Travis picking is named after the famous country guitarist Merle Travis. It is a popular style of playing with acoustic guitar fingerpickers which features extensive use of the right hand thumb skipping between strings.

In this short course we are going to learn the basics with two patterns that you can apply to your playing. We will look at good technique and how to produce a good strong sound.

This is a general right hand position for all fingerstyle guitar. Please watch this video before starting the course. I don't teach anchoring of the little finger (and/or ring finger) on the soundboard as I feel it is restrictive and puts strain on the hand. However, if you are used to playing that way you might want to consider continuing with that approach as retraining your right hand to play without anchoring is a very lengthy process. The approach below is the ideal right hand position and results in more fluid playing with less physical effort.

Here is the basic P I P M / P M P I Travis pattern. It is important to consider your right hand wrist height. If you usually play with a slightly arched wrist, try flattening it for Travis picking as it enables you to achieve more power with the thumb.