Correct Thumb Placement On The Neck

Technique Technique: Fretting Hand
1

A lot of people worry about where to place their thumb... but there's no set place. Hear where / when in this lesson!


View the full lesson at Correct Thumb Placement On The Neck | JustinGuitar

1 Like
2

Hey guys, i am not 100% sure if this is the right place to ask my question, but i do hope so. In case it is not, terribly sorry for that, don’t mean to spam anything out of context.

As Justin talks about thumb placement occasionally and also the technique of the fretting hand, I recognized something in my own playing. My question is not (at least i think so) about the thumb placement only, but about the angle of the fretting hand towards the neck.

I am not sure what angle is regarded as the “correct” one (of the palm), if there is any. Basically, what angle should your palm be in relation to the neck of the guitar? Is there a right answer to that?

Also, I tried to learn a couple of songs in which the thumb is used to mute the thickest string. If i do so, the flesh on my fingers mutes, at least, the thinnest string. Does anyone else have this problem. Just as a sidenote, I have pretty small hands in general, and I can’t stretch my fingers a lot as of now.

Would appreciate every tip of you guys, and thanks in advance for reading this :slight_smile: Sorry again if this is not the correct place to ask this question.

3

Hi Michael @GimmeLighta , I think the best way to get guidance on this would be to post a few pictures of your fretting hand, describing what your concerns are. Just as there is no single answer to “where is the correct thumb placement”, I’m not sure there’s a single answer to your question about where your palm should be in relation to the neck.

Regarding using your thumb to mute the thickest string: I too have smallish hands (regular sized gloves are too big for me). It’s a matter of practice and doing stretching exercises to get to muting the thickest string with your thumb. I even have the trouble you describe sometimes when I’m NOT muting the thickest string! I’ve learned to experiment with micro-adjustments to my fretting hand, and once I find a grip that works, practicing it. I’ll admit it takes a lot of patience. :smiling_face:

1 Like
4

I can remember Justin suggesting that you should imagine the edge of the fretboard (adjacent to the thinnest string) is red hot. It helped for me (also with small hands).

1 Like