![]() Just as any one chord may have several possible fingerings, there are potentially two possible thumb positions. When vibrato or open chords are played, the thumb will come back over the top of the neck. When playing barre chords or scales, the fretting hand will naturally shift to a classical position, restoring the full range of motion of the fingers and giving the strength necessary to for the barreing finger. ![]() String bending and the wide vibrato common to rock and blues are now much easier to perform, and in fact are almost impossible without the leverage provided by the thumb on top of the neck.īut even for folk/rock/jazz players the classical position will still come into play and they will move fluidly between either thumb position as required. The thumb can even used to fret notes on the low E-string. Most of the open chords and other moveable non-barre chord forms can be played very comfortably with this hand position. While this hand position is not ideal and does limit the range motion of our fingers (barre chords and scale runs are very difficult for example) there are some distinct advantages. The solution is to allow the thumb position higher up, close to the top the edge of the neck, which rotates the hand and straightens the wrist, thus avoiding wrist strain (see images below).įolk/rock thumb position – the thumb rests on the top edge of the neck (click to enlarge photo). In these playing postures a classical thumb position results in a sharply bent wrist (see centre photo above), which can cause wrist strain and/or pain while playing for long periods. Playing standing up with the guitar on a strap results in a similar position of the guitar neck relative to the players body. The guitar neck sits much lower for these players compared to classical posture. Instead, the guitar is placed resting on the right thigh, close to the body. This is primarily because modern steel-string acoustic guitars have such a large body that placing the guitar between the thighs hinders playability. This a playing posture that folk, rock, blues, or jazz guitarists rarely adopt. However, classical guitarists also use a very specific posture while playing – usually seated, left foot raised using a foot stool, and guitar between the thighs resting on the left thigh (for right-handed players). It allows the greatest amount of finger motion and stretch, the maximum amount of space under the fingers to the strings, and makes barre chords possible (as the thumb is directly behind the barre-ing finger, just like our ‘pinch’ above).Ĭlassical thumb position – the thumb is placed in the centre of the back of the neck (click image to enlarge) The classical guitar thumb position is the most effective hand position for playing barre chords and most scale fingering patterns. The first is associated with classical and flamenco guitarists, who adhere to a strict rule that the thumb must always be on the centre line of the back of the neck (see photo below). OK, so now we know what’s bad, what is a good thumb position? There are two thumb positions that we commonly see. When the thumb is lined up with our index or middle finger we have a strong and stable platform from which to work the guitar neck. This is easy to understand if you pinch the skin on your arm – see how your thumb and index finger act together to apply pressure? This action gives us finger strength on the guitar neck. ![]() Second, the thumb has moved away from our fingers, robbing them of strength. This severely cramps the fretting fingers, reducing their range of motion and speed. First, the palm of the hand pulls closer to the lower side of the neck and faces upward. When the thumb is parallel to the neck, pointing toward the headstock, two bad things happen. should never be parallel to the guitar neck. The thumb of the fretting hand should NEVER lie horizontal, i.e. The first, and most important thing is what I like to call “the rule of thumb”, because it really is all about the position of the thumb of the fretting hand (i.e. If our hand and fingers to are move freely and easily over the guitar neck our fretting hand must be placed in such a way that our fingers have freedom of motion. Getting their thumb in the right place is often the single biggest thing they can do to make playing and learning the guitar easier. In fact it’s about about how they place their thumb. By far the most common mistake I see with new students, be they novices or people who already play, is not about how they place their hand on the guitar neck.
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