Hello fellow guitarists! Today I will be talking about the basic technique involved in playing the guitar. Guitar exercises involve the right and left hands doing two separate things at the same time. The challenge can be just that: getting the right and left hand to do those very two things at the same time! The right hand, hovering over the body of the guitar and using a pick or just the fingers, strums, plucks, or picks one or more strings. At the same time, the fingers of the left hand press down on the appropriate strings on frets on the neck of the guitar. (Note: I am describing hand movements from the point of view of a right-handed guitarist, so if you are playing a left-handed guitar, the actions of the hands are reversed.)
I will now briefly go over the mechanics to use the right and left hand. For this example, let’s assume that you will be using a guitar pick. You hold the pick between the thumb and index finger, with the pointed end of your pick striking the strings. There are 3 basic picking patterns to strike the strings: downstroke (toward the ground), upstroke (toward the sky), and alternate (down, then up). To fret with the left hand, make a loose fist with the knuckles bent. Place your thumb along the back of the guitar neck. Place the other 4 fingers on the front of the neck. The finger assignments for the left hand are as follows: index is 1, middle is 2, ring is 3, and pinky is 4.
My next blog with demonstrate several exercises that you can do to practice picking and fretting… until then, have a great musical week!
David Anderson's NAU Blog 
Hi David,
I enjoyed your guitar blog, even though I don’t play the guitar your blog was informative. I can imagine how difficult it might be to get the right hand and left hand to do different things at the same time. Good work explaining the mechanics of guitar playing.
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Thank you Judye. It is definitely harder than it looks. Professionals make it look easy, but in fact it takes years to truly become an expert.
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Hello David. Thank you for the guitar lesson. I have a bass guitar at home. It supposedly has a “narrow” neck. My had is on the small side like that of a 12 year old. How should I adapt my hand to wrap around the neck? Thanks for the advice.
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Hi Nihal, it is good that you have a narrow neck. I also have fairly small hands, and yet I can stretch my fingers to do some pretty big chord stretches. I am not sure if you can really adapt your hand. I think you have to work with what you have. However, you might consider hand strengthening exercises. I myself have not done these… my hands have gotten stronger simply by building up endurance through repetitively playing shows lasting 3-4 hours. After a while, you notice the difference.
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Getting the right hand and left hand to do different things…that’s always the trick, isn’t it. I love the guitar and messed around with it in high school. You’ve inspired me to think about taking lessons again.
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I hope you decide to play the guitar again. It is such a rewarding skill to have, be it as a hobby or performing live.
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Any tips on positioning for people with small hands and short fingers? I have such a hard time reaching frets!
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Sorry for my late reply! I am living proof that you can play guitar with small hands… it’s a matter of building up hand strength and endurance. Some people with long fingers are just lucky in that they can reach further across the fretboard. We people with small hands have to make do… even with smaller hands, you can still play amazing guitar!
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