Hey from New England! Finally went full leftie.


canaan.morse
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canaan.morse
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07/01/2020 3:07 pm

Hey, community,

I'm a quarantine learner, just like many of you, I'm sure. I'm a former choral and opera singer whose left-handedness always frustrated early attempts to learn side-oriented instruments - violin, guitar, etc. When I started playing around with my father's right-handed '75 Gibson Jumbo (oh, what a gorgeous guitar it was - I had no idea), he told me what other teachers told me: "It's fine, just play right-handed and you'll have a faster fretting hand." I wasn't Hendrix, and it just never felt right.

COVID hit, I thought about my other family members who are decent pickers (several of us), and I decided it was finally time to learn like I wanted to learn. I found a 1979 Alvarez Yairi DY50 leftie acoustic and got the GT discount. The frustrations are real, and my progress is slow, but I can strum some simple songs. I love fingerstyle, blues, celtic, and American folk music, and I'd like to be able to play to my kids if I'm ever lucky enough to have them.

Anyway, it's wonderful to meet you all, and I wish you persistence in your practice.


# 1
mjgodin
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mjgodin
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07/01/2020 4:03 pm

Welcome aboard. There's a few of us New Englanders around. NH here. [br][br]

Moe


# 2
moosehockey18
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moosehockey18
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07/01/2020 10:37 pm
Originally Posted by: mjgodin

Welcome aboard. There's a few of us New Englanders around. NH here. [br][br]

Moe

Hey Moe,

I live in NH as well. Near Plymouth. How about you ?

Jeff


# 3
mjgodin
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mjgodin
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07/01/2020 10:39 pm

Hey Jeff I'm in hooksett.


# 4
DavesGuitarJourney
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DavesGuitarJourney
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07/02/2020 3:08 am

Hi Canaan, welcome![br][br]

I'm down the road from Jeff and Moe, in Rhode Island. Got us a growing number of New Englanders here for sure.


It takes as long as it takes unless you quit - then it takes forever and you will never get there.

# 5
DavesGuitarJourney
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DavesGuitarJourney
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07/02/2020 3:13 am
Originally Posted by: DavesGuitarJourney

Hi Canaan, welcome![br][br]

I'm down the road from Jeff and Moe, in Rhode Island. Got us a growing number of New Englanders here for sure.

Good luck with that lefty guitar, I'm sure it will be a lot more natural for you. I know that as a righty I would give up pretty quickly if I had to learn to play left-handed but everyone seems to think lefties should just learn it right-handed because... well, because! [br][br]


It takes as long as it takes unless you quit - then it takes forever and you will never get there.

# 6
William MG
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William MG
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07/02/2020 12:00 pm

Hi and welcome Canaan,

best of luck with your studies.


This year the diet is definitely gonna stick!

# 7
mjgodin
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mjgodin
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07/02/2020 11:10 pm
Originally Posted by: DavesGuitarJourney
Originally Posted by: DavesGuitarJourney

Hi Canaan, welcome![br][br]

I'm down the road from Jeff and Moe, in Rhode Island. Got us a growing number of New Englanders here for sure.

Good luck with that lefty guitar, I'm sure it will be a lot more natural for you. I know that as a righty I would give up pretty quickly if I had to learn to play left-handed but everyone seems to think lefties should just learn it right-handed because... well, because! [br][br]

Actually Dave, I'm a lefty myself who's playing righty. It started back in my twenties when I originally was learning guitar. My instructor suggested I do it. This was back in the eighties when maybe left handed guitars were not that plentifully or maybe the instructor thought it would be too hard for him to teach me to fret chords while looking at everything in reverse. Anyway As for comfort it really wasn't too hard a transition as one would think, but I still suck no matter what hand I use.😅

Moe

p.s. I also played a lot of street hockey as a kid and even golf right handed so maybe that had an effect.


# 8
DavesGuitarJourney
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DavesGuitarJourney
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07/03/2020 1:00 am

I can see where it might be harder for an instructor to teach everything "backwards." I am so utterly right hand dominant that I don't think I could make the switch. You may have a point when I mention that maybe there were not so many left handed guitars a few decades ago.

You lefties are pushed to do a lot of things right handed from early childhood, I think. Thus, often a little better doing righty things than righties are at doing lefty things.

Keep on rockin', be it lefty or righty![br][br]

Dave...


It takes as long as it takes unless you quit - then it takes forever and you will never get there.

# 9

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