Thumb, elbow placement for proper legato technique...

[curiousgeorge]

Just wondering where you guys put your thumbs on the back of the neck when doing legato, and if it stays in the same spot when you are moving across the fretboard (up and down) ,especially for big stretches. I also want to know how many of you guys dig your fret hand arm's elbow right into your side to make those wide stretch or awkward legato manouvers...I play on the left leg when sitting and wear my axe fairly high...I've attached a powertab of the beginning of the solo to Satriani's Flying In A Blue Dream which I am presently working on getting up to speed. I start off with my thumb at about the fifth fret, sometimes the sixth, and just below the center of the neck for the first lick. The only real trouble spot for me is transitioning in and out of the 5-7-9 stretch on the G string. I've found that digging my elbow into my side and pushing my hand/forearm out a little helps a bit with that. Feels a bit awkward though, and it seems as though my elbow manouver cannot keep pace with the speed of my fingers... By the end of the lick, my thumb is just above the center line. Am I doing anything wrong? How would you guys approach the lick? Thanks! ;)

[oRg]

Well, when playing legato I tend to move my thumb around depending on where I'm playing. If I'm playing on the higher strings my thumb tends to be below the center of the neck, and vice verse for the lower strings.

For the 5-7-9 stretch my fingers have become so used to stretching that far it no longer bothers me. The stretches that require me to manuever my hand are stretches like 9-12-15, or 9-10-15. If you keep stretching it gets easier after awhile.

[AndyPollow]

Some techniques with the pick hand are very bad but with the left hand I think the only important rule is to use all 4 fingers and practise alot - alot of people say the thumb should always be on the back of the neck but Yngwie and Gilbert both play great with the thumb all the way up over the neck, some people say you should use only your finger tips but I play very fast and great with my left hand with my fingers at a slight angle - not perfectly on the tips, ..... I cheat a little though - I sand the finish off of the whole neck every time I buy a new guitar cuz the thumb slides easier over bare wood than finish - violins have bare wood necks for that reason.

[Dushan S]

I move thumb a lot depending on what I am playing, if I'm in a higher positions and bending, it will be a bit over the neck. But when playing legato I have thumb in a middle, behind the neck, just like when playing classical guitar. It is easiest for me to get maximum strenght for legato in that position, because fingers are hitting strings with almost 90 degrees angle. It just came naturally for me.