Holding The Guitar
Sitting Positions
There are two sitting positions for holding the guitar; classical and c asual. 1. Pick up the guitar and make sure that the guitar body is supported by your leg.
2. Position yourself at the edge of your chair.
3. Ensure that your b ack is relaxed but straight.
4. Lean the guitar back towards you slightly. 
Standing Position 1. Pick up the guitar and place the strap over your shoulder. Adjust the strap so that the guitar is positioned mid-body.
2. Use your left hand to support the neck of the guitar.
3. Rest your right ha nd over the bridge of the guitar. 
Hand Positions It is important that you relax your wrists and hands. Straining them can cause injury. | Front View | Rear View |  |  | | Warning! Make sure that you never position your hand like this: 
Your thumb should never be placed this low on the neck of the guitar as it puts
unnecessary strain on your wrist and thumb. |
Fretting When you play the guitar, you use your left hand fingers to press down the strings on the fret board of the g uitar and use your right hand to pluck or strum the stings at the bridge end of the guitar. Using you r left hand to press the strings on the fret board is called fretting. Here are some tips you will need to k now: 1. Short fingernails are essential.
2. Use only the tips of your fingers to press the strings.
3. When making a chord, be sure that ea ch fingertip is placed directly behind the fret.
We will cover chords in lesson one.
4. Check each string t hat it rings clearly and is not muted or buzzing. As a beginner guitarist, it may hurt your fingers to play. This is normal. Every guitarist starts this way for the first couple of weeks. With practice, you will develop guitar fingers (hard skin on your fingertips). Holding the Pick Position the pick between thumb and index fingers like in t he diagram below: 
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