Sitting Positions

The casual position for practicing electric. Yes, elevate your right foot a bit with a footstool, or some books.

The casual position for acoustic. The right hand is positioned for pick playing, so the wrist and forearm are flat to the face of the guitar.

The steel string acoustic, classical position with the right hand in position for fingerstyle. The wrist is now elevated about an inch and a half off the face of the guitar.

The classical guitar in the classical position (what else!).

The classical position for electric. Try it, you might like it!

The classical position is more solid. I prefer it for any serious playing.

While practicing, sit to the forward part of your chair with the lower back slightly pushed in.

Fundamental aspects of technique, illustrated using classic songs you know and love (according to The Principles, of course!)

Powerful Secrets! to improve your playing!

Important info on reaching with the index or pinky, and its relation to arm position.

These are essential, and basic, techniques for the rock guitarist. Many people do them wrong, find out if you are one of them!

The classical and casual positions with electric, acoustic, and classical guitars.

There are always lots of questions about how to apply The Principles to a standing position. Here are pictures of me standing with an electric, and using different strap lengths.

Pictures of good left hand positions for various playing situations.

Video clips of the Walking Exercises from "The Principles".

Video clip of Foundation Exercise # 10, The 6 note Arpeggio".

See the proper form of this difficult chord.

There is much confusion as to the "correct" left hand position for guitar. That is because there is no such thing as THE correct left hand position for guitar!

Find out why you need to have those distal joints in shape for this chord, and also why you don't!

In 30 years of teaching, I have rarely (perhaps never) seen a left hand that wasn't crippled with bad form in one way or another, especially when it comes to doing major scales. This workshop student was no exception......

A common error in technique for students, and contributing factor to a lot of playing problems.

What does good tone and bad tone on an acoustic guitar sound like anyway?

Often, we must squeeze our fingers into some rather unaccommodating positions on the guitar. We know we are supposed to strive to get our fingers "right behind the fret" as we play, but, like so many things in life, we have to bend the rules sometimes (it ain't a perfect world!).