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Left-handed players - how do you play?

K

kianpdx

Feb 19, 2012
5
0
Portland, OR
#1
I've been fooling around with the bass for a handful of months now (no previous instrument experience except knocking about a little with the piano when I was a kid).

I've found it easier so far to play a right-handed guitar upside down - left-hand plucking, right-hand fretting. I've seen lots of suggestions (by right-handers, no doubt!) to learn to play like a right-hander - right-hand plucking, left-hand fretting.

The few people I've played for or asked for help from, it's been fun to watch their faces as they try to figure out what I'm doing and where the notes are. I've also noticed it's been helpful for learning because I pay far less attention to the "use your left-hand to..." or "play the bottom string" directions, and more to whether I'm supposed to be working the E-string or G-string.

I had a chance to try out a left-hand guitar the other day in a store - designed for left-hand plucking, right-hand fretting. I was sorely tempted to get it, more so I could lend it out and watch the right-handed player's face as he tried it out.

Left-handers - what ways have you tried to play? What works for you? Why? What kind of reactions do you get for the way you play?
 
#3
I'm left-handed but play "right"... ie right hand plucks the strings.

My suggestion: pick up your bass and play it the same way you pick up a baseball bat or hockey stick or golf club and swing it... in other words.. do it the way that feels right. IMHO much easier to restring the guitar than your brain. Jimi Hendrix would agree with me I think...and I don't think he worried too much about the looks he got, either. :-)
 
#5
If you go to learn double-bass, you will probably learn to finger notes with your left and pluck/bow them with your right.

I went this route because in 1982-3 when I started playing I figured left-handed guitars would be rare and expensive. I get a bonus in articulation from the fretboard side of things, and I have to work harder from the right-hand technique side of things.

And guitar-shopping is a lot easier for me. For me it was a win all around.

As for the reactions I get from my playing: I'm frequently nicknamed "Geddy Jr." That's a nice reaction.
 
#7
I'm not in the club since I'm a righty who plays "righty". Like many of both persuasions however I do wonder why righty's play the way we do. On the face of it I would think that you would rather fret with your dominant hand. The advantages of doing it that way seem even greater when playing instruments in the violin family. There is no way I could change easily now and the selection of "left handed" instruments sucks anyway but if I were a lefty just starting out, I would certainly try a "right handed" instrument for a while. I'm not secretly trying to change anyone's handedness, just wondering if in fact we rightys have it wrong in this case.

Ken
 
#8
I'm predominantly a lefty. I say predominantly because my strong hand differs depending on what I am doing. I play bass, write, shoot, play hockey, golf, hold a fork, and swing a bat lefty. I kick, throw a ball, bowl, and box righty.

I tried to play a left handed bass, but it just didn't click. For whatever reason, I like having my left hand as my fretting hand, since it gives me more control than I could manage with my right
 
#9
Like many of both persuasions however I do wonder why righty's play the way we do.
Click to expand...

The plucking hand is the "control" hand. When I first picked up a guitar, I held it with the neck in my right hand and the plucking was to be done with my left hand. It was very natural.

I had to re-train my brain to do it the other way. But I couldn't even contemplate going back after over 25 years.
 
#10
When I started no one told me it was way harder to find a lefty instruments ( like a lefty DB ). Because when I started, one way or another it would have been the same to me.

After 4 years of playing, learning etc I wanted to go to college in music and where I went ... I didn't have the choice but to play classical DB ... right handed !!! It was hard and I hated it, but I kept at it because I wanted to play right handed since I had a hard time getting what I anted lefty. I also must say that I like a lot classical music and jazz and so well ... a lefty is impossible in most cases.

But when I finished my degree I stopped playing DB and concentrated myself again on the electric until this year when I finaly bought a NS NXT and converted it lefty. I'm back at something that I love a lot whitout all the frustration.
 
#11
khutch said:
I'm not in the club since I'm a righty who plays "righty". Like many of both persuasions however I do wonder why righty's play the way we do. On the face of it I would think that you would rather fret with your dominant hand. The advantages of doing it that way seem even greater when playing instruments in the violin family. There is no way I could change easily now and the selection of "left handed" instruments sucks anyway but if I were a lefty just starting out, I would certainly try a "right handed" instrument for a while. I'm not secretly trying to change anyone's handedness, just wondering if in fact we rightys have it wrong in this case.

Ken
Click to expand...

It is more natural to do the rythm with your dominant hand. You also don,t have to focus on what your dominant do while you look at your fretting hand gymnastic.
 
#13
Hi kianpdx,

I'm a lefty, playing lefty, who has invested a lot of hours, on multiple occasions, in trying to switch over to playing righty. (both on bass and guitar)

Never worked for me.

What I have found is that while my left hand is great at fretting, my right hand cannot function rhythmically at a satisfactory level, period.

I have heard this same observation from many lefty-playing-lefty players, as to the dominant hand being needed to pluck/pick/slap at sufficient tempo and rhythmic "tightness".

Heck, even Steve Morse, probably one of the most famous lefty-playing-righty guitarists (and an absolute virtuoso at his instrument) remarked on having the same problem with his right hand!

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If Steve Morse has this issue, what hope for us mere mortals?


All that being said, the only right answer is the one that feels right to you.

Left/right handedness isn't a black/white thing. It's a continuum. Some lefties are really lefty (raises hand). Some have a greater degree of ambidexterity.

From what you've posted of your experience so far, I suspect that playing lefty might be the better option for you. If holding the bass left-handed feels significantly more "correct" for you than the other way around, this is a good indicator.

The question isn't "can you, as a lefty, be good at playing righty". I'm convinced the great majority of lefties can be. The real question is "what compromises will you make in your playing ability if, as a lefty, you play righty." For some, the answer is "minimal". For others (me), the answer is "significant".

As far as string order goes, there are several very good bassists out there playing lefty who have the strings "strung righty" with the biggest string closest to the floor. Nothing wrong with that, and you can do some really cool stuff with that configuration, but realize that there are practically no books, videos, or other teaching aids that accommodate that configuration, so you will have to "remap" everything in your mind.

One other thing that playing righty-upside-down gives you is access to many more basses, if you don't mind the controls being by your elbow.

On the other hand (ha!), lefty basses are much more common than they once were, and much easier to find.

Regardless, don't let equipment availability be the determining factor in your choice.

I hope this helps.
 
#15
Lefty playing righty here as well!
But very weared - I learned accoustic guitar lefty-style and bass a couple of years later righty-style - So I can do the one that way, the other the other way :) It is a nice gimmik on stage but it is real!

I have trouble grabbing chords with my left hand on bass while it is no problem for my right hand, but I cannot play finger-style bass with my left hand. While playing with a plek is nice with my left but not with my right. A lot of trouble in the end, and a lot of practicing... Luckily I do not like playing with a plek anyhow :)

@Buxtehude: You are in Sydney, but are you aware that there is a small town near Hamburg (Germany) which is called like your nick? ;)
 
#17
kianpdx said:
Vince - not too worried about any of it.
Click to expand...

:bassist: Rock on!!! :bassist:

maxgrant said:
If you go to learn double-bass, you will probably learn to finger notes with your left and pluck/bow them with your right.
Click to expand...

Hmmm... this gives me pause... 'cause I might wanna take a run at double bass a la Christian McBride some day, and I can tell I'd want to bow with my left hand for sure. Dammit!!!! :crying:
 
#18
Well, I'm a lefty. And I'm quite left-handed too. I do most if not all things like that. I was forced to play acoustic guitar right handed in a guitar class in high school. I could do it fretting wise (for the most part) but when it came to picking it was disastrous. I still got a high mark though. Other than that, I've always played left. Even when I was young I'd grab a guitar like that. Mind you, buying new instruments sucks like that. Harder to find (not as bad these days) and almost always more expensive (that really sucks, it takes no more work to make a lefty than it does a righty).
 
#19
I am a left-handed player, and the best advice I ever received was "play whichever way feels natural." Well meaning instructors, musicians, and salesmen alike tried to convince my folks that it would save money and heartache in the longrun if I played right handed instead. They let me choose ten years ago and I am more thankful the older I get that I chose to play lefty (even if I do have to pay a premium)
 
#20
I'm also a lefty playing righty. Most basses I see in stores are right-handed basses, so I didn't want to limit my options by only playing lefty. My fretting hand (left) is my dominant hand, so it actually feels more natural this way. However, I think it really depends on what you started with. I would probably feel differently if I started playing lefty and then tried to switch to righty later.
 

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