There is NO WAY that pinky is going to make it to the boardwalk!

[Ivan Kelsall]

First off,get the neck from out of the crook between your thumb & first finger - it shouldn't be there. If the neck is touching the web of skin between your thumb / finger,you're limiting your fingering ability. Bring your hand over the top of the fingerboard to a more vertical position. Now rest your thumb against the side of the neck & try the same chord shape again.

Have a look at this YouTube clip & you'll get my point :- https://youtu.be/T8T1E5RgHyU .IF all else fails,use the "G" chord shape that i use (out of preference),that'll solve one problem,but you'll need to get that pink moving one way or another at some point,
Ivan

[James Miller]

FWIW, was resting the neck in the web of my hand there as my thumb was sore.

Thank you ALL for the suggestions. Will work towards a better play style.

[Mark Gunter]

Another good position discussion video



Ivan's excellent video link embedded

[Al Trujillo]

Here's something that might help. I think they hang you from it for several hours each day.

https://www.universalmedicalinc.com/...ositioner.html

[Jim Garber]

The only problem with Mike Marshall's video is that IMHO the fretting hand position he shows is fine for single string or even double stops but I do think you have to reposition the fretting hand for those 4-finger chords.

I am not sure if this helps but here's how I do it. my thumb ends up more or less in that position but not with a tight grip, more relaxed. I don't know if that is optimum for everyone or if that is what the best mandolin teachers recommend. I would also guess that for different players with different hands you may need to experiment for the best way to do it.

I have to say that it is more difficult for me to take a photo of my hand position than to actually play it.



BTW whatever you do, don't follow the hand position on my avatar. That is the dreaded Jethro Demented Chord®.

[Grommet]

James-
Much good info already given but...Try this. Bring your left elbow to the side of your body/dragon. Raise your left hand and pretend you are holding a violin under your chin. Now look at your fingers. You should see plenty of pinky reach available. It will take awhile to get to where you can use it, but others have given good suggestions. Remember that the full four fingered G chop chord is a good goal, but it is mostly bass, so chopping 75xx will provide the essential parts. Remember to use only pinky and ring finger when doing so to get them compliant. When you are ready to advance plant the g and d strings first, then the a and e. Also as mentioned above start playing this chord up the neck 4 or 5 frets till you can play it well, then move it down to G position. This will likely take several weeks or a bit longer. Have fun!

Scott

[J.Albert]

OP:

You're holding it wrong.

The neck should not be "cradled" where the base of your thumb is.

The first joint of your thumb (going down from the thumbnail) should be resting against "the bass side" of the neck. In other words, you're holding the neck "too low in your grip".

The treble side of the neck (kind of where the fingerboard edge is) should be about where "the base" of your index finger is.

In the pic above, your hand position on the treble side is "about there".
But you've got to reposition the instrument -- kind of tilt it outward -- so that the base side of the fingerboard "rises up" and comes into contact with the upper part of your thumb.

See the pics in post 28 above.

[James Miller]

No way are any of my fingers THAT long. Okay, maybe all mandolins should have a note placed on them: If you have short fingers stick with a Ukulele.

[pops1]

While I can do the 4 finger G, I don't. I will fret starting on the G string 452X. I don't need the E string and get a better chop if that is what I am after with this fingering. Don't need the pinky, I think this has been discussed here previously.

[Ivan Kelsall]

James - I'll make an admition here - It was the sight of some of those mandolin chord shapes that put me off buying one a long while back,although over here, i'd have hard a hard job finding one back in the 1960's. I honestly don't know why it should have put me off, i'd been playing banjo with it's much larger fret spacings for over 4 years - maybe it was just the 'cramped up' look of 'em ?.

I use the "G" chord shape that i posted,simply because to my ears,the lower "C" note on the G strings 'barks' more & i just like it more than the regular G shape,
Ivan

[Bertram Henze]

What's wrong with 0053?

[James Miller]

What's wrong with 0053?

The idea was to go from 2 fingered to 3 and maybe 4 fingered chords. However I lack having long fingers compared to what examples I've seen.

[Johnny60]

I can play the big 4 finger G chop chord, but often do a 2 finger variant if I'm jamming all night, that gives 90% of the tone, same chop, and doesn't give my tendons any problems. It's 755x - second finger on the 7, and 1st finger barring both the D and A courses on the 5th. Don't hit the E.

Much good advice already mentioned by others about not resting the neck right in the "webbed" part between the thumb and first finger. Make sure, also, to keep your wrist straight and relaxed at all times.

[Jim Garber]

No way are any of my fingers THAT long. Okay, maybe all mandolins should have a note placed on them: If you have short fingers stick with a Ukulele.

James: my fingers are not that long. They are pretty average, but I have been playing mandolin for a few decades.

[sblock]

Well, judging by the photos, your hands look to be quite a bit larger than mine. I have exceptionally small hands (for a man), and have extra room inside men's size small gloves, where my fingers never reach the tips of the gloves. The span from my pinky to thumb on the left hand is less than 7.5". Despite this, I can routinely reach the large G-chord (7523) on a standard (13-7/8" to 14") mandolin scale. It's all about proper technique! I see from the photos you posted that you tend to press the base of the palm of your hand up against the back of the neck, and also that you wrap your thumb around it. That's all wrong, and it prevents you from making the needed stretch. Straighten your wrist a bit, so that the base of your palm moves well away from the neck. The thumb should slide down a bit and contact more of the side of the neck, and not wrap around it. And finally, practice, practice, practice until getting into position happens faster and faster. There is no reason why you shouldn't be able to make this chord, and many others. I have no intention whatsoever to transition to ukulele, and neither should you. Nor do you need to bail out and play alternative G chords, as some have suggested. Just stick with it, and it will come. I speak from personal experience!

[sblock]

What's wrong with 0053?

Well, a couple of things are 'wrong' with it, assuming that's even the right word to use (there is a school of thought that there are no 'wrong' chords; just poorer-sounding ones). First off, 0053 is really a double double-stop, and not quite a chord. It has two G notes and two D notes (the musical fifth), but lacks the third (the B note). It sounds like a drone, or 'power chord'. You can play it over G-minor just as easily. And a similar issue holds for 4523 -- it's yet another double double-stop (it lacks the 5th, or D note). Both these chords sound rather insubstantial to me. At least the gold ol' two-fingered 0023 has all three notes (G, B, D) in it! But second, the open strings tend to ring on, making 0053 hard to chop percussively, unless you actively mute the two lower strings. 7523, on the other hand, has all three notes in the real G chord, and it lends itself very well to chopping, which is why so many bluegrass musicians like it. But, of course, there are many alternative chord forms. The optimal choice depends on the musical setting. But many mandolin players routinely use 7523, in addition to other forms, and there's no reason the OP should not add it to his playing arsenal.

[JeffD]

OP:

You're holding it wrong.

The neck should not be "cradled" where the base of your thumb is.

I have found this to be a big issue for me. Many times when I am having trouble reaching something or accomplishing some riff, I see that the mandolin is resting on the palm of my hand and my wrist is bent. Most of my "problems" seem to evaporate if I correct my left hand.

[dadsaster]

Isaac Perlman comes to mind. He had thick, stubby fingers that didn't seem to effect his playing. The first thing you need is belief that it is possible.

[Mark Gunter]

The first thing you need is belief that it is possible.

+1

[catmandu2]

Most of my "problems" seem to evaporate if I correct my ... (ergonomics/hand position)

This is of course true for any instrument. It's why ergonomics are Lesson(s) #1, and grand that OP is asking these questions/analyzing. Some instruments will yield injury with poor ergonomics, others poor tone production, etc. Is very easy to slide into poor ergonomic habits. Above all, this is where at least initial/introductory study with a (proper) teacher is warranted.

[Mandoplumb]

Isaac Perlman comes to mind. He had thick, stubby fingers that didn't seem to effect his playing. The first thing you need is belief that it is possible.

Believe it possible. I can't ain't ever done nothing

[Bertram Henze]

[otherhobby]

years ago playing violin, my instuctor taught us to play with an cloth ball in our fingering hand, in the palm it gentle pushed our hand out a improve strength after a while the fourth finger was no problem

[CES]

Bertram, that’s my non-Biblical mantra. My dad was a defensive line coach, and a close second to Yoda’s quote is, “Get your a$$ in gear, boy!” Both are very applicable to whatever aspect of life you’re dealing with...

[sbhikes]

If you feel you need to hold the instrument up with your left hand, you should wear a strap, even when sitting.