Articles

Where should my thumb be when playing guitar?

Where should my thumb be when playing guitar?

The proper placement of your thumb should be at the back of the neck, opposite your index finger. Sometimes your thumb will be around your middle finger, but that’s fine too. The key thing to remember is that your thumb should generally be pointed upwards, almost perpendicular to the neck of the guitar.

How do you position a fret hand on a guitar?

The thumb of your fretting hand should rest behind the neck of the guitar placing it approximately between your first two fingers. Make sure to bend all your knuckles (1st, 2nd and 3rd). Use the tip of your fingers to press down the strings and place them as close to the fret as possible.

Why does my thumb hurt from playing guitar?

Your thumb hurts because you are pushing your thumb backwards on itself in order to support your hand position on the neck. The only way forward is to practice bar chords as much as you can, and your thumb and hand will eventually become stronger. Hope this helps.

Is it bad to use thumb on guitar?

In the classical guitar world, using your thumb is (in most situations) considered bad technique. not so much for rock or jazz or anything else though. Well as a general way of playing…… it’s not consistent with common practice.

Why do fretting hands hurt?

Gripping with the fret hand can make the muscles in the wrist and forearm compress as well, and over time this compression can lead to chronic tension and pain. Many people work too hard when strumming or picking, and overwork the muscles of that arm as well.

Where does the fretting hand go on a guitar?

As I said in the previous article, the fretting hand is your left hand (unless you’re playing a left-handed guitar. In this case it’ll be your right hand). The thumb is placed behind the neck and commonly do not participate directly in playing. The fingers press the strings against the frets.

Do you bend your thumb on the fretting hand?

Very often guitar players bend their thumb of their fretting hand behind the guitar neck. Don’t do it: keep your thumb straight. This is the fix for guitar students who complain that their forearm starts hurting after a while of fingering chords. More often than not, the solution is in straightening out the thumb.

Where is the thumb supposed to be on a guitar?

The thumb of the fretting hand should NEVER lie horizontal, i.e. should never be parallel to the guitar neck. (See photo below) When the thumb is parallel to the neck, pointing toward the headstock, two bad things happen.

Which is an example of the fretting hand position?

This fretting hand position is very common for playing blues. Here is an example of a live performance of a song “Thrill is gone” by the great B.B. King. As you can see most guitar players are holding their fret hand at an angle while jamming. Before you start watching, I’d like to draw your attention to another important detail.