Well I've been playing around with the seven-notes-in-G sequence you describe, so I think I know what you mean, although I can't do it fluently. But it doesn't seem like TOTAL GUITAR HELL [giggle] so maybe I'm not understanding it; I'd better give you a call if you really don't mind.

You never go past the string where the melody note is, right? The way I'm picturing it is as a quick run of grace notes before a long melody note, with the grace notes strategically chosen to be on as many consecutive strings as possible. Right? If that's the case, I could imagine playing an waltz by rolling up to the longer notes and playing the shorter notes normally.

As for doing it fluently, it seems like the devil is in the change from the right hand thumb to the fingers. So why change? Couldn't you create the effect more smoothly and much more easily by doing it all with your right thumb, just stopping wherever you need to?

Speaking of thumbs, Rick: I can't remember which thread this was in (and I've just realized that the double thumb pattern I just thanked you for isn't even in this thread), but you said that if somebody really wants to get better on guitar they should learn to use the left thumb on the E and A, and that this could be learned in a couple of weeks. What do I have to do for those few weeks to develop this skill? Right now I'm not using my left thumb at all. But I have just bought a new guitar so now I'm all inspired to get better.

Thanks, Marion

Oh, and Peter... speaking as a novice fiddler, I don't believe anything can be described as TOTAL HELL that doesn't involve a bow.