Beginner Guitar Lesson: Finger & Thumb Positions

[sillyCarLilly]

i have horrible thumb placement! It likes to hang out by the low e string... when I try the correct position the neck moves up and down and it hurts:( advice??

[MrWebon]

can anyone explaime why guitar players raise up his middle finger while playing? I CANT

[meeeshie]

THIS ONE VIDEO HELPED ME MORE THAN LIKE 4 COMBINED.. thank you so much :-))

[allsmiles3215]

Life changing. Hahaha do you have a video with tips on barre chords? I hope so haha if not you should make one (: I'm learning guitar and your videos have been sooo helpful

[beefcakejcc]

@allsmiles3215 We do indeed. You can search for "barre chords" in Youtube and it should be the first result or it may be one of the related videos on this page.

[AudiUris]

That explains a lot, thanks!

[salzford]

gay nails XD

[ELEPHANTspoon]

@salzford better for finger-picking

[SPunjabCA]

Thank you so much for the clarification! I was pressing my fingers down to the wood -______-

[DavisdeSpitter]

is it normal that i find it easier to play with my thumb all the way up? cos when i play with my thumb down my fingers cross over to the other string and muffle up the sound. help

[IkenaiKarin]

@DavisdeSpitter To position your thumb in the middle of the back of the neck of the guitar is the "classical" left hand position. Placing the finger on top of the next (or over) is the "rock" left hand position. Look at some rock guitarists and you'll see that they always place their thumbs on top of the neck. It's just because rock songs are easier to play that way. (:

[VengPouch]

Wow never knew moving my thumbb helps so much, thank you :)

[7ferret7]

Thank you so much

[annabellelovesU4ever]

OMG THANK YOU THANK YOU. I needed the thumb placement lesson so bad

[franciscoof]

this vid was revealing..! thanks!!

[animaegray]

The reason he can't really stretch his hand at 3:00 isn't really because of the thumb, but because his wrist is curved.

[animaegray]

Well, imo the thumb placement isn't so much about the thumb itself, but rather about keeping the wrist as straight as possible. The "proper" thumb placement is just that - place it in such a way so that it minimizes the curvature of the wrist to a minimum.

[Gregn604]

thanks. after playing for many years I recently developed left hand pain and suspected it was my thumb placement and I think this will help me out!

[prv9434520087]

My thumb placing problem will be solved hopefully.

[Senrir]

Shiiit should have watched this earlier

[MDeoxyRNA]

awesome video! extremely helpful. 

[nana35816]

awsome!



[MasterXxploder]

oh my god, my life was completely solved at 0:35

[MegaHarrisfamily]

All the books I have read on Guitar basics don't cover what this guy has taught - Watch out Stardom!

[totalglam27]

OMG ITS VOGAL FROM SUPERBAD :D

[haxor758]

@totalglam27 i dont see the resemblance AT ALL

[totalglam27]

@haxor758 his name is peter VOGAL, dipshit. -_-

[haxor758]

@totalglam27 ok im going to memorize movies and pretend im in them also i will say it again, he looks fucking nothing like him are you high or just a complete fucktard

[totalglam27]

@haxor758 - I JUST MADE A REMARK ABOUT HIS NAME.

go eat a dick, you bore me.

[haxor758]

@totalglam27 i also like how i didnt ask you what his name was but i simply said he looks nothing like him then u become all emo lol little bitch

[totalglam27]

@haxor758 - i never said he LOOKED LIKE HIM DIRECTLY.

then you pull out this shit about me, JUST ENJOY THE VIDEO.

[Lavampeace]

These videos are SO good! Uses multiple angles, he explain everything, and they're free. You're the coolest dude ever in my book, Mr. Guitar Teacher Man. I can't afford lessons right now and these are a life saver.

[bobopopo5]

Thank you so much! i had that buzzing problem and now i know what the problem was!

[6stringsilence]

i knew there was a more efficient way than i was doing it. hah. thanks brah. us poor people cant afford lessons

[MovieChannels]

ooooo I was confused about frets, I thought it had to be ontop of the fret and I was finding it impossible to do hand postions (hence why I looked up this video) explains alot ;D

[DarkForgottenUchiha]

A nail trimmer wouldnt hurt .

[bluffmasterreal]

one of the best guitar lessons i've ever seen.... hez just cleared the basic error that everyone makes... i've been playing for more than 6 months and i am soo thankful to peter for this video... this is really helpful.... god bless you bro

[beno2367]

grabbing the neck is way better! everyone sould, just use your thumb to play top e and maybe a

[Demoras]

@beno2367 Depends on what you want to play. When you grab the neck it's possible to fret the low E and A strings, and it's easier to bend the strings. However, grabbing the neck puts a huge limit on how much your left hand's fingers can spread. The classical thumb position makes the whole hand a lot more flexible.

[beno2367]

@Demoras true, but you can just substitute that by playing a higher string.

and using your thumb for chords means your fingers aren't confined to a bar position, they can more really freely

[aparnaiyer82]

Thanks, this is really useful, and addresses a lot of my concerns.

I have a question about the left wrist placement. After playing for a while,especially trying solos, the left end of my wrist (the one towards the little finger) hurts a lot. I dont know how to improve this. I do hold the thumb as you said, but my wrist is at 90 deg bend.

[tallyhoman911]

OMG THE THUMB THING REALLY HELPED!!! :D))))))

[jbaby007]

Question!!!!

How do you get your pinky finger to reach the 6th string so easily?!

Mine doesn't seem like it wants to go up that far or even stretch away from my ring finger. How can I solve this problem?

[RainKrewskater]

Oh my Goddess i love this man right now. My playing is soo much better.

-self taught

[grimshake]

I've been placing my thumb the wrong way, much better this way !

[RockStarsAcademy]

Rock Stars Academy voted- we like it.

[Thistis]

Very useful, thanks for sharing!

[MomCallsBrb]

I use this for Guitar Hero xD

[xzwarrior347]

thumbs up if you play the guitar when he ask you to put your fingers on the frets :D

[mustardseed1000]

very good

[hospedales]

thanks alot

[crazplayerz]

thanks so much! see how to mastering guitar in 7 days: beginnersguitar.Co.CC

[GrayGrafiti]

thx i am a beginner and now i no how to hold my guitar properly first step to being a guitarist

[cjsinister6]

most helpful guitar lesson I've watched.

[gregmgm06]

Fantastic video. Very helpful to me while trying to learn the guitar.

[SuperPavian]

But how you can play chord A with three finger on front of fret

[SolaAdeyemi]

Thanks for this. Very useful.

[jperssonisthebest]

where can i find guitar lessons for retards ?? -.-

[A3onstorm]

when i try to put my thumb low on the neck, my wrist bends at over 45 degrees and thus hurts like hell after just a bit of playing

[dennoow]

@A3onstorm Then don't do that! You have to find a way that's comfortable for you. The only real reason you have to really get your wrist behind the neck that far is when you attempt to play wide stretchy shapes, other than that, it's probably best for you to move the thumb towards you a little bit.

[sailxonxmusic]

I seriously can't switch chords when my thumb is in the middle of the neck. =\

[dennoow]

@sailxonxmusic then don't do it :p Greg Howe always says "Guitar playing should be easy". Don't worry about your thumb too much unless you're having pain or can't do anything you really like to do.

[sailxonxmusic]

@dennoow Thanks ^^

[morone91]

fat thumb i found where to place u now :D

[birnaluna]

YES!! thank you sooo much! i finnaly learned it!

[Zenon003]

what with thumb 6th string muting (C,D,A and other chords)?

[Jorgenator1]

Thanks for the lesson, the finger placement on the fret rlly helped me out

[christilee93]

THANK YOU SOOO MUCH!

i was thinking that my hans are too small to play the guitar but this has helped

[mrporkch0p]

Thanks Peter! I think this solved a lot of my mistakes.

[meeelyyyxo0x]

thanks so much!!!

[bongcool]

and this way :) deep voice

[indianguyd12]

thank you thank you thank you, best trainer!

[BW6021]

evry time i place my fingers on the chords it block the sound

[PRocker320]

@BW6021 same here.

[DearFat130]

Wow, this video was incredibly helpful. Thank you!

[hellobekahhh]

the tips of of my fingers hurt :[

thanks anyways thought ^ ^

this helped a lot

[joeman613]

My GF wants me to teach her playing guitar well, I don't know how to teach but I play a guitar....

[voidstuff]

i believe it's better to play the pick with an angle in relation to the strings... say 30 degrees angle so that the playing through the strings is smoother.

[countrypoop]

It doesn't really matter where you're thumb is. Some have their own way to play. Like Jesse Lee. She has her thumb on top when playing. Like me, I can't fully form it like Jesse Lee. just youtube "It's a girl thing" live...

[fairynita]

Thank you so much. I have been playing guitar for 13 years and now I finally know how to play properly!

[lehungquoc]

@fairynita lol you're an idiot .... took u 13years to know how to play the guitar properly lmaoooo ...................

[LastingArts]

@fairynita 14

[Saroukhwalad]

This guy is a great teacher... He seems like a loser... but he knows how to instruct guitar lessons and knows what hes talking about... When i was taking lessons, I was never told any of these hand placements and these are the correct positions.

[coolboxbueno]

@Saroukhwalad what makes him seem like a loser?

[bluffmasterreal]

@Saroukhwalad this guy is a champ.... hez really good

[panthanoor]

best and easy way to learn guitar you should try this

guitar.ibloghub . com

This is great place

[matkogrgas]

i cant believe this guy is teaching left hand positioning, this is just wrong because it isnt the hands natural position and if you learn it this iway it will take a lot of time to make it CORRECT. dont listen to this guy.

[guitarRaider43]

@matkogrgas ...So post your video of the correct positionning!

[cricketcoach21]

this info should be taught to instructors too!!

[tigerswell]

haha. he's got really nice fingers

[irox790]

This video helped sooooo muchh :)

[l8r9900]

omg! thank you this helped so much:))

[TareGintare]

this guy is incredible. those lessons really helps, it's better than any book and it's all for free. THANKS!!

[ryuzakilawlight]

could someone tell me all there is to know about hand picks coz i have no idea what they are and how their used...or holded tords the strings

[ahjing100]

This has actually helped alot!! thanksss

[willm1105]

this is actually a beginner vid for true beginners good job

[emmalatina]

Thanks a million Peter. This is great.

[Zubzub1995]

Thanks.

[DuskY1991]

What do I do if I need my thumb to mute or fret the low E string?

[horrabletypoe]

There should never be a situation where you can't mute with the tip of your index finger, or maybe your middle finger if you're playing a powerchord. Putting your thumb on the E string stops your fingers from being parallel to the frets, which makes fast runs far more difficult. Even with legato runs, the extra power gained by bent fingers can't outweigh the speed.

[DuskY1991]

You cant mute the E and A strings when playing a D chord with anything else than the thumb.

I also use the thumb to fret a D/F# chord without having to learn a new fingering.

Also, I never play powerchords, and if I do I indeed use the tip of my first finger.

I don't need speed either.

Thanks for the reply.

[horrabletypoe]

I can quite easily mute the low E and A while playing a D chord using my pinkie.

But if you're not worried about speed, by all means don't use perfect technique. It takes a long time to cement the habits, and it's not really worth it unless you're doing a lot of shredding.

[DuskY1991]

Ah, I've bever thought of that. But I can't use it because I do a lot of embellishing (D, Dsus2, Dsus4, very common way to enhance the simple D chord when strumming or picking).

Looks like it's not worth it indeed, I'm more looking at fingerstyle and I sometimes need all four of my fingers (F chord) and still need a bass note (on the low E), for which I use the thumb.

Thanks for your clarification.

[samsdopee]

omgg, thanks! :D

[Atle517]

Can someone direct me to a video who can fix my problem?

My problem is if im playing 4th fret on the E string, I find myself touching the A string to a little, so if im going to play the 2th fret on the A string, the note gets messed up, because the finger holding the fret on the E string is touching it.

[maureenroell]

dude this video is chilled man

[lummi14]

Woooow, ur thumbs so small :P

Very good introduction, thx... helped a lot :)

[midknightbluez]

Thanks a lot man...

I just started playing three days ago and I have one question. Is it okay to bend the wrist the way yours is bent from about 3:11 to 3:50...?

I tend to bend my wrist that way when I'm running through scales and it aches a little after a long practice session...

I figured this was just the product of me being a beginner and using muscles in my left hand that aren't accustomed to being used. But I just want to be sure my mechanics are proper.

[blakasassin1]

thanks i was forcing it into wood and it was hurting my fingers when i played

[CameronpaigeX]

...I have a beginners guitar book...I thought it said behind the fret, but okay.

[loiteringpalely]

Thanks so much for this video.

[rapstar0024]

thank you peter

[MenOnBirthControl]

kyke

[PolkaDottedLuv]

Great tips!

[forestsheltie]

Thank you very much, an excellent lesson for my son, a beginning guitar player.

[ArkAngelSlave]

Thanks for the Thumb demonstration. It really helps to see what I have been trying to figure our through reading.

[whatchewtakeforthat]

thank you I really learned a lot being that I've never play a guitar before. I want to larn so I recently bought a acoustic, Your instructions are very helpful. Now when it comes to holding a pick are we using the sharp or pointed end to strum or the flat round end. You only showed the pick already in hand and also when I hold down the strings onto the frets the sound doesn't seem at all like when I'n not holding it. Is this because my guitar may need to be tuned or what?

[franklinjonesii]

i hope you found out by now, but the pick is used w/ the pointed end, the base of the triangle between your fingers. an open key, without pressing down on the fret, is going to sound different. but you can't hold down right on top of the metal part of the fretboard, then it will be muted.

[lazi4ever]

omg thanks!!!!!! i kept getting buzz sounds and my fingers were not comfortable!

[BenIsAMofosexual]

same lol

[flamingo512]

thanks peter

[Bandy714]

I think I actually learned something here!

Kudos to Peter

[sidleidol03]

Dude. I just learned like so much from you in like five minutes.  Wow, you're great. I wanna watch all your videos while I teach myself. Dude no wonder my freaken fingers were killing me..I was trying to slam my finger down to the wood. Hah...

[replicated]

Quality.

[Shadow42x]

great video this helped my out a lot. I'm just starting to learn how to play and this was very helpful.

[RustKnight]

Superb, this video should really be promoted!

[GUITARISTm14]

even though i have been playing for over a year now from a gutiar teacher I always find it interesting that I can find something new just by watching these beginer videos thanks dude

[sti007uk]

Thanks for this tutorial, found it really helped.

[redmike1]

I've been learning for about nine months and only after seeing this video did I realize that I've been pushing down to hard on the strings.

I will also get my fingers closer to the frets.

Obvious when you see it and think about it, but easy to miss otherwise.

thanks,

Mike

[EdwardElric219]

Oh god, thank you. xD My uncle's letting me borrow his guitar and I had no idea how to play it at all.

[xXxMoslehxXx]

thanks man

[kaleluk31]

btw i am left handed

[purpleiris12]

i'm left handed too!

i just went ahead and learned to play like the righties do, i had to do that with violin too, i'm not sure if it makes a difference, whether or not you play with your dominate hand i mean

[kaleluk31]

well i dont wanna sound like a retard, but i think eather im not hitting the fret propperly or somthing its like i just dont have a clue where to start, i mean you said you just learned? well how did you start the first day you picked up the guitar?

[purpleiris12]

well, i kinda sucked, i knew like the name of the strings and a couple of chords, but other than that not much

[kaleluk31]

well i know nothing about playing guitars, i feel so hopless with it, i have 2 guitars but i cant play a note, i just sounds like a bunch random bum notes , i dont know where to begin, but i really want to play the guitar. i have 2 electric guitars a bc rich warlock and a brian may red special

[missmolly215]

This video was really helpful, Thank you!

[meghnarmajhi]

great tips - very useful for me

[tornadoofsouls909]

I don't think the thumb behind the neck position works well for solos. Paul Gilbert plays with him thumb all the way over the neck, and he's a god at guitar. This position feels very uncomfortable on runs, and I can play much better with my thumb over the neck. The position is awesome for chords though, I can stretch much further. XD

[Infesturmind]

These are all the things I was doing wrong...Oh my god!

Thank you so much.

[Job3rQ]

pretty solid vid.

[MrEddie89]

This was helpful. thanks :)

[LordrikZ]

this a acoustic or wat?

[AirHendrix91]

He needs to show the back of the neck more cause I don't really get the "right pad of the thumb" behind the neck when playing power chords or scales.

Do you just put your thumb straight on it, and bend it backwards a bit?

[DiamondwithFlaws]

wow! so helpful! everything he mentioned i was doing wrong, lol. I'm such an amatuer.

[ChelDarkstone]

Thank you!(: This is awesome! :D

[erikamarch1993]

my wrists dont hurt anymore! Thank you!

[selbstmacheis]

thank you (:

[12579admin]

Thank you very much

[stepony5]

this really helps thanks a lot!

[cmoore300]

hi thanks alot i had a problem with fret buzz and that help out a lot thanks brother 5 stars.

[CitronMandX]

Many thanks for clarifying these tecnical issues that so many beginners suffer from!

[childkicker]

Kool fucking awesome.... Feels better and more natural

[Keasch2142]

duuude... this really helps.

youtube never told my something about thumbs ^^

[AirHendrix91]

The down stroke and upstroke part really helps me out. Thumb placement is iffy.

Anyone know a good guitar DVD that goes over really good hand position for acoustic / electric (able to do both)?

[MadMario127]

wow dat really helped!

[SuburbanH3LL]

Thank you soooo much!!!

[talktoniny]

that's exactly my problem!!

[Adysteele]

Nice one man! You have just saved me a whole lot of hurt and pain.

Can't wait to see the rest of your videos!

[muchogringo]

wow thanks, that really helped out a lot

[monajaat]

thanks man you solved my problem

[inyourmum]

You rock Vogl. I want your guitar babies.

[Sollenus]

i fucking love you!

[PPsh5]

Really nice lessons i have lernt much from them.

[TYp6]

helped alot thanks

[bondman2004tippy]

omg! that new fret-hand positioning thingy has just explained to me why I was having trouble with playing "the sound of truth" by As I Lay Dying

[EdandRummy]

"clip your damn nails but good video any way"

his nails are grown out for finger picking, he probably plays quite a bit of classical, cuz my buddy grew his nails out when he got more into classical

[KennyKapone]

great lesson!!! now if I can only get my thumb to stop sliding up high....hahaha...thanks very informative.

[TSpector24]

When I put my first finger on the 5th fret of the 6th strng and my 4th finger on the 8th fret of the 4th string, the 4th finger slants and slides. Is it normal for beginners?

They arent straight as yours. 1st finger is fine, but the last 2 fingers when stretched go diagonal.

[xbulpup07x]

fukin great vid!!!

[CooperandBrownDog]

When I put my thumb behind the neck and try to switch finger placement when I change chords, the neck moves a little and I mess up the chord. I guess I just need to work on not pushing on the guitar so when I release my fret fingers, the guitar stays in place. Any suggestions? I just started playing so any tips are helpful. Thanks.

[n8dgr81]

clip your damn nails but good video any way

[plukap]

dudeeeeee tnx VERY MUCHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH­HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

You rule!

[yaralla001]

Wow! This really does help a lot! Thanks!!!

[punell]

Thanks!!

This helped me a lot!!

[pictochatters]

do you have to do this tumb placement for electic guitar

plz respond