Originally Posted by: jongjtjt

Hi,

I've recently started learning to play the guitar.

It's going fine but there's one thing that's bothering me a lot and it doesn't seem like a very common problem as I've tried to search for it on the internet and it also never gets mentioned in the lessons.

Whenever I let go of a string - I accidently play that string.

See video. It's very clear when I let go of the E and A string.

https://streamable.com/7quem9

Are there any exercises to correct this?

Thank you.

EDIT:

Another example:

https://streamable.com/8lhqf2

Could it be the guitar?

So I've gotten to the chords part of the lessons. It's even worse switching between chords:

https://streamable.com/srffap

Very frusrating...

Looking at the videos, 2 things come to mind (to some degree, my own spin on what others have already said). See if it helps to fret and then lift finger vertically. For at least some of the notes, it looked like the string might be bending horizontally, across the fretboard a bit which may promote the string bouncing back into position when you lift off (and then therefore sounding the open note).

Also, and maybe more importantly, don't launch your finger off the string. You want to lift your finger off the fretboard while maintaining contact with the string...before releasing entirely. You release entirely after the string is back in it's neutral position. It looked to me that perhaps you are lifting your finger off so quickly that the string may be springing back into position and beyond, and then continuing to resonate from that movement (now sounding the open note). To see what I mean, fret a string and just hold it down for a moment, then lift finger off the string quickly (more quickly than the string springs back) and you will hear it sound the open note. Then, play the scale but put more space in between the notes so that you can very deliberately make sure you aren't lifting off the string until it is back in it's neutral position. Then lift off, before playing the next note. That might help illustrate what I mean...and then you can speed it up. That becomes natural very quickly. Anyway, not sure if that is what the issue is, or if it will help but those are a couple of thoughts.

Dave