Economy picking

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Economy picking is a guitar picking technique designed to maximize picking efficiency by combining alternate picking and sweep picking; it may also incorporate the use of legato in the middle of alternate picking passages as way to achieve higher speed with fewer pick strokes. Specifically:

• When picking multiple notes on a string, alternate picking (alternating between down-strokes and upstrokes) is used.
• When changing to a new string, sweep picking (picking in the direction of travel: down-stroke if moving down or upstroke when moving up) is used.
• When playing a lick, scale or pattern that would require alternate strokes or sweeps, but a few notes are spared with the use of legato.