Downpicking endurance: a thrash riff for building stamina
Thirty-two eighths in a row with no rest, every one a downstroke: palm-muted chugs on the low E with an F, a G and a run down from B for accents, at a thrash tempo. It's the riff to play for a full minute without stopping, which is what a downpicked song asks of the picking hand. The test is the last loop: as even and as loud as the first.
Opens in the player looped and counted in, with drums playing along, and speeds up 5 % every 2 loops to 180 bpm. No account or microphone needed.
- Goal tempo
- 180 bpm
- Starts at
- 108 bpm
- Length
- 4 bars, looped
- Tuning
- E standard
- Time
- 4/4
- Level
- Advanced
- Plays with
- Drums
How to play it
Pick from the wrist with the smallest motion that works, and breathe; stop the ramp at the tempo you can hold for a minute.
Every note is an eighth and every stroke is down. Bars 1 to 3 chug six times on the palm-muted low E, then accent a note on the same string: F at the 1st fret, or G at the 3rd and F sharp at the 2nd. The last bar alternates the chug with a run down the low string, B, B flat, A, G and F, which falls back onto E.
The accented notes are played without the palm mute, so they ring out over the chugs, but they're downstrokes too: no upstroke anywhere in the riff.
The goal tempo is fast. The player starts at 60 % and steps up every two loops: when the forearm starts to tighten, stop the ramp there and play that tempo for a full minute before going on. Endurance is built at a tempo you can hold, not at one you can only reach.
Mistakes to watch for
- Tensing the forearm to keep up, which gets you through one loop and makes the next one slower.
- Chugs getting quieter or shorter as the hand tires; the last loop should sound like the first.
- Slipping in an upstroke to catch up after the accented notes.
- Lifting the palm mute for the accents and putting it back late, so the next chug rings.
A speed plan
The player starts at 60 % of the goal and plays each tempo twice before stepping up:
- 108
- 117
- 126
- 135
- 144
- 153
- 162
- 171
- 180
That's 16 loops and about 2 minutes before you're playing at 180 bpm. If it stops being clean on the way, stop the ramp there and loop that tempo until it is. With a microphone or an audio interface you can record while you play instead: Demiurg checks every loop and steps up only after two clean ones in a row, and back down after a poor one.
Questions
How fast should I play Downpicking endurance?
The goal is 180 bpm in eighth notes, which is 6 notes a second. Start wherever every note is clean: the player begins at 108 bpm. Signed in, you can set a goal of your own, slower or faster, on the Exercises page.
How long should I be able to downpick for?
A whole song, which is three to six minutes. Start with one minute at a tempo where the motion stays relaxed and add a little time or a few bpm every few days. A minute without stopping is a good first target at any tempo.
My arm burns after a minute. Is that normal?
Some fatigue is; a burning arm usually means the motion is too big or comes from the elbow. Make the stroke smaller, let the wrist do it, and check that your shoulder and grip are loose. Stop if it hurts rather than just tires.
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