To play Flamenco-style, support your guitar’s weight on your right thigh. Choose an armless chair that will allow your legs to hold a correct position comfortably. Your thighs should align with the floor at a parallel angle, but slightly inclined, your knees higher than your hip joint. This position will help you balance your guitar in a secure position. A word of warning: do not allow your thighs to slope downward from your hips to your knees, causing your guitar to slide forward. Your feet may be together or slightly apart, whatever proves more efficient for you. More important, make sure that your feet are in a position which will maximize the height of your knees from the floor. Keep your knees relaxed, at an outward angle. Your back should be straight and upright, but relaxed, in order to lessen strain. In a similar vein, square your shoulders, keeping them level.
Balance Your Guitar
Place the larger curve of your guitar on your right thigh. In most people, the outer part of the thigh is the optimal spot. Gravity, acting on your relaxed arm, pulls it downward, balancing your guitar at the proper angle. Relax your neck and shoulders. Place your right hand in the playing position by raising your forearm, bending your arm at your elbow until your hand lies across the guitar strings between the soundhole and the bridge. Relax your hand. This one thing alone will help you avoid tense muscles, which lead to fatigue. Tense, tired muscles will make practice time a chore. Relaxation, on the other hand, is the key to enjoying practice, as well as performance.
Place the back of your guitar perpendicular to the floor, but slant the neck of the guitar slightly forward, away from your left side. This will make it easier for your left hand to access the neck of the guitar, while at the same time limiting the degree that the back of the guitar presses against your chest. The backside of your guitar projects sound forward, so you will want to avoid dampening the sound with your chest.
Remember these key points:
– Do not support the weight of your guitar by your left hand. In order to move freely, your left hand must be unhindered in its movement.
– Make sure there is a gap between your guitar and your chest in order to produce a clear sound.
– Keep your upper body relaxed, free of tension.
Though it might seem awkward at first, try to maintain the proper position, keeping in mind the above guidelines. The first few times, you might believe it to be a hopeless task to both balance and secure the guitar at the same time. You will, however, be able to master the technique if you persist. Do not despair, though, if the technique proves difficult at first. For a brief time, you may need to lower the guitar so that the indented section between the two curves of the guitar’s body rests on your right thigh. Keep trying, however, to play in the Flamenco position. Over time, you will gain greater comfort and confidence as you play in that position for longer periods of time. Making sure that you assume this position will help to keep your spine straight. This, in turn, will give your right hand more strength and control, while giving your left hand easy access to play frets high on the neck of your guitar.
A word of caution here: While watching Flamenco guitarists perform, you may see some virtuoso guitarists varying their position, even altering their positions as they play. Realize, however, that these are but variations on the basic Flamenco position, a position which you must master before trying any alterations.
