Any tips for a lefty trying to play normal(right hand)

[trombone]

If you can "play" that 10-key so well, then you know you have made the best decision. You are aware that you can do complicated tasks with your non-dominant hand. I used to use one of those monsters, too, and am glad I am away from them.

I understand the baseball glove, but I am not so sure about the scissor thing. I can pick up my righty scissors with my left hand and use them just fine. My delicate control isn't as good but they cut just fine. (I bought a pair of lefty scissors for a co-worker, so I'm not too prejudiced!)

Keep up the good work and don't let TAS get you!

Yea, I've looked back and thought about whether I should have gone the other way at times. I think the initial phases were harder, and most people couldn't understand why some things were just harder for me ("Just play the darn thing! It's easy!" Right.) Because my right hand is becoming more and more "facile", I now tend to think of the lefty thing as a benefit. Here is what was to me a far greater challenge:

At an earlier place in my life, I trained constantly. I played hours a day, every day, seven days a week, fully aware of a saying which was attributed to Segovia: "If I miss a day of practice, I notice it. Two days and the audience notices it. After a week, the critics notice it." I daily pushed my skills and honed my craft. Frankly, I think it was bound up in a fear of failure. It was like bondage, and I quit enjoying the instrument.

After an unsuccesful run at a record deal, I took a rather long hiatus from playing and discovered something else: All that practice had locked me into muscular memories and thought patterns from which it was difficult, if not impossible, to break out. The first day back from the hiatus, I played faster and utilized more of the neck than I ever had before. Of course, I didn't play as smoothy. But I was immediately able to reach several goals I had struggled with for years. I was able to regain most of the smoothness with regular, as opposed to compulsive, practice. Since it has become clear that I won't be playing guitar as a full-time profession, I actually play better and enjoy it much more. My skills have increased smoothly from there.

What does that have to do with leftiness? Well, I guess it shows that there can be far great challenges in playing the instrument than handedness.

Bob

[buddiesorg]

I'm another lefty who learned righty. At the time, I didn't even know there were left-handed instruments ... with all the instruments in our house, handedness never came into the picture ... and we had many ... piano, guitars, violin, flute, clarinet, oboe, trumpet, trombone, and several others.

Anyway, when I wanted to play guitar, my parents said we had enough instruments in the house, and we had plenty of guitars (2 of my brothers had classicals, 1 had a steel string) ... so if I wanted to play, I'd have to play my younger brother's instrument. I'm hopelessly left-handed, but I don't recall any undue frustration ... but perhaps that's just because by the time I was 14 and playing guitar, I was used to the frustration of a lefty trying to play in a right-handed world and didn't see it as anything besides a normal part of learning a new instrument.

Six months later, at the prodding of my younger brother (his guitar lived in my room for days at a time, probably spending 70-80% of the time in my possession), my parents had my oldest brother take me to find my own guitar. At that time, my brother told me of left-handed instruments ... which I tried, but six months of playing righty 3-6 hours a day had its effect and I chose a right-handed steel string guitar.

I suppose I do have some trouble with right-hand technique (but it's gotten better after giving more attention to fingerstyle practice) ... but then, there are times when my left hand stumbles over the fretboard as well.

[poupart]

I read this thread with interest. Right handed people do not, naturally, notice how totally right-handed the world is. Tools, books, musical instruments, all designed to be right-handed.

And, yes, Pianos are right handed. A left handed piano would have the higher notes running to the left, so the melody could be played with the left hand. Pianos are designed to be played by right handed people.

Guitars are one of the few musical instruments that are actually available in a left handed version. Until I picked one up I could never imagine playing guitar. All the advice about just learning to play right handed completely misses the point. Playing a left handed guitar is a completely natural feeling. If you are left handed, you owe it to yourself (or your left handed kids) to get a left handed guitar.

I've had no problem obtaining left handed guitars. The choice is limited, sure, but they're there. I have two lefty Stratocasters, a lefty Fender DH-16, a Martin D-28, two lefty Les Pauls, and I just bought a lefty Baby Taylor.

Check out Southpaw Guitars on the web. And don't let anyone browbeat you into doing anything righty.

[buddiesorg]

Hi Lefty (appropriate name ). Welcome to the forum!

My question, though, is how about those of us (me included) who learned righty, often without any knowledge that there are right- and left-handed instruments? Ever since the first time I went guitar shopping and actually had a choice (December 1982), I felt more comfortable with right-handed guitars (and I did try a lefty at the time). Today when I pick up a lefty, I can't even chord a simple Am!

[poupart]

I guess I have nothing but admiration for left handed people who successfully learn to play right handed instruments. I had always been stymied myself. I learned to play piano years ago, but always wanted to play the melody lines with my left hand.

My main point would be that, if you are left handed and want to learn guitar, there are choices. Don't let friends or store salesmen convince you to play a righty guitar just because that's what they have in their stores.

Another piece of advice is to either buy the book "Left Handed Guitar: The Complete Method", which has chord boxes and scales transposed for lefties, or to do it yourself on a computer. Figuring out the correct right handed fingering was very difficult until I came across this book. It's pretty regularly available on eBay and at Amazon. I also construct my own reference material when I need to. It's a huge help.

Earlier posts had it well put: it comes down to what's comfortable. I never have been comfortable holding a guitar righty. My right hand just won't strum. Using an instrument made for me makes all the difference in the world.

[buddiesorg]

Well Lefty, I'm glad you found the instrument for you. I suppose perhaps I'm not as hopelessly left-handed as I thought. Of course, being blessed with having a houseful of (right-handed) instruments as a child for as long as I can remember may have had something to do with it.

I have no problem reversing the fingering in my head (I can also read and write backwards, upside down, and upside down and backwards), but the fingers on my right hand just don't know how to get into the right position! I suppose if I tried long enough, I'd get it. After all, I didn't start guitar being able to finger the fretboard with my left hand either.

Just came across this forum so I thought I'd register and once I did, I found this topic and even though the last reply was posted quite some time ago, I still had to write this...

I am a lefty and play lefty too... and I'd suggest this to all beginning left-handers... telling a lefty to play right-handed just because that way the left hand would be doing the fretting which is more difficult than strumming or picking is analogous to telling a right-hander to play left-handed...how many right-handers do that?! Yes, I look slightly odd because I have a right-handed guitar stringed left-handed and because of this the pick guard is on top of the soundhole...but I just can't imagine myself playing right-handed.....they say Allman, Dylan and Simon did great doing just this... well, I'd say they might've been even greater legends had they played left-handed...
I fully endorse what lefty said...but then this might be because I'm very strongly left-handed...there might be others who aren't... I read a pretty good rule of thumb somewhere... hand a lefty a guitar, and see how he/she holds it the first time... that'll give you a pretty good indication of which way they'll play better....