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Playing Position

Lesson 3/63 | Study Time: 5 Min
Course: Open Tunings
Playing Position

Playing Position

It is essential that a correct playing position is used when beginning fingerpicking guitar. The basics of guitar technique include seating, holding the instrument and the correct position of both hands.

Seating

Sit towards the front edge of a chair with your right leg raised. Adjustable footstools can be purchased at most music stores. Experiment with the height of the footstool and chair until you reach a comfortable seating position.

Holding the Guitar

The guitar is secured at four points of the body. The right thigh, the forearm and the chest. The guitar should rest flat on your thigh and not lean backwards. Angle the guitar slightly upwards as shown in the adjacent photo.

Right Arm Position

The right forearm is positioned over the body of the guitar so that the right hand is in position to pluck the strings. The elbow is positioned at the edge where the face of the guitar meets the side.

Left Arm Position

Your left arm should not be close to your body nor be pushing away from your body. It should be able to move freely up and down the entire fretboard.

Brett Duncan, Peter Gelling and Justin Williams

Brett Duncan, Peter Gelling and Justin Williams

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Class Sessions

1- DADGAD tuning 2- Dropped G Tuning 3- Open G Tuning 4- Open A Tuning 5- Open D Tuning 6- Fingerpicking Technique 7- Open E Tuning 8- Open C Tuning 9- More titles by LearnToPlayMusic.com 10- Dropped D Tuning 11- GLOSSARY OF MUSICAL TERMS 12- INTRODUCTION 13- Tuning the Guitar to Itself 14- Tuning the Guitar to Itself 15- Using Chord Diagrams 16- Tuning the Guitar to Itself 17- Tuning the Guitar to Itself 18- Tuning the Guitar to Itself 19- Tuning the Guitar to Itself 20- Tuning the Guitar to Itself 21- Using an Electronic Tuner 22- Playing Position 23- The Major Scale in Open D Tuning 24- Tablature 25- Basic Chord Shapes - Open C Tuning 26- Acoustic Guitars 27- Chord Shapes - Open E Tuning 28- Chord Shapes - Open A Tuning 29- Hand Technique 30- Power Chords in Open G Tuning 31- Chord Shapes - Dropped G Tuning 32- Octaves 33- Picking the Strings 34- The Major Pentatonic Scale in Open G Tuning 35- Bar Chords - Dropped G Tuning 36- The Major Pentatonic Scale in Open D Tuning 37- Acoustic-Electric Guitars 38- Tuning the Guitar To Itself 39- The Minor Pentatonic Scale in Open G Tuning 40- Bar Chords - Open C Tuning 41- Finger Names and Numbers 42- The Minor Pentatonic Scale in open D Tuning 43- Using Octaves in Open G Tuning 44- Power Chords in Dropped D Tuning 45- Harmonizing Melodies in Thirds 46- The Blues Scale in Open D Tuning 47- A Word About Fingerings 48- Pick and Fingers Technique 49- The Blues Scale in Open G Tuning 50- The Minor Pentatonic Scale in Dropped D Tuning 51- Harmonizing Melodies in Sixths 52- The Blues Scale in Dropped D Tuning 53- A Word About Open Strings 54- The Blues Scale in Octaves 55- Chord Fingerings in Open Tunings 56- First and Second Endings 57- The Dorian Scale in Dropped D Tuning 58- Chord Shapes - Open G Tuning 59- Chord Shapes - Open D Tuning 60- Octaves 61- Octaves 62- Bar Chords - Open G Tuning 63- Bar Chords - Open D Tuning

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