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Thread: Left hand technique/Posture - My left thumb and my mandolin strap

  1. #1
    small instrument, big fun Dan in NH's Avatar
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    Default Left hand technique/Posture - My left thumb and my mandolin strap

    So when I was looking to buy my mandolin, I took the advice of Baron Collins-Hill over at MandoLessons.Com and made sure I also got a mandolin strap. And I use my strap all the time while playing, even going so far as to leave the strap on the mandolin, even while it is it its case.

    Now I didn't buy the recommended D'Addario Leather Mandolin Strap. Instead, I made my own genuine Redneck Engineering mandolin strap out of two 72" rawhide bootlaces that I wove together.

    When I play my mandolin I have the neck at roughly a 45 degree angle, with my right forearm on the arm rest and the Tone-Gard keeping the back off of my tummy.

    I keep my thumb on the back of the neck, roughly behind the 5th fret. And there's the thing, I press with my thumb until the mandolin is pulling away from my body, to the point where my strap is taught and pulling the mandolin back to me.

    I find that with the mandolin thus suspended I can run scales quickly and cleanly and produce good tone. It also keeps my left wrist straight because no other part of my left hand is necessary to support the mandolin neck.

    Does anyone else play this way?
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    Default Re: Left hand technique/Posture - My left thumb and my mandolin s

    Have a look at today’s Mandolin Monday by Andrew Collins. Watch his left thumb for a good example.
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    Default Re: Left hand technique/Posture - My left thumb and my mandolin s

    You’ve found a way to really complicate something very simple. Fixing the thumb in one place, and pressing it against the neck severely restricts your mobility, and creates unnecessary tension.


    The basic rule is: don’t place your thumb at all, let it go where it has to go. And you don’t use your fretting hand to support the neck in any way. Let it hang loosely to your side and secure the mandolin in place, using strap, points, etc. Then bring your fretting hand to the neck of the mandolin and start playing.

    Watch Mike Marshall’s d’Addario video. Notice how his mandolin rests comfortably in his lap while he’s pointing at various parts of the instrument,

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    Registered User lowtone2's Avatar
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    Default Re: Left hand technique/Posture - My left thumb and my mandolin s

    Quote Originally Posted by phydaux View Post
    So when I was looking to buy my mandolin, I took the advice of Baron Collins-Hill over at MandoLessons.Com and made sure I also got a mandolin strap. And I use my strap all the time while playing, even going so far as to leave the strap on the mandolin, even while it is it its case.

    Now I didn't buy the recommended D'Addario Leather Mandolin Strap. Instead, I made my own genuine Redneck Engineering mandolin strap out of two 72" rawhide bootlaces that I wove together.

    When I play my mandolin I have the neck at roughly a 45 degree angle, with my right forearm on the arm rest and the Tone-Gard keeping the back off of my tummy.

    I keep my thumb on the back of the neck...

    Does anyone else play this way?
    I played, or tried to play, that way for a long time. After all, that's how i was taught to play classic guitar, and that's how i play both electric and acoustic bass. Then, finally, i developed enough arthritis at the base of my thumb that it was necessary to start paying some attention to all the many instances that i had been shown correct mandolin left hand technique. If I wanted to keep playing.

    Something has to support the neck and oppose your fretting fingers, but it shouldn't be the thumb. Or not the thumb alone. Support the neck between your thumb and index finger. There are any videos that explain it, Baron cCllins-Hill dedicates at least one video to left hand position.

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    Registered User lowtone2's Avatar
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    Default Re: Left hand technique/Posture - My left thumb and my mandolin s


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    Default Re: Left hand technique/Posture - My left thumb and my mandolin s

    Quote Originally Posted by lowtone2 View Post
    I played, or tried to play, that way for a long time. After all, that's how i was taught to play classic guitar, and that's how i play both electric and acoustic bass. Then, finally, i developed enough arthritis at the base of my thumb that it was necessary to start paying some attention to all the many instances that i had been shown correct mandolin left hand technique. If I wanted to keep playing.

    Something has to support the neck and oppose your fretting fingers, but it shouldn't be the thumb. Or not the thumb alone. Support the neck between your thumb and index finger. There are any videos that explain it, Baron cCllins-Hill dedicates at least one video to left hand position.
    Were you taught to keep your thumb at some special place and to press it against the neck of the mandolin? Is that really the way you play classic guitar or bass?

    And do you really recommend supporting the neck with the left hand? I don't do that even with an A-style mandolin, without strap. Certainly there's contact between the outer joint of my thumb and the root of my index finger, but these fingers don't support the instrument. That, by the way, is exactly the way I approach the guitar and it has worked for me for 65 years (55 on mando): secure the instrument in place, bring your hand to the instrument. I tore a thumb tendon in an accident 14 years ago and I didn't have to change my approach at all in spite of the severe loss of mobility.

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    Registered User mbruno's Avatar
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    Default Re: Left hand technique/Posture - My left thumb and my mandolin s

    Your thumb should not be locked in to a specific fret but rather will move with your hand up and down the fret. Accordingly, keep your thumb about in line with your middle or first finger. If you're playing a basic A chord (2 2 4 5) for example, your thumb should be around the 2nd or 3rd fret. See the below examples

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    Also, make sure you put only enough pressure on the strings to get a clean note. If you start pressing too hard, you'll hurt your hand and lose speed.
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    Default Re: Left hand technique/Posture - My left thumb and my mandolin s

    Quote Originally Posted by ralph johansson View Post
    Were you taught to keep your thumb at some special place and to press it against the neck of the mandolin? Is that really the way you play classic guitar or bass?

    And do you really recommend supporting the neck with the left hand? I don't do that even with an A-style mandolin, without strap. Certainly there's contact between the outer joint of my thumb and the root of my index finger, but these fingers don't support the instrument. That, by the way, is exactly the way I approach the guitar and it has worked for me for 65 years (55 on mando): secure the instrument in place, bring your hand to the instrument. I tore a thumb tendon in an accident 14 years ago and I didn't have to change my approach at all in spite of the severe loss of mobility.
    No, i don't, but supporting the neck of a mandolin is not a huge deal. The big deal is providing something to oppose the pressure of your fretting fingers. On guitar and especially bass I place the thumb on the back of the neck, but the pressure comes from my arms and back. On bass I do an exercise where i lift my thumb off of the neck altogether, to make sure it isn't squeezing the neck. That's not possible on mandolin. I know that many guitarists, not me, use thumb pressure but the guitar is not quite as brutal as mandolin with it's high tension double strings.

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    Default Re: Left hand technique/Posture - My left thumb and my mandolin s

    Quote Originally Posted by lowtone2 View Post
    On bass I do an exercise where i lift my thumb off of the neck altogether, to make sure it isn't squeezing the neck. That's not possible on mandolin.
    Very much is possible - I do this to show my students how little thumb pressure matters. The thumb is a balance point and does provide some opposing pressure to make it easier to move - but you can play without it.

    And supporting the neck with your left hand can cause issues as well. Personally, I place my strap higher up so I don't need to use my left hand to hold the mandolin up at all. It really helps with fluidity IMO. To each their own though.
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    Default Re: Left hand technique/Posture - My left thumb and my mandolin s

    Quote Originally Posted by mbruno View Post
    Very much is possible - I do this to show my students how little thumb pressure matters. The thumb is a balance point and does provide some opposing pressure to make it easier to move - but you can play without it.

    And supporting the neck with your left hand can cause issues as well. Personally, I place my strap higher up so I don't need to use my left hand to hold the mandolin up at all. It really helps with fluidity IMO. To each their own though.
    The techniques are completely different. On bass you place your thumb on the back of the neck for stabilization, but opposition to finger pressure should come from the arm, shoulder, and back. On mandolin, opposition is applied either against the base of the index finger, or against the index finger and thumb, and it isn't possible to get that opposition from the back. Of course, obviously, it's best to not use the left hand to support the neck, but it's almost a minor issue compared to guitar or bass. I play mine supported on a strap, or the L&H balanced between my lap and forearm.

    The point I'm trying, not very successfully, to make is that the thumb should not be placed on the back of the mandolin neck, because unlike the bass or guitar you need clamping pressure to fret a mandolin, and that pressure should come from the base of the index finger not the thumb. It's too much for the thumb and might, based on my experience anyway, cause injury at some point.

    We're really saying the same thing, which is, don't squeeze the neck with your thumb. The mandolin is small and pretty, but it can bite.

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    Registered User Simon DS's Avatar
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    Default Re: Left hand technique/Posture - My left thumb and my mandolin s

    Right forearm to pull body in and pivot head out, no thumb pressure, just gentle super fast accurate slides, no pressure in left hand. Good luck!

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    Default Re: Left hand technique/Posture - My left thumb and my mandolin s

    Quote Originally Posted by lowtone2 View Post
    The techniques are completely different. On bass you place your thumb on the back of the neck for stabilization, but opposition to finger pressure should come from the arm, shoulder, and back. On mandolin, opposition is applied either against the base of the index finger, or against the index finger and thumb, and it isn't possible to get that opposition from the back. Of course, obviously, it's best to not use the left hand to support the neck, but it's almost a minor issue compared to guitar or bass. I play mine supported on a strap, or the L&H balanced between my lap and forearm.

    The point I'm trying, not very successfully, to make is that the thumb should not be placed on the back of the mandolin neck, because unlike the bass or guitar you need clamping pressure to fret a mandolin, and that pressure should come from the base of the index finger not the thumb. It's too much for the thumb and might, based on my experience anyway, cause injury at some point.

    We're really saying the same thing, which is, don't squeeze the neck with your thumb. The mandolin is small and pretty, but it can bite.
    The joys of communicating through text instead of live chat . As you can clearly see in my pictures, I agree on the thumb position being more on the side than the back of the neck. That said, I know I don't have "perfect" technique - my left hand does contact the neck around the base of my first finger. I've been trying to give more space and correct that, which feels good, but is harder to keep. Now that I read that sentence back, I'm not sure if it makes sense, but I'm going with it haha
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    Default Re: Left hand technique/Posture - My left thumb and my mandolin s

    Quote Originally Posted by phydaux View Post
    ...

    , with my right forearm on the arm rest .....
    What is an arm rest? I am a new mandolin player. I am finding it difficult to get comfortable.

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    Default Re: Left hand technique/Posture - My left thumb and my mandolin s

    this is my armrest, I think I have at least 3 of them, they're small works of art. I'm really fond of these and Tonegards, pickguard is something I think i like but I could probably do without that, as i did for many years.

    https://hillcountrystringworks.com/mcclung/

    if you search in the classifieds, there's a bunch of makers, different materials and heights

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    Registered User Simon DS's Avatar
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    Default Re: Left hand technique/Posture - My left thumb and my mandolin s

    Pick hand, forearm pressure is one of the biggest secrets in the mandolin world!
    And on the neck, the fret hand should use very little, if no thumb pressure.

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