Any Left-handed Right-hand guitar players?

[Fritzjazz]

I am incurably left handed but have played guitar right-handed from the beginning (40 years ago). I have found that when playing with other guitarists that I play a little differently, slides, slurs, hammer-ons and pull-offs come easy to me. Any technique involving the left hand more than the right seems easy. And ofcourse the reverse is true-right hand stuff (plectrum) is more difficult. But I think the most facinating thing is that as a lefty playing right handed, you sound different.

Anybody else in this same boat?

Fritzjazz

[jeffstocksmusic]

I am a righty through and through, but my hero (and probably many other's) Ted Greene did the same thing you are doing. He thought it would be beneficial for having more dexerity. You are in good company, my friend.

[derek]

I have read an article on this issue that included some research. I don't recall where, but it stated that your dominant hand should be your picking/plucking hand, as that demanded greater skill at the higher levels.

The picking hand incorporates more fine motor skills, while the fretting hand was more gross motor skills. Chet Atkins was another famous lefty playing righty also.

[cosmic gumbo]

I'm a lefty that plays right handed. The dexterity of my right picking hand does not equal the skill of my left fretboard hand.

[jazzrat]

I'm a lefty playing righty. Same problem....picking hand is a weaker...I guess to be expected.

[daveg]

I believe that you are in good company - wasn't Joe Pass a left hander playing right handed?

DG

[derek]

I believe that you are in good company - wasn't Joe Pass a left hander playing right handed?

DG

I have never heard that. Not saying it isn't true.

[daveg]

Search for "left hand" on this page:

Salon

Then take a look at the rest of Tabo's site.

DG

[daveg]

Talking of Joe:

DG

[Rick5]

Hi All,

I want to bump this thread up. My son is a soon to be 6 y.o. lefty. I'm trying to decide whether to start him on a left-handed or right-handed guitar? Any input would be most appreciated! I assume each has pros and cons?

[nomelite]

The same here. I'm lefty playing as righty. Really fast in changing chords, but I tend to get tired when I play the rhythm fast with the picking hand.

[gadjo]

My stronger arm is the left but i do most of the dexterity stuff with my right (writing, holding scissors).

I assumed i'd be a lefty at first and changed my classical guitar for that. Then, after a few weeks i switched again to right hand and i stuck with it.

I've read somewhere at the time that there's a benefit in having the better hand on the frets. Seems logical as it has to do more movement and gripping for chords. Sure, i have some problems with precision on my picking but i blame that on lack of practice.

[Rick5]

gadjo,

I am definitely a right-hander. I do everything right-handed. However, I have also found picking (right hand) to be much harder than the left.

[Joe Dalton]

Eh I don't think it's a matter of right or wrong. The motor skills involved will be new to your hands so I don't think you really get much difference. I am lefthanded and play a righthanded guitar and I don't play any differently as far as I know. The difference comes from my melodic ideas, not my slurs. Just get him a guitar and he will learn.

[Rick5]

Joe, thanks. Good advice.

[P.J.]

I am incurably left handed but have played guitar right-handed from the beginning (40 years ago). I have found that when playing with other guitarists that I play a little differently, slides, slurs, hammer-ons and pull-offs come easy to me. Any technique involving the left hand more than the right seems easy. And ofcourse the reverse is true-right hand stuff (plectrum) is more difficult. But I think the most facinating thing is that as a lefty playing right handed, you sound different.

Anybody else in this same boat?

Fritzjazz

I play righty but write lefty. There are lots of "us" out there in guitarland...Fripp..Steve Morse..Nels Cline..Mark Knopfler..I'm sure lots more. I agree w/ you about the fretting hand working easier. I think my right hand has taken a lot more work over the years to keep up w/ my left.


=-) PJ

[Tom Karol]

My best friend growing up who started playing guitar when I did (Brad, you know him) was a lefty playing righty (just because left-handed guitars were hard to find). I always thought his rhythm playing was sort of stiff, and he agreed. Heck, I'm a righty playing righty, and I think my left hand is better than my right (on guitar).

[Tuff Lion]

Blessed Love to All! I too am an extremely natural lefty but play all instruments from a right-handed perspective. As an “evolving” guitarist, I offer these thoughts… I began playing when imported electric guitars started to flood the market with “mostly” right handed instruments and a very limited viewing perspective of left handed players… in the “PD” (pre-digital) era being the late 60’s/early 70’s. In my area, there were no teachers, and no easy access to ($ resources) to US branded instruments. All of the musicians I knew were completely self- taught and we shared things amongst ourselves so that we could sharpen ourselves. Shortly, in that ignorantly right-handed atmosphere, I was more or less “forced” to play right-handed. Mind that I did try to change the strings on my very first guitar but I made the huge mistake of not knowing to change the nut around to compensate for the difference in the slotting. I had NO idea that the nut could have been tapped out and reversed!

Of the bands that were on the few TV shows of that time, very few featured left-handed players so there was little visual inspiration for going/staying left until Mr. Hendrix burst on the scene. Of course there were a couple of kids who forced the issue and played right handed guitars upside down but that resulted in visual dyslexia for the right handed ones trying to learn and their rhythm patterns never sounded like it was coming from the same place.

Withstanding all of that, I kept at it because it was something that I felt compelled to do. Many years later, I have learned that, yes, my left hand can be very swift with certain movements that almost appear to be “sleight of hand” but I feel very strongly that my right hand lags because I was never properly introduced to the mechanics of playing the guitar. The fundamental element of learning music is to learn the orderly way to play scales and the accepted method of playing them with a guitar pick. A guitarist who learns to play scales formally “should” learn a picking method that requires both down and up strokes. At some time, they will feel the symbiosis of that movement and actually increase their pick control, speed and accuracy. I have learned through osmosis how this relationship works and how to make it work for me. Once I recognized the significance of that fundamental approach to how I “should” hold the pick, the rest became very easy. I had a quantum leap of overstanding how to play and “create” complex lines with scales that included rhythmic jumps (16ths etc.) during the runs. This was very exciting and the reason why it propelled my explorations is because I had more opportunity to push my left hand because my right hand was flowing so nicely. Down, up, down up is the mantra. Slowly at first, one beat at a time, then I started doubling up and so on.

I must reveal that another discovery that I use to this day and beyond to synchronize myself and warm up is the humble 4-note chromatic scale. I religiously start at F then proceed across that first grouping of frets (F-F#-G-G#), ascending from the low E to high E, then shift to a descending pattern in reverse, but up one half step (A-Ab-G-Gb). This is an exercise that invites all the fretting fingers to the party and helps to condition the ear to hearing half stepped notes pass quickly. I suggest this exercise be practiced up and down the useable fingerboard both before and after your other studies take place. If you really want to see a quick and self- verifiable improvement, do it for 15 minutes before and after daily! That’s the prescription. There is nothing better (to me) than this exercise for the introduction to picking. Down, up, down up. I offer it as fine “gold” to anyone who will accept.

Another benefit of this exercise is that it helps establish an order and relationship to counting and timing. I offer that when you get your foot working with your pick hand, that it will tell you how to find “one” (the downbeat) and that in some cases will help define time. If the tempo of a song is fast, then you can start to “see” exactly where to come in because your thinking about how that pick is supposed to swing. Dig?

In time, you can also learn how to free your right hand anchors and float across the strings with the three remaining fingers nicely curled up and out of the way. Trust me, this really works, but like anything else, you have to give it time to become a natural element of your playing, especially if you are not aware of what one “should” do. I keenly remember how corny those guys on the covers of some method books of the time looked, with their big arch-top guitars, sitting straight and the right hand poised for a strike with their hand (with plectrum) curled like a fist and suits. Funny how I feel just like them one of them now, however without the suit.

I strongly advocate a great amount of time and emphasis be placed on playing rudimentary scales with an eye on picking motion. Within the dynamic of this action, things will start to appear such as angle of attack, articulation and accuracy. When it is revealed to the player what their picking hand deficiencies are, it will also help you find a simple and sure way (repetition) to correct, compensate, adjust then excel. Know your mechanical fundamentals, you can always build on them, left or right, keeps you from being wrong.

Thanks for reading!
Tuff Lion