How different life would be without plectrums ... well okay, so perhaps they aren't the be-all and end-all of the music industry, but they are definitely very useful! They are, of course, little sort-of-triangular plastic, metal or celluloid shapes used for strumming and picking at guitar strings, both electric, acoustic and electro-acoustic! Plectrums (or 'picks') come in   squillions of different thicknesses to suit their purpose and to slightly alter the desired sound. I've seen makeshift picks created out of old train tickets, bits of plastic and card, and some famous musicians such as Jimi Hendrix have been known to use their toenails and teeth to pluck strings with, to show off their dexterity and skill (or cos they couldn't be bothered to go and buy a new plectrum ...). One very important thing to know about plectrums is that you need to keep an eye on them, because they have a tendency to go AWOL ... GG

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