How Left Handed are you?

[nerkoids]

Decidedly lefty. I've tried, oh how I've tried to fit in a right-handed world. Just can't do it. I applaud those who can, but me and I suspect a few other lefties on here just can't get over the oddness one feels when even holding the right-handed instrument. It won't go away. I'm the guy who tried playing the thing for like a whole week, three, four hours a day, and could not get over it.

I'm old enough to remember when scissors were impossible to use for us southpaws (not so much anymore, thankfully) Of course, I might be wrong on that. No. No, I think that was the case. Well, at least as a kid.

Anyway. I've tried and tried to play on right-handed instruments. My parents, not knowing why the student guitar they bought me would end up being used as a weapon against me by my brother, never figured it out. I couldn't figure it out.

So I learned piano and keyboards, and kept myself somewhat content with that, thinking the guitar and bass were not for me.

Then about 4 years ago, I discovered guitar manufacturers in China can make lefty in almost everything. I thought to myself... 'hey, you always wanted to learn, and it's cheap". So I got myself a purple burst telecaster from this guy who was starting his own guitar brand. Equinox Musical Instruments TL-01. It's basically the equivalent of a Squier Affinity in terms of components and overall quality, although I got a nicely figured paulownia body and an excellent satin-finished neck. Despite being ceramics, the pups were great.

Then I got bolder, and thought, well, one of my musical heros... a violin bass would be cool. So I got that. Called him Spock. Don't play him very much.

Then Ronnie, my VM 70s Jazz bass, my number 1 instrument. Then an el-cheapo S-101 P-bass copy with a great body, nice tuners and bridge and lovely rosewood, but had a baseball neck (still playable, though). Then made myself a kit bass. Oh, and thanks to a e-bay vendor and here and there for a cheap artic white body and a 28.629" scale neck, made myself a baritone guitar (after watching some demos of a Baritone Tele on youtube) Now I've got quite the tidy collection, not to mention the lovely Godin S6 acoustic guitar and a Squier Standard Strat that only recently I've begun to have affection for...

 

[ptleftybass]

Do everything lefty! All my basses are lefty and strung lefty.

 

[Michedelic]

I write, use utensils, and bat lefty, but play righty. In fact, the lefty batting stance/positioning led me to play righty, AND it made more sense to me to be fretting with my dominant hand. Rifle shooting stance is righty(which makes more sense to me, left hand in control of muzzle movement), but ambi with pistols. When I play around on drums, righty, the left hand controls the snare. I do get a bit directionally dyslectic sometimes. A bit of trivia for ya: Hendrix wrote righty. Robert Fripp is a lefty who plays righty.

 

[rufus.K]

Frip is a traitor

 

[Mildew Jones]

I don't know specifically how "left handed" I am. A lot of things I can ONLY do with my left--brush my teeth, talk on phones, eat, write...but some things I always do with my right hand--throwing a frisbee or football, pitching a baseball, dribbling a basketball--all of that I can only do well with my right hand. Is that odd?

I'm predominantly right handed, play righty, but I do throw a Frisbee with my left hand better than right, I cut food with a knife with my left hand, I naturally kick with my left foot better than right.
Ever try and play opposite your normal? If I flip my bass over, I can't even coordinate my hands together AT ALL, coordination like an infant. I can't imagine playing strung "upside down, especially as a guitar player. I've watched a couple players, Eric Gales in particular, play that way, just mind boggling. Yeah, don't Jimmy Haslip and Keith Horne play strung high to low? I'm sure that make for some interesting technique changes, slapping in particular.
MJ

 

[Mildew Jones]

A bit of trivia for ya: Hendrix wrote righty. Robert Fripp is a lefty who plays righty.

I've read numerous anecdotes that Hendrix could play left or right handed, strung either way, didn't affect his playing at all (in an interview with Janis Joplin guitar players, Gurley/Andrews).
THAT is mind boggling if true, but Jimi was a special soul, indeed.

I've heard that about Fripp as well, writes with his left. Likely he got pummeled into playing righty at a young age, I think he took lesson and all, not necess. self taught.
MJ

 

[Michedelic]

Frip is a traitor

If I understand you correctly, I guess I am also. Works for me.

 

[exidor]

I shoot gun, bow & eat lefty, I wipe lefty, hung to the left, write lefty, but I play righty. which is right to me, and encourage any youngster who is left to & wants to learn music, play righty I have yet to see a left handed piano. I'm glad I play right cuz the choice is out there! maybe I gave to much information? but the question was how left handed are you?

 

[planetdrumz]

I do everything Left handed except playing Hockey and Drumming.

The reason is that when I got my first Drum kit when I was very young I just set it up the way all my drumming Idols did, and the way I always seen drumkits set up. I never knew there was the option to set it up lefty.

And im guessing the reason for learning to play hockey left handed is that I started playing hockey very young and when I prorbably got my first hockey stick It had a righty curve, so thats how I learned.