technique. The second part deals with some of the issues relating to the technique, in particular, the issue of tone and attack. In the third part, I discuss ways of developing the technique. Included also are examples of how I finger some passages from the common repertoire.

First steps

When I first started playing the Toccata and Fugue, it became quickly apparent to me that the traditional m-i-m-i fingering was inadequate for the demands of the music. It wasn't just a question of speed, although that did come into the equation later. It had to do with a certain sound which I could hear and which I wasn't able to reproduce with the conventional two-finger scale fingerings. The scale I heard was seamless, effortless and pianistic. It was full of different tonal gradations and dynamic shadings.

I decided to try other finger combinations. While I was at Berklee, I had seen Kevin Eubanks before his Tonight Show fame and had been inspired to use his p-m-p-m fingering. This had worked really well for bebop jazz where it is common to emphasize the upstroke as part of the swing. However, it wasn't so effective in an acoustic situation and worse still, precluded the use of rest-strokes. Next I tried a combination of p-m-i. This too was insatisfactory as it too precluded the use of rest-strokes.

Finally, I came back to a technique which I had learnt from Colin Henderson at Burnside High in Christchurch, N Z. Colin Henderson had studied in masterclasses with Yepes in Europe and had learnt the technique from Yepes. The technique involves the use of all three fingers in a consistent a-m-i pattern. At that time, I had tried it and had decided it was unworkable. Now, quite a few years later, I decided to give it another try.

The results were encouraging but I wasn't happy with the awkward string crossings which was produced by the consistent a-m-i pattern. One day it occurred to me, if pianists could combine different permutations of fingerings in their scale technique, why couldn't I do the same? So I experimented and found that by combining a-m-i and m-i-m-i fingerings, I could produce a consistent pattern of string crossing.

Perhaps the most difficult aspect of playing three finger scales is that of maintaining an even sound in all three fingers. Most people are familiar with this problem in tremolo playing. It is for this reason that the tremolo has been said to be the ultimate test of a player's right hand technique. In order to maintain a smooth even tremolo, all the fingers have to be perfectly weighted and balanced. The same is absolutely true for three finger scale playing too.
If the tremolo is hard to master, imagine the same technique but compounded by the fact that every note has to be synchronized between the two hands. Most tremolo passages do not require a right hand fingering change on every beat, let alone every note. In Recuerdos, for instance, left hand fingering changes usually occur from bar to bar. But in scale playing, each note requires a different left hand fingering.

Let me explain this problem a bit more. At a tempo of one quarter note to 120, there are eight notes played per second. At this tempo, the playing fingers in both hands would have to sync to each other eight times per second. If we increase the tempo to 150, they would have to sync to each other ten times per second because at 150, we have to play ten notes per second. Try tapping your fingers ten times per second on a tabletop and you'll appreciate the problem involved.

A slight digression

Before going into the fingering concepts, I feel it is important to touch on the areas of tone and attack.

The question of how much attack a note should have will probably strike a chord in some people. Although I am not in the business of converting non-believers, let me digress a little on this point, as I believe it is absolutely critical to mastering the scale technique.

As far back as I can remember, I have always loved the percussive side of the guitar. This is not to say that I don't like the smooth side of the guitar. To me it has to do with balance and variety, darkness and light. In other words, slow, sensual, round tones have to be balanced with energetic and fiery ones.

It is my very strong conviction that a clear strong attack is a precondition to developing speed on the guitar. Let me illustrate this with some examples.

Imagine if you could, a strong percussive note. It can be represented thus:

Example 1

Imagine also a round tone, one of those beautiful, fat tones that is so highly prized in some quarters. It can be represented so:

Example 2


This simplified graphical representations show that the round tone in example 2 is fuller in sound than the tone with a strong attack as represented in example 1.

However, let us say that the tempo is 120 and we have to play sixteenth notes. As we have noted earlier, there are eight notes per second at this tempo. One of the problems of tone production on the guitar is that if two consecutive notes are on the same string, the first note is always terminated by the second note. This problem isn't so critical at slow tempos but at 120, the notes are terminated quickly by each succeeding note. In other words, all you can hear is the attack before the next note is sounded and the next note again after that. We can see how this might affect the dynamics and clarity of the notes:

Example 3


Example 4


The shaded area represents the notes produced as a result of the dampening. It is clear from examples 1 and 2 that if the notes are performed at slow tempos, the two types of attacks produce almost identical volume levels. At higher tempos however, due to the dampening effect, the notes with emerging whooshy attacks become much weaker in volume. This is because these notes are not given the chance to reach their full potential before being dampened by the next note. If we increase the tempo to 140 or 150, the situation becomes even more pronounced. At those tempos, there is literally no time for anything but the attack to be heard. If the attack is weak, the notes will sound weak too. This explains why some players who could play loud at slow tempos are unable to play loud at fast tempos.

Practicing the technique

Since a good tremolo technique is crucial to playing three finger scales, the first task is to master the tremolo technique. This detour in itself may take some time but there are no short cuts here.

Assuming the student already has good control over his tremolo, the first step is to practise a-m-i exercises on the first string:

Exercise 1


Do not be discouraged by the triplet feel caused by the a-m-i fingering. Concentrate instead on separating the fingers. Avoid fighting the sympathetic motion in the fingers though. In an earlier article, I had explained how sympathetic motion in the right hand fingers can be minimized by moving the fingers upward rather than in an arc-like motion.

It is important that the exercise be performed at at least 132. After a few days of practice, the next step would be to try deemphasizing the inherent triplet feel and to emphasize the four feel:

Exercise 2

Step three: Going back to the triplet feel, try doing string crossing by going from the first string all the way to the third string and back again.

Exercise 3


Now try playing a one-octave scale:

Exercise 4


Always keep a light touch, and play at at least 100.

Next, go back to the triplet feel and practise string crossings on all six strings:

Exercise 5


Now, try practicing a scale on all six strings. There are many to choose from but my favorite is based on the open C major scale in the first position. Finger the same scale in E Major on the fourth position and practise it up and down.

Exercise 6


Finally, start applying the new fingerings to some of the more commonly used Segovia scales and other scales in the repertoire.

Segovia C major scale


Fingerings

Here are some examples of my own fingerings.

First, a reminder: do not feel compelled to be consistent in your right hand fingerings. If you use m-i-m-i fingerings, try augmenting it by adding the a or the p finger whenever it feels right. If you decide to try the three-finger approach, do not feel restricted to just using three fingers. I use different combinations of a-m-i, m-i, and p-a-m-i. Anything, as long as it gets the job done. This is the main difference between my approach and Yepes'. Although I have no first hand knowledge on how he fingered his scales, I've read that it was a consistent a-m-i sequence.

Here are some examples of my own approach to fingering scales. They are personal and are not meant to be final in any sense of the word. After all, I find myself still changing my fingerings whenever a better one occurs to me.

Toccata


Chromatic Fantasy


Etude 7, Heitor Villa-Lobos, Bar 1


Musical applications

A scale is not just a simple succession of notes: it should convey a feeling. I like to use extra musical imagery, i.e., a gust of wind, a passionate outpouring, a grand gesture. To be able to suggest all this, it should have an infinite variety of nuances and dynamic shadings. I find it helps to avoid thinking in plain abstract terms. Instead of thinking in terms of "crescendo," think in terms of what the scale is trying to say. If you think of scales this way, you'll have all the dynamic shading you need.

My initial impetus for developing the a-m-i technique was driven by a musical quest. I wanted to find a technique that would enable me to reproduce the sounds I heard in my mind. I believe this is crucial to any technical development. Technique for its own sake is always amazing for perhaps the first few minutes, but I would think that most of us are in the music business not to amaze but to move people. Good technique should be a means to an end and not an end in itself. Interestingly enough, I think it is much harder to master technique as a goal in itself than if we try to accomplish it in the pursuit of a musical goal.

A summary and some additional points
1. Playing scales with three fingers requires a good tremolo technique. The two techniques are remarkably similar. Both require great finger independence. However, having a good tremolo technique does not mean that mastery of scale playing will follow immediately. This is because one is played free-stroke, the other rest-stroke (at least most of the time).

2. The first step is to practice with an a-m-i rest-stroke tremolo on one string; perhaps the first or second string. Make sure the fingers are evenly balanced as you play. One way to get evenness is to pull the hand (very minimally) back and away from the string as you play. This will create a feeling of weight. In other words, avoid playing with individual fingers. Instead, focus on playing each note with this weight created by the pull. Think of the archer. When he pulls back the string on the bow, there is tremendous power (scientists call this potential energy, I think) just waiting to be let go. Although, the force created by the pulling in guitar playing is minimal compared to that produced by the archer, the principles are the same.

3. After the rest-stroke a-m-i tremolo on one string has been mastered, try string crossing by alternating the a-m-i pattern on two or three strings. Don't play any scales yet. I would play a-m-i-a-m-i on the e-string, then continue without a break the same pattern on the b-string, then the g-string, then back again to the first string.

4. The next step would be to practice triplet chromatic figures; first on one string, then on three strings.

5. Finally, short scales are to be attempted. The C-major fifth position one-octave scale is a good one to start with. Long scales are not recommended at this time. In fact, for long scales, I always think of a series of short scales all linked together. In playing scale passages on the bass strings, move the hand back to keep the hand position the same. I try not to rest my right forearm on the guitar only on one spot. I move my forearm when necessary.

6. Remember that scales in music are there for a reason, they have a meaning. I try to understand the context of each scale and its meaning. A scale can be a passionate outburst, a gust of wind, a sigh, etc. This means that each scale has to be played with a variety of nuances and shaped dynamically. To do this, I mix free-strokes and rest-strokes in my scales and practice with crescendos and diminuendos.

7. When practicing new techniques, always play with a light touch. The power will come later when you gain confidence with the technique. Remember, in playing rest-strokes, concentrate on the plucking and forget the "resting" Many beginners are so intent on pushing the finger through to the next string that the plucking part comes almost as an afterthought. This results in an extremely heavy touch.

Lastly, don't give up. Everything worthwhile takes time.