No-Nail Guitar

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Nineteenth-century painting of an affluent young man playing a guitar in his room. The open windows looks out on a verdent landscape.

What on earth is ‘no-nail guitar’, you may be asking! Well, throughout the guitar’s several-hundred year history it has been played both with and without the use of fingernails. There was often lively debate between adherents of the two methods, and both ‘sides’ can count among them some of the greatest guitarists of all time.

In the last several decades, however, nail playing has become almost totally dominant. This is starting to change, with various players rediscovering no-nail playing. I hope this website will be useful to all those curious about this neglected aspect of guitar history, whether or not they play without nails.

If you want to know why anyone would want to play guitar without nails, check out this page. If you are already familiar with the subject and looking for more detailed information, then I hope you enjoy exploring the various pages so far. I’ll be adding more to the website — there is an News page that I’ll use to announce any major additions or changes, as well as other noteworthy news.

I partly made this website to accompany my PhD research on this subject. For more information about my work, read the About page. Please do leave a comment or contact me if you have any information, suggestions, questions etc.

For now, here’s a playlist of recordings by no-nail guitarists:

6 responses to “Home”

  1. John Avatar
    John

    Interesting. I’ll certainly follow this site. I’ve always had really thin nails and have never been able to make a strong sound. Recently, after retiring, I’ve been trying out artificial nails and for the first time I can produce a good tone. However, I have previously tried cutting my nails short and I can foresee a time when I might have to try again. I found the technique challenging, after playing the same way for more than 60 years. John

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    1. Steven Watson Avatar
      Steven Watson

      Thanks John — I hope you enjoy exploring the site! It can be difficult switching to no-nails after many years playing with nails (probably harder than the other way round). But it’s certainly possible.

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  2. Eric Avatar
    Eric

    I have never liked long nails as they keep on becoming damaged. My nails grow exceptionally slowly. I will enjoy reading the contents of this site.

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  3. Jim Navagh Avatar
    Jim Navagh

    I look forward to exploring your site. I was taught to play without nails. My teacher learned this technique from his teacher, Hector Garcia. As you know Garcia was a student of Emilio Pujol. I played briefly with nails. My teacher encouraged me to grow the nails just slightly long enough to do the job. That worked fine but having played both ways I preferred the soft tones of playing nailess.

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    1. Steven Watson Avatar
      Steven Watson

      Thanks Jim. Who was your teacher, can I ask? Hope you enjoy the site!

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      1. teenagec3d61e591d Avatar
        teenagec3d61e591d

        Paul Charbonneau. He taught at Hamilton College in Clinton NY back in the 80s. He may still be teaching there.

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