[Lcjones]

**
I'm a sit down guitar player. In 30 years of playing, I have rarely had the occasion to stand and play. I'm sure this mode of playing has caused me to acquire certain habits in posturing my body and my guitar to accomodate comfort and playing ease.

When I stand to play I feel like I'm pretty much out of shape. I can't turn my chording wrist without a little effort and sometimes pain. I find myself in almost a hunt and peck mode for finding notes. Not all the time, but sometimes. As well, the guitar is obviously positioned differently. Even strumming is sometimes different.

I've always sat with my acoustic guitars soundhole angle more upward, toward my face. I hear the guitar much better. However, standing, I sometimes have to concentrate a little more to hear my guitar.

How about all you folks who stand and play? How does standing affect your playing vs sitting? Are you more comfortable standing or sitting? Is it easier to power your way through a song standing rather than sitting?

.... jezz wunderin'

[Stratrat]

I've noticed much the same thing. Most of my practice (acoustic or electric) is done sitting. When I play standing up, everything feels different and I don't play nearly as clean as I can when sitting. I'm strumming and fretting from a different angle, looking at the fretboard from a different angle, etc. Like you, I tend to angle the body of the guitar up toward me when sitting, and I really notice the difference when standing up - especially if I'm working on a song that I'm not yet familiar with (not as easy to see the fretboard to assist in positioning my fingers). I've adusted my strap so that the guitar is at pretty much the same height whether standing or sitting, but it's just the difference in position that throws me off.

[coldethyl]

I was until recently mostly a sit down player, that is up until I injured my back. That was about a month ago, and since then I find that sitting down with my guitar is too painful, and strangely enough I find standing with the guitar much more comfortable and much less painful.

The other day I tried sitting again with the guitar on my lap, but it just didn't feel as comfortable, so now I guess I'm primarily a stand up player.

Another good thing for me about standing is that I find I'm not looking at the fretboard as much when I play and my playing seems to be much smoother now.

[guttertrashsingalong]

i perfer standing.

[Rockerbob]

I wear a strap all the time, sitting or standing, so my guitar is in the same place either way.

[mrhev]

I've only been playing about a year now and most of my playing is sitting down with my acoustic. But I do like to practice standing with my electric on the weekends. I'ts a whole other animal. But I'm getting better at feeling my way around the fretboard so standing is getting easier. Sometimes when I sit my neck hurts from looking down so much. I've even tried closing my eyes sometimes to help with find chords without looking. I guess thats my true goal, knowing my way around the fretboard by feel.

[tomg123]

This is a timely thread for me because just recently i started standing and i play better and like it. I have never really found a comfortable position sitting, my strumming hand feels restricted unless i sit in the classical position which then makes me reach to high with my fret arm. The casual position makes the guitar a bit unstable. Standing i can hang the guitar where i want and my body feels like it has more freedom. Rocker bob's way seems good (wear the strap all the time) and i've done that, and will probably start doing that.

[CanuckTodd]

I'm a sitter. Funny though, I remember watching rock concerts and being disappointed at how the guitarists in some bands didn't move around much on stage, jumping and flailing their arms around like Pete Townsend. Now that I know how tough it is to get those chords / notes right, I have to revisit my opinion! Standing is one thing, entertaining 60,000 in a stadium is a whole other animal!

[Matty22]

i can play both, but generally sit. when im practising ans such... When my mates come around to jam (2 x guitar 1 x bass and drums) we generally all stand. for one, we feel cooler , and two the couches dont work well for sitting and playing, and you end up with a numb bum, sitting on a speaker cab :s

[T-ride]

I played at a party for my friends wife, i practiced the whole time sitting, the night of the party I was standing on stage and it was almost like i forgot what i was playing. i had to get a stool and sit. after that it was awesome but i still kinda felt like a dork.

[cshude]

I'm a sitter, but I will often do the one leg up on a chair/amp/etc. and play standing with the guitar resting on the propped leg. One day, I'll actually get a strap!

[newlite]

i like sitting.

standing im getting better at, but i still prefere siting overall

[blackcat]

i prefer to sit whilst playing my acoustic,but tend to stand when on the electric, i can't get comfortable sitting with it don;t know why.maybe because it's closer to the body and i'm use to the wider feel of my acoustic,just a guess though.

[Chris C]

Originally Posted by Rockerbob

I wear a strap all the time, sitting or standing, so my guitar is in the same place either way.

I think this is probably a great way to go. Unfortunately, it's taken me 18 months to realise it.

I've always sat down to play, so I never bothered with a strap. When I recently tried playing standing up it was not actually difficult - which I'd assumed it would be. But I did try the strap in a few different positions before I got the angles I wanted.

I mostly play an acoustic guitar with a strap that that ties around the headstock near the nut. I found that if I put the tie just above the first pair of tuners (instead of right next to the nut) I got good clearance, and also just the right angle of very slight tilt on the guitar. Surprisingly, the tie doesn't get it the way of the tuners either.

Cheers,

Chris

[Chris C]

Another advantage of a strap (which again I realised far too late) is that it can help hold the guitar in position.

When I was a complete beginner people would say "Put your thumb behind the neck", "Keep your hand off the top of the guitar", "Don't squeeze the body so hard", etc until I began to wonder exactly what I was supposed to hold the darned thing with. If I'd followed all the advice at once it would have fallen on the floor.

So you end up throttling the neck with a desperate left hand death grip... Which sort of works until you let go and change chords, which is when the neck moves a bit... So half the trouble with landing chords as a newbie is that the landing ground keeps wobbling around.

Of course, as you progress you develop the knack of some kind of voodoo guitar balance (perhaps it's a blend of sheer will-power and rock-star charisma....) but a strap could have helped in those early days.

Cheers,

Chris