pima guitar society

P.I.M.A. Explained

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PIMA In Detail

In Guitar playing, the fingers on the right-hand (the picking hand) have specific names. The letters that represent the Thumb, index, middle, and ring fingers are: P-I-M-A(e).  

P = Pulgar/Thumb

I = Indice/Index

M = Medio/Middle

A = Anular/Ring

E = Mignolo/4th (pinky)

Reading the PIMA Legend:

P = Thumb: The thumb, is mostly used to play bass notes. Moving in a down motion only. Some flamenco players and some bass players train using an up-down motion with the thumb.

I = Index: Because most guitarist are best playing with “I” instead of “M” or “A”, many guitarists play the melodies of songs with “I” to make them more pronounced.

M = Middle: The middle finger is not typically used by itself. M usually is played in the context of a pattern (such as P-A-M-I). It can be very useful to practice playing loud and clean with “M” in case you ever need it for strong melodic or accented note.

A = Ring: The ring finger, while being used in plenty of music, is used the least of the four digits. To develop its strength, I recommend playing scale passages using “M-A” instead of “I-M”. Remember, you will need a confident “A” when trying to make a beautiful tremolo.

E = 4th/Pinky: As already explained, this is a lesser-used element in working with PIMA, and is not included as its original acronym in theory, because it is not 100% necessary to use this finger.

However, it makes learning the art of PIMA much easier, because it provides an extra template-based acronym that makes a standard six-string guitar much easier to follow with the added acronym letter. Here is the breakdown on the average template-based use of the letters. Usually, the following strings are played in conjunction with the letters used in the acronym, but this is not always the case. It depends on the style of fingerstyle being played.

• The P (Thumb) is used mostly on the Low E string and the A string of the guitar. Depending on the complexity of the pattern, it can also be used as an anchor on the D string, if only the highest few strings are used.

• The I (Index) is used mostly on the D string, but can also be used by more intermediate to advanced guitarists on the A string as well. This depends on your ability (or lack of ability) to use the thumb as a major anchor point.

• The M (Middle) is used almost exclusively in conjunction with other acronym letters but is generally played on the G and/or B string on the guitar.

• The A (Ring) is commonly played on the B and high E strings. This depends on your usage of the E (4th/Pinky) and how well you are able to actually play with your 4th finger.

• The E (4th/Pinky) is an additional acronym letter that generally ‘bonuses itself’ (adds ) into the overall acronym, much like the use of the Middle finger. It rarely plays alone. This acronym letter can be applied to the B and high E string when playing the appropriate strings listed above.