Left Hand Position is a free weekly video guitar lesson series by Ethan Fiks. Be sure to subscribe and check out Ethan’s official website.
Video Guitar Lesson
The battle between square and angled hand position rages on. This time, though, angled scores a solid victory. It seems the angled hand position most shows its strength- literally- in bends and vibrato. Putting a choke hold on the neck really allows you to get in and wrangle that string. By contrast, when players try to bend and/or vibrato with a square hand position, they end up pushing the string with their fingers, which can sound weak and “boingy”. This video advocates pushing from the wrist for a real walloping sound. The irony is… As you push from your wrist, your bend moves you back towards a square hand position at the peak of the bend. Some advice and exercises for developing your bends and vibrato are given here.