Everything DvO says- especially allow the index finger to complete its follow-through OVER the thumb before both fingers relax back to position for the next note. This can feel weird or counterintuitive at first, but becomes natural & reflexive with practice. CAVEAT- we can't see your hands- and they differ so much from player to another that this could all be useless. I met one player whose hands are so broad, (fingers comparatively short) with a long, back-bending "hitch-hiker's" thumb- that his index finger could go either in or out with very little hand position change, and virtually no change in sound quality. At a certain point, you must work directly with someone who can see how you are built, how the lute you have "fits" you, and how it all works together; it's very easy to get messed up, play badly, or even injure oneself by forcing a position that isn't coming naturally for some reason.
Dan > But my question has to do with the position of the index finger and > thumb after the finger has plucked a note. Adopting the hand position > I see illustrated for thumb-under technique, and then striking a string > with the thumb, it naturally starts and finishes its stroke behind and > under the finger. But then it reflexively returns to its starting > position and when the index finger strikes the string, it ends its > stroke under and behind the thumb, before returning to its starting > position in front of the thumb. Is this natural for this technique? > Or does this depend upon hand size, length of thumb, etc. > > Ned -- To get on or off this list see list information at http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html
