Hi everyone,
my twelve-year-old daughter is absolutely dying to start taking electric guitar lessons this summer, which I love. The twist is that she is deeply left-handed for absolutely everything she does, from writing to throwing a baseball.
I went to our local music shop, and the instructor actually recommended that she try learning on a standard right-handed guitar first, claiming it makes finding affordable instruments infinitely easier down the road. I’m worried this will feel totally unnatural and completely frustrate her before she even gets started. Has anyone else faced this tricky lefty musician problem?
Thanks in advance.
This is an incredibly common debate in the music world, and there are valid points on both sides! Learning right-handed does open up a massive world of guitar choices and prevents her from feeling isolated when sharing instruments with friends.
However, forcing her dominant hand to do the complex strumming and rhythm work can occasionally stifle her natural musical expression. If she tries a lefty instrument and it immediately feels right, you should definitely stick with her intuition. To dive deeper into how brain dominance affects musical timing and ergonomics, click here to learn more.