Reply With QuoteI’m left handed and use to play guitar in my youth never once tried playing it right handed
My 5 year old grandson wants to learn guitar. Some folks have said to teach him to play right handed as they find it easier (more choice of instruments and not too hard to master)??? Any left handed guitarists on here who would like to chip in before I spend my hard earned???
I’m left handed and use to play guitar in my youth never once tried playing it right handed
Duane Allman, Joe Perry, Knopfler and Gary Moore were all lefties who played right.
If I was a lefty starting from scratch again, I'd play right handed.
I thought a lot of people use a right handed guitar upside down and re strung to start with.
Has he tried to strum a guitar already?
My son had guitar lessons when he was young, he is left handed but naturally picked up the guitar and set up to strum in a right handed position and played that way. He also naturally plays golf right handed.
I’m left handed but play right handed. It always seemed the logical thing to do and I feel it gives me an advantage in using my dominant left hand for the fretboard?
Nevertheless, I’m a fairly mediocre guitarist so pay no attention to me…
Luckily nobody tried to teach Jimi Hendrix to play right-handed…
^^^ This ^^^Originally Posted by FazerBoy
My son’s right handed but has left Hemiplegia so has to play left handed. A reversal of what your grandson would be doing. He’s been playing for a year with no lessons and is sounding like a proper guitar player.
Give your grandson a cheap guitar and see how he prefers to play. You can always restring it the other way if that turns out to be easier for him.
If you do that with an acoustic you'd throw off the intonation, ie you could tune it with open strings but notes would be flat or sharp up and down the neck. That's why the saddle is angled and shaped to avoid this. The string/saddle contact on an electric can be individually moved back and forth to avoid this.
Edit. This video from Ted Woodford shows a right hand to left hand conversion and may be of interest.
Last edited by magirus; 13th April 2023 at 08:47.
F.T.F.A.
I've been playing left handed for about 25 years and have never had an issue finding the correct guitar. Sure, there are fewer to choose from but I've managed to build up an eclectic collection of great instruments. My brother also plays left handed and has had the same experience.
Some great answers here folks. More to ponder. I did my initial "learning" on a cheap and nasty guitar in the 1950's and after trying a "good" guitar, swore that I would never buy a poor quality instrument again! I know now that you can get good, cheap guitars now, so the quest is ongoing!
I'm left handed but play golf / cricket / hockey and guitar right handed, never really seen it as an issue (as started by picking up a mates guitar which was right handed) and in my limited experience lefties are generally a bit more balanced when it comes to "handiness", its not as if the other hand (whichever way) is doing nothing....
I’m sure that I’ve read that both Hendrix and McCartney did it because left handed guitars were so difficult to find.If you do that with an acoustic you'd throw off the intonation, ie you could tune it with open strings but notes would be flat or sharp up and down the neck. That's why the saddle is angled and shaped to avoid this. The string/saddle contact on an electric can be individually moved back and forth to avoid this.
Edit. This video from Ted Woodford shows a right hand to left hand conversion and may be of interest.
The better acoustic guitars have internal bracing designed for the handedness so if you swap a righty to a lefty, even if you do the bridge work, you still have the wrong bracing and your guitar could warp as a result.
If it were me, I’d play righty every time. It may feel weird to begin with but when you’re starting out it all feels weird anyway. Then there’s dominant hand doing the fretwork which is a big bonus, more gear to choose from, better value retention etc. Very little reason to play lefty, other than the initial weirdness, which is fleeting anyway.
there are some guys that just take right handed guitar and play left handed without bothering to re-string. Absolutely bonkers to watch them play.
I would advise any lefties starting out to play right handed.
Oddly enough I'm right handed but started out playing leftie as my most dexterous hand did the tricky chords and my left hand just went dang dang dang!
I saw my friends playing the other way round and as we borrowed each others instruments I switched to righty.
Cheers,
Neil.
Jimmy Cliff is thus talented . . .
Some others shown here -
______
Jim.
Always makes me laugh when right handed people suggest lefties learn right handed. How do they think they'd get on being forced to play left handed?
There's plenty of good quality lefty stock for any level, no need to handicap him from the outset.
As said above, strumming and plucking is fairly easy with the right hand (for a left handed person/ left dominant) and the chordwork/fingering (most demanding) is more easily managed with the dominant/dexterous left hand! (In theory!).
Both good points.
But a potential problem I see with learning to play left handed is when a left handed player goes to someone's house, pub, gig, whatever and someone offers them a guitar to play 99 times out of a 100 they won't be able to.
I'm a left handed guitarist and can confirm this is not the case. Just trying to help!
I can’t see it would make much difference. When you’re first starting out playing a guitar is alien anyway, what does it matter if it’s this handed alien or that handed alien?
Although, come to think of it, I bet my piano is left handed. That would explain why I really struggle to play it being a righty.
Last edited by Groundrush; 13th April 2023 at 16:23.
Because one way feels more alien than the other. People don't play left handed just to be awkward..
I'm afraid I have to strongly disagree with both these points.
The polarity of a left handers brain is entirely opposed to that of a right hander, which is something that cannot be rectified with practice. We do not just prefer to use our left hand as is common belief among many right handers (I'm not saying that's the case here).
Centuries of evolution have engineered us this way and I think that to learn in a manner that is counterintuitive to this will not only hinder progress, but also ultimately limit ability. With the selection of guitars available to lefties today, unless you are looking for original vintage guitars from the 50's and 60's, the manufactures have caught up with the need to produce quality left handed models.
Have she tried to hold a guitar yet? I’m left handed but it was natural for me to play the guitar right handed, I never even thought about playing it left handed. Maybe she is the same and you won’t have all this angst?
Surely there’s an argument that says stick an inflatable guitar in his hands with his favourite song playing and ask him to strum along in the most comfortable way. If he goes left- get him a lefty. If he goes right etc
Certain things are just natural in the way we perform them. No right or wrong way of doing them. Whatever works for him is the answer!
I’m right handed. I write with my right hand, any sport involving a bat, racket or club i I play right handed. I surf regular footed, not goofy. I played football and could use both feet but was better, stronger and more accurate with my right foot. I deal cards left handed though - cannot deal right handed. Go figure
I cannot switch with any fluidity from a D chord to a C and to a G left handed (so with my stronger, more dexterous right hand) just not happening. I have tried.
Get him an electric that works for him and if he does want to change hands- it’s an easy restring and check intonation. It can always be played unplugged.
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The little dude is 5! Probably want to play the trumpet next week.
Are you teaching him or a music teacher that maybe has some learner instruments.
I know with my kids they had the chance at school to try a few different instruments, and then borrow one for a bit until they were committed.
Also at the time the music shops offered a rent to buy model so if it wasn't for them you could cut your losses.
Aren't electric guitars quite heavy - could a five year actually lift one?
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Last edited by xxnick1975; 14th April 2023 at 08:18.
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