Action shot (not posed). My “natural” bar position tends to angle off-vertical, toward the bridge. My eyes and ears make the adjustments for pitch and intonation. For some reason this feels more dynamic, and allows me to move into slant positions more easily. It’s totally subconscious at this stage.
Always considered this a quirky flaw. Then Mike Witcher told me he does the same thing. To paraphrase, he mentioned it gives him better clearance from a capo, and allows for better muting/damping for certain moves. I see him do it in his videos.
I CAN do it the other way (90-deg vertical) but it feels rigid, and within 20 seconds I’m back to the angled hold.
Anyone else?
I think as long as you get the "meat" of the bar at the desired location you are good to go. Not all hands are shaped the same.
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I have no idea if I do this - will have to check it out.
Now that you mention it, I've seen Mike Witcher do this. As recently as three weeks ago. A friend of mine brought a beautiful koa Schoonover with him for "show and tell" after a great evening of bluegrass in nearby Santa Rosa called The California Bluegrass Reunion (led by banjo ace Bill Evans) which included Mike. It was fun watching and listening to him put the Schoonover through its paces in the green room after the show.
Yep these things are pretty easy to check with a mirror. The “feel vs. real” phenomenon is always an eye opener. Reminds me of when I used to be an avid golfer and would videotape my swing - what I thought I did bore no resemblance to what I saw on video…lol.
You’re right, the more I watch Mike’s playing, the more it shows this similar bar angle. It was helpful for me to hear him explain why he does it.
I’d put him right up there with any player on the planet, for clean technique, tasty tone and expressive playing. (Tried to sync our schedules for an in-person lesson in Berkeley…we couldn’t quite make that work, so did a Zoom session. Very worth-while…)
When Mike holds the bar, he actually has his ring finger tucked underneath and touching the curved surface, so he has no choice but to angle the bar over. I tried it, but it didn't feel any better to me.
Add Troy Benningmeyer, Jimmy Heffernan, and the late great Mike Auldridge to the list of bar "backsliders". You're in good company.
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