Why play classical guitar without nails?

There are three main reasons: aesthetic, historical, and practical. First, the aesthetic. And no, I don’t mean a fear of looking like this:

Rather, I mean it in the sense of that search for an intimate, rounded sound, one that brings out the warmer tones of instrument. Physically, too, no-nail playing also removes a barrier between your fingertip and the string, giving an alluringly-direct sense of touch. Many of us are also drawn in by the possibility of discovering new sounds — the sheer excitement of doing it differently.

The historical reasons were also a strong motivation for me. It was astonishing to discover that, for the guitar’s five-hundred year history, no-nails was not just a valid method, but often the preferred method. I wanted to rediscover the technique, to learn about why players in the past had this radically different right-hand technique, and how this might inform us today. I have written about the history here, for those interested.

Finally, some players adopt no-nail playing for practical reasons. They may have poor quality nails, lives that preclude maintaining good nails, or even medical conditions which make it difficult, if not impossible, to grow nails. Such players can of course go down the route of fake nails, but they can also become fine guitarists by following the no-nail tradition. The problem is that, frequently, they find teachers who are at worst hostile to the idea of playing with flesh, or more often just unaware of the technique. I hope that this website will go some small way to help correct this.