Clawhammer

:Not to be confused with the claw hammer, a type of hammer, or the Athlon 64, which was codenamed "Clawhammer".

Clawhammer or frailing?

Many people use the terms "clawhammer" and "frailing" in all their senses interchangeably. However, many old-time players draw a distinction between the two. On the banjo, the most common definitions are that frailing means always picking the drone string, and clawhammer allows you to pick other strings with the thumb, which is also called "double-thumbing" or "drop-thumb". Some players even distinguish between "drop-thumb" and "clawhammer", in which the thumb plays rhythm in drop-thumb, but melody in clawhammer. In guitar, Steve Baughman, a prominent proponent, defines "frailing" as using the index finger for picking melody (which is done by up-picking) and the middle finger for strumming, and "clawhammer" as using only downstrokes with one finger as is the usual technique on the banjo. There are yet more variations of the distinction between "clawhammer" and "frailing" but they usually refer to the same general style of playing.

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One usage of "clawhammer" in guitar circles refers to a style in which the pinky finger or the pinky and ring fingers are used to brace the hand and the index finger, middle finger, and thumb are used to pluck the strings. The index and middle fingers are held in a claw shape and they do resemble the two prongs of a claw hammer, but this is an uncommon and arguably incorrect usage of the term "clawhammer". See fingerpicking.

Related Topics:
Claw hammer - Fingerpicking

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