Classical Right Hand: Rest Stroke & Free Stroke
The soul of the classical right hand is two ways of plucking — the rest stroke (apoyando), solid and used to “sing” the melody, and the free stroke (tirando), light and used for arpeggios.
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- How Classical Guitar Differs from Steel-String7 min
- Classical Sitting Posture & Holding the Guitar6 min
- Classical Right Hand: Rest Stroke & Free Stroke9 min
- Classical Left Hand & Touch7 min
- Reading Staff Notation: A Beginning (Required for Classical)9 min
- Studies, Scales & a Ladder of Famous Pieces9 min
- Staff Notation, Further: Note Values & Reading by Position8 min
- Classical Scales & Arpeggios: Your Daily Fundamentals8 min
- Slurs & Ornaments (ligado / trill / mordent)8 min
- “Reading” a Public-Domain Miniature Through9 min
Free stroke (tirando)
After plucking the string, the finger curls in toward the palm without touching the string below it. Broken chords, arpeggios, and accompaniment almost all use this — in fact, it's exactly what you've been using for arpeggios in the fingerstyle lessons.
Rest stroke (apoyando)
After plucking the string, the finger follows through and comes to rest against the next string. The note that comes out is more solid, fuller, and louder — it's used specifically to push the melody notes out, and for playing scales. In classical, “rest stroke for melody, free stroke for accompaniment” is the basic division of labor.
p-i-m-a roles, alternation, and nails
The thumb p handles the bass (strings 4–6), and the index i / middle m / ring a handle strings 3 / 2 / 1; for scales, alternate i-m (never play it all with one finger). Classical cares a great deal about the right-hand nails — shape them into a smooth curve, grown a little past the fingertip; when you pluck, the flesh touches the string first and then the nail slides off, so the tone comes out round with a core.
The most basic fingerpick: thumb plays the bass string first, then index / middle on strings 3 and 2. One note per beat — aim for accuracy and don't watch your picking hand.
Thumb p covers the bass (strings 4/5/6); index i = string 3, middle m = string 2, ring a = string 1. Keep your wrist steady, don't stare at your picking hand — feel it.
Follow the arpeggio animation to see the right-hand PIMA roles: the thumb (p) handles the bass, while index / middle / ring (i·m·a) pluck strings 3/2/1 respectively — match this lesson's division of labor to exactly “which finger plucks which string.”
- 💡 Burn this one rule into your hands first — “rest stroke for melody, free stroke for the broken-chord parts” — and the classical flavor shows up right away.
⚠️ Common mistakes
- Playing the melody as quietly as the accompaniment, so it all blurs together — the melody notes need to be pushed out with rest strokes.
- Playing a scale all with one finger — classical always alternates i-m.
- Scraping the strings entirely with the nail tip, giving a thin, sharp sound — flesh and nail touching together is what makes it round.
Practice checklist
- On the 1st string, play 8 rest strokes and 8 free strokes each, comparing the volume and tone.
- Play a single-string chromatic scale alternating i-m, aiming for evenness — don't use the same finger.