Fingerstyle content:
I have short thick (fat) hands and fingers. I watch Youtube videos of the great players, both steel and classical and I'm constantly envious of the long thin shapes of most of their fingers, their larger (longer) hands and the reach of their span.
So I have to make do with what I have. I know I do not have the control and flexibility in my left (fretting) hand that I should for someone who has had a guitar in the house for almost 60 years. That comes from doing what you want to do, not what you need to do.
The other day I found the video below. I have seen (and tried) the first exercise in the video on other websites and tried to do it without any success. (always muting strings).
This time around I could actually line my fingers up on the fretboard without feeling like a fish out of water and come down on top of the strings. However,
I could still not do part of the first exercise, playing the 6th down to the 1st without muting the strings. Going from the 1st up to the 6th is doable.
My hand hurt a bit from trying. I couldn't try too many times. I kept trying the next day (last night) and it seemed better. I will keep trying. I'm trying to keep my thumb lined up with the 2nd finger and coming down on top of the strings.
After working on the exercise I practiced a piece that I have been working on and I felt more confident on the classical fretboard than I have felt for a while. I'm going to try to work on exercises like this at the beginning of my practice sessions and see what happens. Who knows, maybe at my age (68) I can still learn how to play properly.
Every so often I remember Segovia, who did not have hands that anyone is envious of
Mine are much like his.
The video: