Viola da Gamba Tutorial No. 7: Left hand & arm position.

The seventh of my mini-tutorial series aimed at beginner and intermediate viol players. This video examines approaches to finding a comfortable and flexible position for your left hand and arm. I also look at how to press the string with the fingers and where to put the thumb. Again, this is only my approach - there are lots of other opinions and so my way is not the 'right' way, only one method.

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Thanks!

[gambarunner]

Your suggestion about using the weight of the L arm to pull the fingers into the frets makes a lot of sense. I come from a guitar background, and guitarists are more used to pressing with the fingers. The lower string tension and lower action of guitars makes that possible. I think I was trying to set up my viol with the expectation that it should be almost as easy to play as a guitar, using that same "pressing" technique. You very kindly answered my email and explained that the viol's action shouldn't need to be super-low. I now have a better understanding of why. Thanks!

[FrogToTheFrog]

Heya! I would assume that for third position you would shift up your first finger to where your third finger would usually be and such, correct?

[willwilkin]

So many excellent tips in a 15-minute lesson! No doubt it will take many months or years for me to actually have such fluency on the fingerboard! Thanks Sam for another very fine lesson!

[TheGambaGeek]

Thank you so much for your videos! This one was speacially helpful for me, because I have so much shoulder tension (even without the viola da gamba 😂). Your tips about shoulder and arm position are helping a lot!

[MrTituspercy]

So very helpful, all of these. I continue to work on not squeezing my left hand, but it's one of my liabilities.

[TheAnneOlga]

thanks! lovely videos … as a total newbie to vdg, coming from traverso/flute, it is most illuminating

yeah… years of work ahead!!!!

[classicalguitargirl]

As a guitarist left hand is the easier part of playing except when I do chords where I block them and want to drop the fingers all at once. Very helpful tips. The resting positon for fingers is on the fretboard and the working is raising the the fingers off. No squeezing. I like the image you used of rungs on a ladder.

[nuagatenuagate]

Super helpfull video, thanks a lot Sam!

[marcpayment]

hi, congratulations for all your tutorials, was waiting for this....I'm accustomed to use the weight of my arm playing guitar or lute, but when applying the technic with the viol, every time I lift my fingers from the fingerboard playing open strings the movement of the neck back and forth is so big that it gets really annoying to play. I can't find a way to squeeze the viol the way I easily retain my lute with my right arm and stay relax at the same time. any tip? Thank you