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As a guitarist, should you play with nails?

As a guitarist, should you play with your fingers? With the pick? Or with your nails? That is the question we will address today.

Short answer: depends on the style of music you play.

Why use nails?

It is believed that nails started to be used in the XIX century. One of the first to use them to improve quality of sound was guitarist Dionisio Aguado (1). They are now a common practice in the classical guitar world.

Nails make you sound louder, like a pick does, but at the same time, nails can also enable you to make a much cleaner, smoother sound, compared to the pick sound.

Nails allow you to play several strings at the same time with a balanced sound. With nails you could play, for example, the 6th, the 3rd and the 1st string, all with the same sound quality. When a rock guitarist plays the same thing using a combination of picking and flesh, he is getting a not so balanced sound: The basses sound sharp and present because it is played with the pick, while the high strings sound dull and weak because they are played with the flesh.

Should we all have nails?

Short answer: No! Playing electric guitars that have steel strings with nails can be a bad experience. The nails get easily damaged. Also, the sound quality can be adjusted using pedals and changing your amp settings. Therefore, for guitarists who only play on the electric guitar, nails are not so common. There are many guitarists who do play with their fingers, like Mark Knopfler and Robby Krieger, but few use natural nails. Some do use acrylic (fake) nails like acoustic guitarist John Butler Trio.

What if I play both Classical/Flamenco and steel-string guitar? In that case, I highly recommend fake nails. As a Portuguese, I cannot not share this fantastic video (2) of the process of making fake nails for playing "the Portuguese Guitar" (a typical Portuguese instrument used in "Fado", played with fake nails). Perhaps a similar solution could be used by you! I am lucky to have quite strong nails and I don't play steel-string guitar that often, therefore I manage quite well with my real nails.

Natural or fake nails?

There is no absolute answer here. Usually, classical guitarists play with real nails while acoustic/electric guitarists play with fake nails or pick. In classical guitars, the strings are softer and do not damage the nails so much. However, there are also classical guitarists who use fake nails because the natural ones are not strong enough, brake easily or for other personal reasons.

Depends on the biology of each individual. Some people naturally have strong nails, others spend money on special products and still end up with soft, easily breakable nails.

My tip is to always use and try out your natural nails first. If that does not work, then go for the fake nails. I experimented a lot of years with both until I figured out what is best for myself.

How to have stronger nails?

I heard all kind of stories and different recommendations for having stronger nails by my guitarist colleagues. Here are the most common ones:

- Hydrate by drinking fluids or using moisturizes.

- Use a nail hardener / strengthener (Try several! Some are not that good!).

- Be wary of products like soaps and household cleansers. Use gloves while washing dishes, for example.

Again, I stress that these advices, although useful, might not be the perfect solution! I had friends who followed these precise steps and still had breakable nails.

Which nail shape should I have?

Again, very subjective answer. Every guitarist has a different answer. However, there is one rule: No hard edges! The nail should be smooth all the way through. For example, the following nail has two main problems: is too long and has a lot of rough edges. This will result in a harsh, ugly sound.

These ones, for example, are rounder, which will result in a better sound.

Although, because of the angle of attack is not symmetrical, the nails should also not be completely round and symmetrical. Many guitarists choose to have a tiny unevenness (3). This usually results in a smoother sound.

How do you shape your nails?

Unless your nail is really big, you should never use scissors. If you want to have nails, from now on, you will use the file if you want to make them a bit smaller. There are plastic files, metal files and glass files. Each person has a preference. I prefer glass files.

Besides files, you will also need sand paper (yes! Sand paper!). However, you need a very thin one. thickness should be 2000 or above. Some specialized music stores sell this kind of super thin sand paper. You start polishing your nails with a high thickness (like 1800 or 2400) and you go gradually thinner to 12000. This will make any rough edges disappear from your nails, making them smooth and have a clean sound. Here is an article from "Tonebase" giving some tips on nails (4).

I switched to nails and now I can't play the guitar!

If you always played with your fingers, switching to nails might cause you a hard time. You do not feel comfortable in the beginning and the right hand will seem extremely hard. To solve this problem I recommend playing easier pieces, simple scales, simple arpeggios, in a very slow speed to let your body get used to it.

When we practice often, the brain starts to make the neural connections stronger and then it gets to a point where we no longer think about those movements. They become automatic! That's why changing your technique is very hard, because you are going against your own body. You are trying to change the configuration. Therefore, it requires some weeks or months to really get used to it. Now, when I accidentally break my nails and I have to play without them, it feels weird and uncomfortable for me. So, do not despair. It is a normal feeling! Take the opportunity to take a step back, work on your technique and play some fun, easy pieces to get yourself used to the new feeling of playing with nails.

Useful links / Sources:

1 - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dionisio_Aguado_y_Garc%C3%ADa

2 - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ssqN13j48ik

3 - https://www.thisisclassicalguitar.com/fingernails-on-classical-guitar/

4 - https://medium.com/tonebase/10-tips-for-terrific-nails-38daea2ffd56