BASICS: posture
Posture is a very important aspect if it comes to developing skills and chops on the guitar.
Here are some basic principles:
1. Posture
You should sit on the front edge of a chair or stool. The guitar rests on the left thigh near the body, its neck pointing slightly up.
Your spine should be relaxed but straight. You should feel no stress in your back while playing. The use of a foot bank is recommended
2. Left hand
Only your thumb and fingers touch the neck! The fingers fret the strings, and your thumb builds a soft counter-pressure. The Fingers should be slightly curved to gurantee the right pressure on the frets.
Only use as much strength as necessary. Strenght is the enemy of speed! Keep every motion as short as possible, shorter motions can be executed much faster than big ones!
3. Right hand pick
Hold the pick between your thumb and angled index finger. The picking motion when playing single notes emerges in the wrist. When playing chords over more than 3-4 strings there is also motion in the arm. Remember to keep all motions as small as possible without sacrificing sound! The wrist rests slightly over the brindge when playing single notes or powerchords, similar to holding a pen. This way you gain accuracy and reduce the amount of motion.
4. Right hand fingerpicking
The arm rests on the upper edge of the guitar-body, the wrist is slightly angeled. When playing, you only move your fingers, not the whole hand. You should touch at least one string all the time, to maintain orientation without looking at your hand.
For lefthanded people: simply exchange "left" with "right"!
