How to Position Left Hand: Bass Guitar Basics
Part of the Video Series Bass Guitar Basics
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Posted by Ogical on Tuesday, 03 June, 2008 at 2:07 PM
Well double bass is one thing, but this is still annoying. Your hand position isn't the most effective to teach to beginners- the best way is the one finger per fret idea, which gives better control and makes playing the large leaps in lower positions much easier. Once again I think you should not be teaching technique.
Video Transcript
How to Position Left Hand: Bass Guitar Basics
OK, well, now we know some open strings, but those are not the only notes we're confined to on the bass. We can play any note in music on the bass guitar, at least in a few octaves. So, to get the rest of the notes we're going to have to play up on the fret board, or the finger board. What you want to do first is make a "C" with your hand, like so, your left hand, your melody hand, you're going to turn that over, you're going to put your thumb facing up, behind the neck, and these fingers should stay arched above the strings. Try to keep it narrow, we're going to be playing in open position, or our first position, so try to keep yourself between the first and the second fret with your thumb. This way when we play notes, our thumb will stay in place, we'll be applying pressure behind each fret, but the important thing is our hand has a good structure so we can reach any notes that we need to play.
OK, well, now we know some open strings, but those are not the only notes we're confined to on the bass. We can play any note in music on the bass guitar, at least in a few octaves. So, to get the rest of the notes we're going to have to play up on the fret board, or the finger board. What you want to do first is make a "C" with your hand, like so, your left hand, your melody hand, you're going to turn that over, you're going to put your thumb facing up, behind the neck, and these fingers should stay arched above the strings. Try to keep it narrow, we're going to be playing in open position, or our first position, so try to keep yourself between the first and the second fret with your thumb. This way when we play notes, our thumb will stay in place, we'll be applying pressure behind each fret, but the important thing is our hand has a good structure so we can reach any notes that we need to play.
About the Expert
Expert: Casey Cormier has been playing guitar and bass for ten years. He has performed rock and roll in NYC clubs and studied jazz at the Hartt School of Music, and now gives lessons daily. Read More
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