Quote:
Originally Posted by Johnny.guitar
I've never really dissected it, but for me strumming feels more natural with my right arm slightly bent at the elbow. Raising the guitar too high my arm is 90 degrees or more at the elbow and fatigue sets in more quickly.
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Hmmm.... Perhaps you might look at your mechanics. My mechanics don't change at all regardless of my elbow angle. Perhaps you've got too much elbow involved in the strum? I can play for two hours straight, both strumming and picking and my right hand/arm never gets fatigued in the slightest.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Guitars+gems
I doubt your hand hurts because of the strength required to form barre chords. More likely it's just that the muscles of your hand are aching because they're being used in a way they aren't accustomed to.
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While it does make sense that basic hand strength development is an essential part of learning to play guitar well, I believe strongly that much of it is ergonomic interface of the guitar and human. I can tell you with certainty that the way my hand/finger muscles are employed with my three soft-v necked guitars is considerably different than my C shaped Taylors.
As a further illustration of how ergonomics can affect playing, I currently own 4 Stratocasters; 2 MIM, a Squier and a MIA Deluxe and have played many other Strats (and have a Tele and several other electrics as well). I have no difficulty going back and forth in terms of endurance. However,
upon trying the new Fender PROFESSIONAL Strat, it took all of 30 seconds to fatigue my hand which started cramping inside of 2 minutes. It seems the shape of the shoulder of the Professional Strat's "Deep C" neck displaces my thumb in a manner that causes undeveloped muscles to do the work. Would continued playing improved my hand strength and comfort? Maybe. But why would I continue to work with a guitar that may or may not work for me even after giving my body time to adapt? And, for further comfort and endurance, all but one of my electric guitars has had its fingerboard edges rolled which aided the comfort and efficiency of bar chords.
My point is that how the guitar connects with the human can be critically important with some players and not every guitar takes the same amount of strength, effort or endurance.