Hand placement is
essential to getting a good start on the guitar. That old saying, practice
makes perfect is not quite right. It should be PERFECT practice makes perfect.
The thing about learning an instrument, any instrument, is to develop good
habits right from the beginning. If you start off on the wrong foot, or in this
case hand, you'll be back tracking to correct bad habits later on just so you
can play the way you want to play. TRUST ME, THIS HAPPENS TO EVERYONE WHO
DEVELOPS A BAD HABIT, so don't develop them. Sound good? Sweet, let’s look at
hand placement then.
All this stuff is
important so read it all.
The Wrist
Keep your wrist as
straight as possible. This is important
to avoid fatigue so you'll be able to play longer but even more important for
avoiding carpel tunnel and tendinitis down the road. You don't want any of
that. Obviously it can't be avoided all the time but try your best to be
mindful of that. There are going to be points when your fore arm is going to be
tired but if this is happening too often, too early then watch your wrist; that
might be the issue.
The Thumb
Lock into place at a
position that allows your fingers to roam free. Lock your thumb into your palm and keep your
thumb knuckle locked into place. Your thumb should look like a hook, curled
back and locked. You want to keep your thumb a little off the center of the
back of the neck and at a 45 degree angle. A good position would be in line
with you index finger but experiment with what gives you range in your fingers.
Your thumb will move up and down on the neck and that's fine. Keep it locked
and firm.
The Fingers
Leave enough space for
roaming. You should be able
to see the line where you fingers meet your palm when you look down the strings
(in other words, part of your palm should be past the fret board). That will
allow your fingers to have all their range on the fret side of the neck.
There should be about a
finger thickness of space between the bottom of the neck and your palm. This
too helps with the range your fingers will get but it will also help you press
on the strings without having your fingers touching strings they shouldn't be
touching.
You fingers should be
parallel to the frets (those metal bars that run up and down the fret board).
Here are a couple of good videos on
the subject that all mention what I have talked about here.
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