playing guitar with 2 fingers... django fans....theory guru's....can you chat it out with me?

hello everyone. cardiffgiant again.
so i can tell from digging through these threads that there are a lot of musicians here as well as music fans.... i can see from some of the replies that some of you have a deep catalogue of music theory so i ask for help.

here is my deal. ive played guitar for about 10 years. i am/was ok at it. you know how that goes. late start, wife/kids, work, etc does not leave as much time for practice as i would have liked.
anyway, i know what i think is a fair amount of theory, at least as it relates to the guitar. i have a LOT to learn but i know more than the basics.
now, 19 months ago i was in an accident and tore my left hand up. my middle finger got ripped down the middle and the ring finger is 60% gone.
i have not touched a guitar since my accident. i made a diddley bow as some saw in the thread i started thinking that would get me playing again. i figured only 3 strings and i can use a slide...perfect
well i just dont like it. cant really say anything besides that. just not for me i guess.

so all i have now i time. wife and kids still but no work. i have been on comp since i got hurt and i will be on it for some time still so the time is there. if i can get past the pain(thats an issue. left with damage.....whatev) i would like to start playing again. thing is, i feel lost.
i dont even know where to begin. for this conversation lets say there is no pain. i can fret with index, middle(depending on how it lays), and pinky. my middle finger is there but it is all scarred up, painful and very sensative.

i just dont feel like i have enough knowledge under my belt to adjust how i play without that finger. chords for example. im lost.
i just dont understand(yet) how i can travel the fretboard without my ring finger.

i see people like django(of course cause of his injury), joe pass, guthrie govan, etc with so much knowledge about music that they can readjust how they play because they know where all the notes are and they know so many different voicings of the chords they play... i dont

at this point do you think it would be more beneficial to dive into theory so i know immediately where all the notes are(roots, fifths, etc) so that i can build chords the way i can play them? or do you think i would be better off just getting a guitar in my hands and just seeing what i can do?

this is very discouraging. thanks for your help all

Do some open tuning and fool around with it .No pain no gain and remember how it pained when you first started to play ? Have fun and make sounds ...peace a reply to: CardiffGiant

a reply to: CardiffGiant

i am sorry about your injury....and i have a recommendation for you. I have played guitar for years and am very bored with it. when I get bored I change the tunings. For example try a cgegcc or some other type of open tuning. You will find most chords can be played with 2 fingers and often requires many open strings. Open tunings do limit you quite a bit I think but I also believe they sound rich and deep compared to standard tuning. Ive been using the above tuning for the last year and have converted about 5-6 popular songs from standard tuning and have written about 10 of my own.....

You will get used to the tuning fast, especially if you have played guitar for some time. You could still use a slide as well as there are some great blues pieces done in open tuning and it would fit perfect.

a reply to: the2ofusr1

haha literally wrote at the same time...good call!


And while im here.... Open C Tuning Conversions

If I am not mistaken , Jimmy Page used a lot of open stuff . I guess they all do actually . I know what you mean about getting a bit bored and trying something new . It does seem to have a better sound at times too .different that is . a reply to: rockpaperhammock

originally posted by: the2ofusr1
Do some open tuning and fool around with it .No pain no gain and remember how it pained when you first started to play ? Have fun and make sounds ...peace a reply to: CardiffGiant

thats kind of what i am thinking right now. just pick it up ans bring the noise.
at least i will be playing.

a reply to: CardiffGiant


You can go either way, theory or practice. Django was amazing but you have to remember he didn't have the options you have. These days, you could get into theory and start working with computer stuff. People are using things like motion sensors for inputs:

www.youtube.com...

I would certainly try to have my hands on the guitar every day, even if only for a little while. I know very little about theory but I've heard people say that learning theory and learning where all the notes are on the fret board was the best thing to ever happen to their playing.

Take some inspiration from the master:

a reply to: CardiffGiant
This might possibly be the worst solution you hear on this thread but did you ever consider changing hands? Right-handed goes to left-handed, or vice versa. I do realise that it will effectively mean you will have to "learn again" but it was just a thought.

As far as starting late, wife, kids, job etc, I am the same just without the wife, the kids and the job. LOL Then again, I don't think having a wife and children would help me because I usually play at ear-deafening volumes. I think I can reach 100 decibels plus on a bad day, for an hour or two.

On a good day...well, I would need a decibel meter. Thankfully I live in a situation where I have the freedom to make the floor and walls shake (I play bass).

In any case, I wish you much luck, recovery, technique and inspiration!

originally posted by: LightSpeedDriver
a reply to: CardiffGiant
This might possibly be the worst solution you hear on this thread but did you ever consider changing hands?

my wife told me to try lefty just a couple days ago. i dont think i am up for that task. i thought about people like doyle bramhall(whi is awesome) and he plays lefty strung righty.
i think i would be better off just trying to do what i can with my left hand versus starting from scratch.

check out doyle

As a guitarist, my advice is this; Just pick it up as much as you can and play. You will develop a new handicap[ for your new condition that only you can work out. Buit there' mucho stuff on Youtube. Start with the simple stuff. But again, you need to get used to it and get your own feel. Happy playing!

Oh, Black Sabbaths's Tony Iommi cut a couple of his fingers off. He overcome it.

originally posted by: Fylgje
As a guitarist, my advice is this; Just pick it up as much as you can and play. You will develop a new handicap[ for your new condition that only you can work out. Buit there' mucho stuff on Youtube. Start with the simple stuff. But again, you need to get used to it and get your own feel. Happy playing!

Oh, Black Sabbaths's Tony Iommi cut a couple of his fingers off. He overcome it.

i know about tony too.
i think he wore some sort of 'cap' for lack of a better word on his fingers.
i have been thinking about what i can use for that too.
when it first happened and i was in therapy they gave me a rubber type thing to put on my finger. it fit real tight against my finger and reduced the pain at the tip when i bumped it. i have been thinking about that thing but dont know how well i would be able to fret a note with it due to it being rubber. also it didnt add length to the finger.

i figured i would mention django cause he really only used 2 of his fingers....
i dont know... pretty bummed about the whole deal

Second the open tunings idea (well, forth or fifth!). When I play my ring finger and pinky barely join in the fun, they just dont move as well for me. But you can still have fun, anything is possible! Switching to a lefty is a great idea to be honest, I should have done that years ago.





Explore your options That second video is amazing, and technically that would give you an extra hand to scratch your butt, and two spare fingers to pick your nose at the same time!

a reply to: CardiffGiant
Maybe check with a prosthetics place and see if they have any sort of tips. Or make one homemade. I can't imagine going through something like that. I feel for ya, dude. Good luck.

a reply to: Qumulys

that second video is pretty damn impressive lol...i feel so worthless now

a reply to: CardiffGiant

Yo!
There are some good suggestions in this thread... Sho! The most difficult and frustrating would definitely be learning to play lefty.

Open tunings are great! A lot of fun. You mentioned that you have knowledge of theory... I have often messed around with different tuning, either more popular ones, or ones that I've sorta come up with on my own. It can be a lot of fun because you come across interesting voicings. Choosing a tuning, whether it's standard, open, or inventive (for lack of a better word) depends on your style and musical interest. Personally, I like my 'strange' sounds; diminished, augmented... I like atmosphere and dissonance ...if you are up to it, maybe try model a guitar tuning that helps with your reach, and also emphasizes the style or sounds you are interested in, eg, majors, minors, etc

I've read about many guitarists that either started guitar or pressed on because it would help rehabilitate their hand/fingers. I imagine it takes baby steps, as to not cause more damage and encourage healing.

What music are you into?
Have you ever heard Devin Townsend?? I just have to bring him up, 'cause he's just so fricken awesome, and he jams in open c tuning.
(if that doesn't imbed, here's the url: www.youtube.com...
(sorry can't help it. He's my favourite artist.)

Fret on, fellow guitarist! \m/

Oh, also, I read this link a while agohow do I make prosthetic finger tips...
The comments are interesting... user: stringer53 is also offering to make prosthetics for lost/damaged fingers.. could be well worth getting a hold of him!

Lekker, lekker, jam
Peace, bro.

a reply to: Jimjolnir

thanks for the post. music wise im into it all.

thanks a lot for the link on the prosthetics. digging into that now

edit* the dude on that page said cause of health reasons he is not making them anymore.

here is a pic of my hand so you all can see what i am dealing with. this is a couple days after surgery so it is all healed now but you can see how much of the ring finger is missing. it might paint a better pic of my frustration. i think if it was just the tip i could have worked this out by now