Cross-picking is a technique of jumping, or "crossing", strings. Strictly speaking, it follows a certain pattern, using either a "forward" or "backwards" roll with a certain number of notes per phrase. Generally speaking, cross-picking can be any phrase in which strings are skipped or in which a roll or some sort or another is played. The "floating" technique, for instance, is a variation on cross-picking in which open strings are deliberately played against fretted notes for a piano-istic sound. Cross-picking is based on Carter-style playing in which a bass melody note is surrounded by strums; in cross-picking the strum is replaced with a picked note or notes. George Shuffler, who played with the Stanley Brothers for many years is the main guru of strict cross-picking, while most modern guitarists, especially those from the Tony Rice school of playing incorporate a looser cross-picking style. Norman Blake is another master of cross-picking, using a style somewhere between Rice and Shuffler. In any case, cross-picking usually derives the "main" note from the melody and the cross-picked notes from the chord.

[see Steve Pottier and Flatpicking Guitar Magazine]