Are you playing a classical guitar and want to play in the classical position? Does your guitar have strap buttons? My classicals don’t and they aren’t common on classical guitars.
I never found a strap comfortable, especially in the highly angled position typical of classical style. That is why I went to the lift. I even have a lift for my electric (which I haven’t used in ages).
With short legs it was hard to find a seat low enough. My inseam is maybe 27”, so I need a seat at about 15-16” height. You need to search for those.
I have been using a SageWork lift which is great, but now I am trying to sell it to move to a Woodside lift. I like that style better.
I’m playing a Taylor acoustic so the strap should be no problem. I’m gonna try rock position instead of classical for now. Time will tell if I try classical position again. Just trying to find comfort where it’s “easier” to get my body to relax — far more challenging than I ever would have expected.
Interestingly, I went with the classical position for my shoulders and neck. Then I started classical guitar. I really could not stand or accommodate the “cowboy” position over the right leg. It really felt like a struggle.
But… as I have been playing longer (3 years now) I find it is easier and easier to play in ways I never liked before. Now, if I don’t have my lift, I can still play. I think I am just getting more and more comfortable as a player, these things are less important.
Soooo looking forward to that point Joshua! I’ll let you know how the “cowboy” position works out. I was finding that I was always tense so I’m taking a step back and thinking about posture, guitar position, and staying relaxed.
As a couple of responses above indicate… it adds stability and I find that I am less tense knowing that the guitar isn’t going to fall. I can hold it less firmly which makes me feel more relaxed while playing… which means I’m not as tired at the end of the practice session.
When I’m sitting back & relaxing on a couch, my posture is terrible but again I don’t have to worry about dropping anything so I get that same feeling… but I find that my back & shoulders are sore afterwards!
Thanks for all your advice @Jamolay@sequences@CATMAN62@ericmfarmer !! I’ve been using my strap for a few days now, and I’m loving it. It has really helped with staying relaxed while keeping the guitar stable. It’s a win all the way around. Plus, I’ve been playing around with my son’s electric guitar, and I’m finding it easier to play especially chords. I may have to get one after he takes his back. He’s on a 5 week rock climbing trip so I’ve got some time to play with it.
I’ve been practicing for about 8 weeks and I’m still trying to figure out how to properly hold the guitar in a sitting position. I’m using a dreadnought acoustic guitar (so it’s a little bulky.) Should the guitar be flush against the front of body or should the neck of the guitar be moved forward so that the guitar makes an angle with the body ( making the guitar angled to the side of the body instead of flush with the front ) . Also , should the neck be pointing up or is it ok for the neck to be parallel to the floor. I tried to elevate the neck higher but I can’t find a good position to do that. The only way for me to get the neck higher is to elevate my right foot but then the guitar sits high above my chest. I wish there were some photos from different angles especially looking down from the top so I can see how it sits against the body.
Hi @GeneK, whatever feels comfortable to you and allows you to play with relaxed shoulder and arm, without over bending your wrist, is a good position. There’s not one and only correct position.
I used to ask myself this question: I think the answer is for most people the guitar angles away from the body. In my case, it’s probably at least 30 degrees, maybe more.
It’s funny, earlier today I realized I the wrist pain/carpal tunnel like symptoms I was starting to get was because I was leaning the guitar up so I could so where my fingers were
Wow, that’s a great discovery for you, especially as you begin a new course of learning. It’ll probably serve you well, in that you’ll be very aware should you start experiencing discomfort that it’s time to figure out the cause before it becomes a problem (or a bad habit!). I’ve been at this a bit more than two years now, thinking I was doing everything correctly, and recently had to do a review of both how I was holding my guitar (I’d slipped into some bad-for-me habits!) and how I was using my strumming/picking hand.
Hope to see you around the community! It’s a great place to share learnings as you did here, and to ask questions. We have lots of eager helpers!
A lift of some kind can help. It depends on a few things:
Is your leg supporting the guitar keeping it from sliding down? This is generally knee height compared to seat height.
are you using a strap even when seated?
Can you sit comfortably with a leg lifted (back/hip discomfort)?
You need to position your chair to be a comfortable height with your feet on the floor or footrest as you choose. Your knee of the supporting leg will need to be high enough to keep the guitar from sliding unless you have a strap.
Some folks have trouble with their hip being out of symmetry with a single-foot rest and that can cause back or hip trouble, so be aware of that, and correct it if you notice it.
Using a strap is often a reasonable approach to keep the guitar in place. It can be similar to the position you’d have if standing, which is useful for familiarity. I find I don’t like a strap as it needs to be a little different for sitting than standing, and I often want to have the guitar in my lap quickly after sitting down without working the strap. I grab and play for many short durations daily and the strap will be a hassle in my case.
Hi. I think this is my question too - it’s about the angle the guitar makes with the vertical plane of your chest i.e WHEN VIEWED FROM ABOVE. I read your reply, but can you give an indication of what range of angles is accepatable / good practice. I find mine is about 45 degrees, which i feel may be too much. Thanks, (another) Richard
45 degrees does seem a little too far.
Giving an angle isn’t so easy because it may not be static but move a little as you play … perhaps between 10 - 30 degrees.
