LEFT HANDED GUITARS
When it comes to playing guitar, only 10 percent of guitarists play left-handed. Much like everything else, guitar is typically geared towards right-handed people. But that’s not a reason why you can’t learn to play guitar left-handed. That never stopped legendary left-handed guitarists like Jimi Hendrix or Paul McCartney from mastering their craft and setting the bar for future musicians.
DOES A LEFT-HANDED PERSON NEED A LEFT-HANDED GUITAR?
Every guitarist is different -- regardless of whether they’re left-handed or right-handed. Left-handed guitars are made with lefty players in mind. On a left-handed guitar, the Low E string (the thickest string) is the one furthest to the right. On a right-handed guitar (the most common type of guitar), that Low E will be the very first string on the left. A left-handed guitar is made so that a southpaw can hold their guitar neck with their right hand and use their left hand to strum.
Similarly, a left-handed guitar also reverses the placement of features such as volume and tone controls, switches, and tremolo bars so that lefties can easily access them to lend more colour to their playing.
But is it necessary to buy a left-handed guitar? Can you restring a guitar to be left-handed or simply play a right-handed guitar upside down? Of course you can! Some guitarists -- such as Jimi Hendrix and Albert King -- simply restrung a right-handed guitar to invert the strings or played a right-handed guitar upside down.
LEARN TO PLAY GUITAR LEFT HANDED
Part of learning to play guitar is learning the lingo and using a variety of tools -- such as chord charts and tablature. These tools provide players with diagrams and “shorthand” as to where to place their fingers on the fretboard when playing a piece of music.
One of the biggest benefits of playing a left-handed guitar is that all of the chords and tabs you’ll see online will be the correct way around. If you, as a lefty, decided to restring a right-handed guitar or turn a right-handed guitar upside down, you’d have to mentally invert chord charts and tabs in order to place your fingers on the correct frets. Using a left-handed guitar made with your needs in mind eliminates the need to seek out specific left-handed guitar tutorials and tips. If you’re playing a left-handed guitar, all of the chord charts, tabs, and tips will be just as relevant to you as a new player as they would beginner right-handed guitarists.
In short, a left-handed guitar helps you to level the playing field and make your musical journey a lot easier, giving you access to the same tips and tricks as your right-handed counterparts.
