Lead fretting finger

[Les Fret]

Default starting finger as a matter of habit.

There should be no default starting finger as pointed out by some of the above posters.

 

[-Asdfgh-]

There should be no default starting finger as pointed out by some of the above posters.

Yes, context will dictate it in many circumstances, but if you are jamming along without any expectation of what chord changes are coming up, then it is likely that you have a preference, even if unconscious. Even where context is a significant factor then for most of us, I also expect that there are patterns of fingering we may gravitate to. It would be great to have total freedom from such, and always be entirely in the moment, listen to the requirements of the piece and be able to then finger accordingly without limits, but I know that's certainly not the case for me. I know I use some fingerings and patterns in a habitual way. Thus, as default, I'll tend to have my second finger hovering around the root when jamming along with something unfamiliar as the starting point. Maybe it's a bad habit to start there when I have no other knowledge of a piece and I should be more flexible, but I do recognise that I'm doing it, at least.

 

[MCS4]

Default starting finger as a matter of habit.

I'm not sure why folks are pushing back on this, but I can tell you that I indeed have found myself favoring my second finger/middle finger more often than the index finger as the starting finger for lots of positions. While I don't have a default "rule" on this -- and I don't read your post as suggesting that anyone should have a default rule -- I am fairly confident that if you logged all of the bass lines I've played over the past handful of years you likely would find at least slightly more lines starting with the middle finger rather than the index. It both feels a bit more comfortable for me from an ergonomic standpoint and seems to be a little more versatile in terms of moving quickly to notes both higher and lower on the fretboard.

In fact, I'm so comfortable with this hand placement that when playing a electric guitar I'll sometimes find myself playing octaves or two-finger powerchords with my middle and pinky fingers.

 

[ProbablyTooLoud]

I'm not sure why folks are pushing back on this, but I can tell you that I indeed have found myself favoring my second finger/middle finger more often than the index finger as the starting finger for lots of positions. While I don't have a default "rule" on this -- and I don't read your post as suggesting that anyone should have a default rule -- I am fairly confident that if you logged all of the bass lines I've played over the past handful of years you likely would find at least slightly more lines starting with the middle finger rather than the index. It both feels a bit more comfortable for me from an ergonomic standpoint and seems to be a little more versatile in terms of moving quickly to notes both higher and lower on the fretboard.

In fact, I'm so comfortable with this hand placement that when playing a electric guitar I'll sometimes find myself playing octaves or two-finger powerchords with my middle and pinky fingers.

Same same from me, man. Works great.

 

[-Asdfgh-]

I'm not sure why folks are pushing back on this, but I can tell you that I indeed have found myself favoring my second finger/middle finger more often than the index finger as the starting finger for lots of positions. While I don't have a default "rule" on this -- and I don't read your post as suggesting that anyone should have a default rule -- I am fairly confident that if you logged all of the bass lines I've played over the past handful of years you likely would find at least slightly more lines starting with the middle finger rather than the index. It both feels a bit more comfortable for me from an ergonomic standpoint and seems to be a little more versatile in terms of moving quickly to notes both higher and lower on the fretboard.

In fact, I'm so comfortable with this hand placement that when playing a electric guitar I'll sometimes find myself playing octaves or two-finger powerchords with my middle and pinky fingers.

I'm definitely not suggesting there should be a default! I was just noting it about my own playing, and asking for a discussion. Comments here are certainly going to prompt me to look again at how I approach unfamiliar material and the fretboard to see if I can change things up and break out of ruts.

 

[mambo4]

Absent any context, I'll fret with my index finger, until the music makes something else is desirable.
I no longer default to any "box" position, without reason