Position of the intrument - GuitarNick

By Nicola Mandorino

To play fingerpicking there is not a standard must be followed, much depends on the type of instrument you use and your body stature. Everyone has to try out different positions of the instrument until you find the right one for himself. You find in these pages some information that will help in this research.

• Standing position
  

The standing position, of course, the use of a strap and this is a big advantage, because it can easily be adjusted allowing you to place the instrument at various heights so you can discover the most suitable. Who usually plays fingerpicking the guitar does not take very high, and not the chest, but more or less to the stomach.

The diagram below shows a guitarist, seen from above, as you can see the guitar is not resting directly on the stomach but on the right hip, indeed the only way it will be stable and not undulate.
The neck should be slightly tilted upward.

The advantage of the standing position than in sitting and standing that you can adjust the height of the instrument in an optimal manner and are not forced to remain on long positions in real estate rigid, having greater freedom of movement.
The disadvantage is that the guitar is less stable and we must learn to lock it using only the point of support of the right arm and the hip.
The standing position is strongly recommended when playing big size guitar type Dreadnought or jumb, uncomfortable when seated.

• Seated position
  

Difficult to see a guitarist playing fingerpicking in the classic guitar position, that is with the guitar on the left leg and foot rest to raise your leg. This position is certainly the best for the stability of the instrument and the accessibility of frets and is excellent for general fingerstyle, maybe played on classical guitar, but it's not just the maximum for fingerpicking. There are some peculiarities in the technique using fingerpicking type of palm muting and use of thumbpick which as we shall see in the third level of the course, make this location unsuitable.

Generally if fingerpicking guitarist sat playing the guitar rests on the right leg, it can rest directly on the ground or be overlap on the left leg, the handle should be in this case upwards. Some guitarists also use the strap to better stabilize the instrument while playing seated.
This position offers the advantage of making the guitar more stable as it rests directly on the leg.

At this point it is up to you to experience different positions of the instrument in order to find the one that makes you feel more at ease. If you feel at ease and able to perform the songs in a clean and smooth means that the position you found is correct.