Buc McMaster Posted January 6, 2012 Share Posted January 6, 2012 How do you play? When practising/playing/goofing around with the guitar do you prefer to stand with the beast 'round your neck or sit with the thing on your lap? Being on your feet frees you to move with what you are doing, imparting an energy to the playing that can't be had parked on a stool or chair. Those of you that play or have in the past played with bands should understand this effect. There's some kind of magic in dancing around singing and playing a guitar that's just not there when you're glued to a seat. Not to say that some fine playing doesn't happen when seated, but something different is going on when your feet are free to move you to the music. What say ye? Do you experience the same? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
57classic Posted January 6, 2012 Share Posted January 6, 2012 When playing my acoustic, I've been sitting most of the last year - primarily standing before that. The guitar sounds much more alive when standing, as the back isn't pressed so tight against you. I think you also hear the guitar differently standing. Standing does bring a freedom to express that sitting doesn't. By that I mean your whole body becomes part of the musical expression. I think I'm going to start standing again. I always stand when I play my electric. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blindboygrunt Posted January 6, 2012 Share Posted January 6, 2012 buc and his 2000 dollar tennis racquet :-D seriously though , usually i'm sitting these days . during all those years learning/ practicing many an hour was spent with me lying in bed , guitar on belly , or lying watchin a movie just making chord shapes , wouldnt be the first time i found a more interestin chord sequence than the movie . nowadays i just sit and fumble about Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
j45nick Posted January 6, 2012 Share Posted January 6, 2012 Standing is tricky with an acoustic if you are playing into a mic, since you need to concentrate on keeping the guitar in the proper position or you will drive the sound guy nuts. Electric? No problem. Do your best Pete Townshend or Neil Young imitation, and dance for your life! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tiny Posted January 6, 2012 Share Posted January 6, 2012 I think standing up is more fun than sitting down, but I feel like I can be more precise when I'm sitting down. Especially if I'm learning something new or trying to read music. And there's something relaxing and mindless about plopping down on the couch with a guitar in my lap and fiddling around. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buc McMaster Posted January 6, 2012 Author Share Posted January 6, 2012 buc and his 2000 dollar tennis racquet ?!? Yer confuzzled, brother. That was Parlourman swinging his guitar like a bat, not I! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
E-minor7 Posted January 6, 2012 Share Posted January 6, 2012 I know exactly what blindboygrunt is talkin' about – lying down watching telly is a good way to rehearse certain moves yours hands just have come around. That won't do when practicing songs though. In that case I have to sit. I spent a lot of time sitting in lotus-position while playing/writing in my time. So many years my hips suddenly told me to take a serious break half a decade back. A fairly big loss as I dig that posture, but I simply had to obey and only recently took a chance and went back – not too often, have to be careful. Standing up is a good variant and I follow the idea of feeling free as Buc talks about – plus the dance thing. Though no one sees it, it's a very fine energy to release into the universe (excuse me). But Mr. Threadhost as you already know – Sitting there on the couch with an extra guitar next to you brings an otherworldly ambiance over the scene, , , and it's better than the one you described from the local store. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
j45nick Posted January 6, 2012 Share Posted January 6, 2012 But Mr. Threadhost as you already know – Sitting there on the couch with an extra guitar next to you brings an otherworldly ambiance over the scene, , , and it's better than the one you described from the local store. I often sit on a livingroom couch in the evening with a guitar by my side. That's what TV commercials are for: to give you guitar breaks when watching NCIS. It gives a totally different perspective on the sound of the guitar from that in my normal playing position, which is perched on a high stool in the music room. It also gives me a chance to play for my wife without getting all self-conscious about it, and I actually get a little less sloppy than I am when playing alone. There's nothing like an audience--captive or not--to make you focus on your playing skills. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brannon67 Posted January 6, 2012 Share Posted January 6, 2012 I sit more and more now. I used to stand playing electric(of course).But with my acoustic playing these days, I sit. I bought an On Stage throne, with a back on it to use. I love that thing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jedzep Posted January 6, 2012 Share Posted January 6, 2012 Not being as good a player as I'd like, I'm always looking for an edge to help me improve. One thing I've found is that if your fret hand doesn't have to do any supporting or stabilizing the neck, you gain fluidity. I'm not a guitar case guy so my three acoustics and one electric hang on my living room wall from hangers I've made from 150yr old boards taken from my aging barn. I play more if the guitar is there in my face beckoning. Each of the four already has a ten dollar strap, except for the big hollow bod Guild electric which needs a padded shouldered model. Sitting OR standing, I think it helps to have it strapped on. Here's the other thing. You need to attach the strap to the balance point of the guitar where when you let it hang hands free it doesn't tip or fall forward. Neck heel pins are notorious for making you have to keep one hand on the thing all the time. I have a loop on each neck just above the nut that I bought from Neotech, that allows for easy strap attachment. I don't need to change 'em out because they're always strapped up ready to play. No need to humidify either since they're all over 50 yrs. old and all the moisture has since gone out, leaving nothing but a great woody resonance. Having that fret hand free to float has definately made me play better. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jt Posted January 6, 2012 Share Posted January 6, 2012 An easy decision for me: I'm just too old to stand for very long anymore. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dchristo Posted January 7, 2012 Share Posted January 7, 2012 I bought me a office chair for playing, when assembling,I left the arms off. so Im still kinda mobile Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BluesKing777 Posted January 7, 2012 Share Posted January 7, 2012 I have a small back bedroom that is my designated music room. I am afraid the room with all my equipment in it is way to small to stand and play without denting guitars, but if I am home alone I sometimes 'strap up' and wander around the house playing. I use to play electric guitar in bands so I know the energy transfer you are talking about! BluesKing777. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
j45nick Posted January 7, 2012 Share Posted January 7, 2012 An easy decision for me: I'm just too old to stand for very long anymore. [/quote ] Don't feel all alone. Everything else is just an excuse for me. Standing up with a guitar hanging around my neck--particularly an eight-pound electric-- just gets tiring after a while. And "a while" is getting shorter and shorter! And just for the record, at 4.2 pounds (1.9 kg), my old J-45 is actually the lightest steel-string guitar I own. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MissouriPicker Posted January 7, 2012 Share Posted January 7, 2012 I'm usually in a recliner when I'm playing at home, aside from when I'm recording. Recording and gigs are on a stool. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guth Posted January 7, 2012 Share Posted January 7, 2012 I remain seated while playing. That's pretty much always been the case for me except for the occasional rare diversion of the electric guitar nature. Pretty sure I've related this one here in the past, but I still get tickled thinking about how Townes Van Zandt used to like to relate the story about one of his encounters with Lightnin' Hopkins. As Townes told it, he asked Lightnin' why he didn't stand up when he played. Lightnin' supposedly replied that if you were really going to play the blues, you shouldn't be able to stand while playing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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