Your fingernails make a big impact – literally – upon the way you play Flamenco guitar. The impact of your fingernail is the very action which causes the string to vibrate. Each fingernail, therefore, must be long enough to produce a clear note with a penetrating sound. Do not, however, allow your nails to grow so long that they hinder the ability of your fingers to move easily. To gauge the proper length, note how they touch the string when you play apoyando and tirando. The fleshy part of your fingertip will barely touch the string before the string is hit by the projecting end of your fingernail. Just this light brush of your will help to guide your nail onto the string, itself not making a significant contribution to the sound. Your nails, on the other hand, make an essential contribution to the characteristic Flamenco sound, producing a brilliant ‘attack’ that so excites its hearers. With respect to the thumb, however, sound production requires both nail and flesh, as you have previously learned.
Take care, however, that you do not become a ‘nail-neurotic,’ as do some guitarists who make nail care an all-consuming passion: they talk fingernails, think fingernails — perhaps even dream fingernails. Nail care is not an intimidating or difficult pursuit. Your nails will need careful shaping and strengthening to meet Flamenco’s demands on them, but you will find that time devoted to their preparation and protection pays dividends in greater enjoyment and progress. You should soon be able to discover a routine which makes little demand on your time, yet results in nails which are ideal for playing the Flamenco guitar.
Shape the ends of your right-hand nails (as well as smoothing any projecting irregularities on their playing surface) by using a fine-surfaced emery board and fine sandpaper. Finish your nails with the finest grade sandpaper or emery board. Never use coarse abrasives, such as metal files. Give the tips of your nails a final polish, rubbing them against a piece of leather. Some professionals use the back (not the sides) of a matchbox for this final step.
Look at your nails, their palms facing you. Your nails should project about one-sixteenth of an inch (1 – 1.5 mm) beyond your fingertips. If you hold them up to the light, you will get an even better view of your nails’ translucent tips. As you progress, your own playing style will dictate making slight modifications to this rule. You may want, for example your little finger’s nail to be longer than the others, since its extra length can make up for its shortness relative to your other fingers. It is only used for rasgueos, so you can afford to bend the rule here. It is crucial to shape your right-hand thumbnail correctly, particularly on the side where it makes contact with the string. This will aid you in striking your flesh and nail together. Observers often are surprised by the length of the rest of the thumbnail. This length, however, helps the thumb to produce a good sound, particularly in upstrokes in the alzapua technique, which you will learn at a later time. With respect to your left hand, keep your fingernails rounded smoothly and rather short. Do not shorten them too much, however, since these nails need to give a firm backing to your fingertips, allowing you to produce a string sound in the technique of ‘ligado,’ or ‘pulling-off.’
