Left-Handers in a Right-Handed Music World

by | Nov 26, 2016 | Beginners

Left-Handers In a Right-Handed Music World

The music world is very ‘right-handed’. Almost all stringed instruments are set up for right-handed people. And it is extremely difficult for left-handers to find teachers or material that would help them. So what do you do if you want to learn left-handed ukulele?

Fortunately, lefties have several choices when learning to play a stringed instrument:

Play It Like Everyone Else

Left-handed people can choose to be part of the right-handed world and finger the chords with the left hand, while strumming with their right. This choice makes it easier later, because the left-handed person can read standard chord charts, buy standard ukulele music and learn from standard sources such as YouTube videos.

Left-Handers In a Right-Handed Music World-school

In a classroom situation, I insist on this way of playing because the students learn so much from each other. If one or two children are playing “backwards” it is confusing for the entire class. Also, if a left-handed person wants to become a multi-instrumentalist later, learning the right-handed way of doing things makes it easier to switch from instrument to instrument.

Reversing the Normal Way

Left-handed people can turn the standard ukulele backwards and finger with the right hand and strum with their left hand. Initially, this way of playing will be much more comfortable. However, these players will need to adapt all standard chord stamps and ukulele learning materials by doing a mental flip in their minds of the written and visual materials. It can be difficult to flip the chord stamps in one’s head.

Restringing the Instrument

jimi-1089298_1920Left-handed people can restring their ukuleles and finger with their right hand while strumming with their left hand. Obviously, many great artists have chosen this path. Sir Paul McCartney and Eric Clapton come to mind immediately! The chords charts and strumming patterns will probably be less confusing this way, but since I have not tried it, I am not sure how that would work.

Learning From a Left-Hander

When I initially studied guitar from a left-handed player who had a left-handed guitar, it was kind of cool. When I was facing him, our fingers on each hand were an exact mirror to each other, so it was easy for me to learn. He played mandolin, guitar, banjo, ukulele and many other stringed instruments.

He wanted to learn fiddle, but here was where he got stumped. While it is relatively common to restring “folk” and “fretted” instruments for left-handed people, it is virtually unheard of to restring bowed string instruments. My guitar teacher was frustrated because he could not easily pick up the fiddle from his knowledge of the mandolin. Mandolin and violin have the same strings, so left-hand chord and fingering shapes are identical.

How to Restring the Ukulele

I had a left-handed student who wanted to strum with his left hand and hold the ukulele in his right. We re-tuned his ukulele so that the string closest to the ceiling was an “A” string and the string closest to the floor was a “G” string. Since these two strings are close enough in pitch, we did not have to switch the strings. We switched the two middle strings and re-tuned them as well. He played the same songs as everyone else and had the same book. He simply had his lefty ukulele chord shapes on his music stand. It was a little confusing for me to look at him (in the class), but he was fine.

It’s Okay to Switch

I would say if someone is really struggling with right-handed playing, go ahead and switch them. After all, Paul McCartney and Eric Clapton have been eminently successful left-handed guitarists. Why not allow left-handed people who are really struggling to learn the way that is best for them?

If you choose to go with the re-tuned ukulele, you simply look at the chord charts as a mirror.
 
Here is a screen shot of the most common left handed ukulele chords if the “mirror” method does not work.

Ukulele chord chart for left-handed players showing C, Dm, G, A, F, D, Am, and Em chords.

The Long Range View

My advice to anyone who sees themselves as ever becoming a “multi-instrumentalist” is to learn fingering patterns in your left hand and bowing/strumming/picking patterns in your right. As a leftie, you will learn the traditional chord shapes and fingering patterns much more quickly than your right-handed counterparts. You will be able to transport this knowledge to any string instrument and learn any of them rather quickly. (I play violin, viola, cello, bass, ukulele and guitar.)

Final Thoughts

The real artistry of any stringed instrument is with the right hand-bowing/strumming/finger-picking etc. All of us have to work to master the different right-hand techniques on any stringed instrument, but it is nice to have the left-hand coordination mastered and be able to take it with you wherever you go musically.

I have lots of left-handed string students who initially struggle with strumming and/or bowing on their instruments, but after a few months of instruction the coordination is there! Then they sail ahead more quickly than their right-handed counterparts. I always tell the left-handed kids that learning to be ambidextrous makes anyone smarter because it uses more parts of your brain, and that all stringed instrument players are equally adept at the use of either hand.

Have fun and happy strumming!

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  1. Teach a Rest Position

Create a standard position players use whenever they are listening:

  • Place the ukulele flat against the body.
  • Rest the strumming hand gently on the strings.
  • Keep both hands still.
  • Look toward the leader.

Call it “rest position” and demonstrate it at the group’s first meeting. Use the same phrase consistently: “Ukuleles in rest position, please.”

This physically mutes the strings and gives everyone a clear visual signal that playing has stopped.

  1. Use One Attention Signal

Choose a signal that can be seen or heard across the room. Possibilities include:

  • Raising one hand
  • Playing a short, distinctive chord
  • Saying, “Rest position”

Explain the signal before rehearsal begins: “When you see my hand raised, finish the chord you are playing, mute your strings, and look up.”

Avoid competing with the group by repeatedly talking over the instruments. Give the signal, pause, and wait until everyone is ready.

  1. Set a Clear “No Noodling” Expectation

Many players noodle because they are excited, nervous, practicing a difficult chord, or unaware that it is distracting. Address the behavior without embarrassing anyone.

Try saying:

“Between songs, please mute your strings so everyone can hear the instructions. We’ll always give you a moment to check chords before we begin.”

Then build short, intentional practice windows into the session:

  • “Take 20 seconds to find the opening chord.”
  • “Quietly check the change from C to G7.”
  • “Let’s try that strum together once.”

Players are more likely to stop playing at random when they know when practice is welcome.

  1. Amplify the Leader, Not the Entire Room

In larger groups, a small microphone, portable speaker, or amplified ukulele can save the leader’s voice and make directions easier to follow. Amplification should provide clarity—not to overpower the players.

Test the equipment before the session, position the speaker where everyone can hear it, and keep spoken instructions short. A microphone cannot replace an attention routine, but it makes a good routine much more effective.

  1. Create Predictable Transitions

Noodling often fills uncertainty. Tell players exactly what is happening next:

    1. “Finish the final chord.”
    2. “Rest position.”
    3. “Turn to page 14.”
    4. “Find a C chord.”
    5. “Watch for my count-in.”

Use a visible or audible count-in before every song. Once players learn that nothing begins until the leader counts them in, spontaneous starts become less common.

6. Operate iPads for music.

Many ukulele groups read off iPads, and everyone buys the same app. forScore is one of the common ones, but don’t get anything until the group leader tells you which one they use. From there, the leader or the singer/songwriter shares the music by AirDrop, so everyone is reading off the same page. Corrections land with the whole group at once, and nobody is working from an outdated copy.

 

A Simple Group Agreement

At the beginning of a session, say:

“To help everyone hear and learn, we use rest position whenever someone is speaking. When I raise my hand, please mute your strings and look up. You’ll have time to check chords before each song, and we’ll always start together on the count-in.”

The goal is not silence for its own sake. It is to create a group in which instructions are brief, rehearsals move smoothly, and everyone gets more time to make music together.

 

Here’s a list of etiquette expectations from ukulele group members to make the group learning more effective and fruitful for everyone. 

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