Lefty beginner - learn left or right?

[EncoremMP]

Im a righty that plays lefty!! Go figure that out!

I picked up my first "righty" bass upside down and just learned without thought (did restring it the "correct" way). I WISHED someone would have said "flip that thing over man". Playing lefty makes it almost impossible to sit in on jams when you have to share a bass. And you are definitely relegated to a tiny fraction (and options) of what is available right handed. I feel I could probably take 8-12 months and be just as fluent playing right handed , but Im old and dont want to at this point. But again, really really really regret not learning right handed from the get go.

 

[mikewalker]

Ideally we should all have four basses ... righty, lefty, lefty-strung-righty, and righty-strung-lefty.
And every day we should play each of them both ways! That's eight times the bass power... might need to move up a hat size or two, but that is a small price to pay

* This message brought to you by the Ambidexterity Culture Society...

 

[Yellow Bang66]

I have a left-handed friend who has decided to take up the bass. He doesn't have any experience with guitar or other stringed instruments. He's asked me to help him find a first bass and he thinks he needs a left handed bass.

Since he's new to stringed instruments my thoughts are that he could learn on a right handed instrument just as easily but I don't know if that's true. There would be more availability and choice for instruments. Thoughts? Especially from other lefty's.

I would start righty,better choice of equipment/instruments from the start, plus when started(im RH) i toyed with the thought that my stronger hand should be fretting, my thinking my dominant hand would be more dexterous,so it should be fretting, since picking/plucking seemed to be a lesser duty, & cause hendrix was LH too, but mostly cause of Jimi! and because I started playing on an acoutic guitar it didnt really matter yet. I just couldnt flip my brain around to manage it, I'd go RH if iwas LH just cause finding a decent starting bass will be a PIA to find! that alone would be a great reason to switch.

 

[thabassmon]

I am right handed, when I first started playing I learnt on a lefty classical guitar left handed, because all I had available at the time. I then learnt to play the lefty upside down right handed and then switch to righty right handed.

I think there is an advantage of playing Righty because there are more instrument options, that is of course if you can comfortably do that. John Patitucci who is know for blazing up and down the upright and his 6 string electric, he is a lefty that plays righthanded.

 

[Basslice]

Well, I will let you all know. I am a righty, but I will start teaching my left-handed 11-year old to play soon. He has expressed interest.

I will let him hold and pluck the bass and see what his instincts tell him. I will say he plays mean piano and his left hand work is awesome. He is pretty smart. If he feels he needs to got for a lefty bass I will buy a kit and make him a cheapo!

 

[Bassamatic]

My close friend is a top guitar teacher here in LA for 40 years. He says learn righty.
1. Most left handed people are somewhat ambidextrous anyway, it is not nearly as hard as us righties trying to do lefty
2. It will be an advantage as the most dextrous hand is on the fretting, where it is needed.
3. The selection of instruments will be much larger and at much lower cost.

Just learn righty to begin with!

 

[Basslice]

Yup me too. Only things I do righty are playing bass/guitar/piano, using a knife and fork (lefty with a spoon, though) and blow my nose. Even left footed and left dominant eye...

How does a lefty blow their nose?

 

[delta7fred]

How does a lefty blow their nose?

I use my left hand.

 

[NeckPickup]

Another lefty who plays righty here. Started on classical guitar in 3rd grade, and the teacher wouldn’t hear of someone playing lefty. I progressed to acoustic guitar and then bass self-taught, still playing righty, and I have to say in all honesty that I don’t have a super fast or dexterous right-hand despite untold hours of working through method books, videos, etc. No second coming of Jaco here, but I do well enough by knowing theory and how to play tastefully, if not jaw-droppingly.

If I had to do it all over again, I would stay righty to maximize the availability of instruments, but I would also highly recommend taking lessons from a good teacher, because I’m almost positive I could have overcome my klutzy right-hand issues more easily with a good instructor early on.

 

[CaribooBass]

I have the answer to this question above all others; wisdom of the ages is about to be shown!
You and your friend go to the music store and pick out 7(Devine number here) basses you like.
Then each day you go back to the store until there is only one Left.
That is the bass you purchase.

 

[MYLOWFREQ]

Take your friend to a store and ask to play something simple on both a right and a left handed bass. One will feel more natural and easier to play. If they feel equal, a right handed bass is a smarter choice as there are more options obviously

 

[Reynoldbot]

As someone who's been playing lefty for 20 years, for the love of god don't let him play left-handed. The selection is miserable, you are forced to buy instruments from far-off lands and sight-unseen, prices are typically higher, there's never anything to play in guitar stores, and I swear people see lefty musicians as being less-skilled.

The only reason he should play lefty is if he clearly plays better left-handed and can't learn how to play righty.

 

[lug]

(starts list of lefty traitors....keeps watch on them)

 

[rejb87]

As someone who's been playing lefty for 20 years, for the love of god don't let him play left-handed. The selection is miserable, you are forced to buy instruments from far-off lands and sight-unseen, prices are typically higher, there's never anything to play in guitar stores, and I swear people see lefty musicians as being less-skilled.

The only reason he should play lefty is if he clearly plays better left-handed and can't learn how to play righty.

You also save a ton of money as the markets are somewhat closed to you.

And You must ask Yourself
Are You a bass player or collector?
These days the selection is pretty good

 

[Runnerman]

As someone who's been playing lefty for 20 years, for the love of god don't let him play left-handed. The selection is miserable, you are forced to buy instruments from far-off lands and sight-unseen, prices are typically higher, there's never anything to play in guitar stores, and I swear people see lefty musicians as being less-skilled.

The only reason he should play lefty is if he clearly plays better left-handed and can't learn how to play righty.

I've never thought of lefty's being less skilled but more for some reason. Maybe it's the rarity factor.

Another thing I thought about is video lessons. They are usually right hand based although I guess you could watch them in a mirror. Same as tab I guess, print it mirror image.

 

[BarfanyShart]

I'm a lefty who plays right-handed. I view musical instruments the same as can-openers and scissors - they are objects out in the world, they are mostly built for right-handed people, and if I want to use them I have to learn to use them right handed. It might be a little more frustrating getting started, but in the long run it won't impede his ability to play. But, you know, his perspective on it is the most important thing.

 

[Elusive1]

Ha.

Up until Covid struck I had been a regular visitor to the 3 music shops in the nearest town for the last 4 years. In that time I have seen exactly 0 lefty basses and only about a dozen lefty guitars.

So you're basically saying that in the timespan of four years, you were too lazy to explore outside of those three shops.

 

[jdh3000]

If I were left handed and was starting out, I would choose to play right handed.
The reasoning is one, availability of right handes basses, being able to go into any music store abd try out instruments. You go into Guitar Center or wherever, there may be 40 basses on tge wall out of which 2 are lefties... and two, sitting in on someone else's instrument would be possible 99% percent of the time on right handed.

An option for a southpaw woyud be learning a right handed bass upside down. Some have done this.

Honestly I see the instrument as an ambidextral undertaking ro begin with. I cannot see why it would be anymore comfortable to pluck with one hand and fret with the other in the beginning.
If I went by my dominant hand as to which was more coordinated, my left fretting hand would be clumsy.
Each hand has its learned function. I would've learned left handed bass if that was what I had gotten to begin with.

 

[Ggaa]

I'm a lefty. When I was very young I'd play air guitar or a tennis racket left handed. When I actually picked up a guitar/bass, I didn't have any problems playing righty. Maybe it helped(for me anyway)having that left hand dexterity out on the neck. Still bowl lefty, though.

 

[stigbeve]

Exactly - have you seen Michael Angelo Batio?

I'm another lefty who plays right. I'm left with nearly everything except handwriting. I forced myself to use my right when I was really little because I worshipped my older cousin who wrote right-handed.

I started playing guitar right-handed at around age 11, because that's what we had. Years ago, I thought I'd learn to play left and started, but gave up when there were no advantages to me. Plus, there are just so many more instruments to choose from...