Hi CamiSu. The whole "thumb on the 6th string" thing has been one of my favourite obsessions over the years. Lemme explain a bit.

First of all, if you CAN use your thumb, it gives you a number of options that simply aren't available in "full barre" position. I sat with somebody once who uses only "correct" barre chords, and he insisted that anything I could do with "Clutch chords" (using the thumb on the bass, he could do the standard way). He was way more advanced than I in the use of "classical figures, and positions" and certainly managed to replicate many of my positions using his style, except where speed and a moving bass line was needed. The big problem simply was that I really love blues and ragtime music where a syncopated bass line can be crucial, and that wasn't his thing at all. He wasn't familiar with the playing of Blind Blake, Blind boy Fuller, Reverend Gary Davis, Jorma Kaukonen, merle Travis etc. and these players are some of my favourites. I've adapted aspects of their styles to use in all of my music....while at the same time, I'm not familiar enough with how Julian Bream, Bola Sete, Luis Bonfa, John Williams etc. to use some of their tricks...and he is. For us to have actually accomplished something with our little mutual challenge, he'd have to have WANTED to play "St Louis Tickle" (for example) and I'd have to have WANTED to play "Girl From Ipanema" etc.

So bottom line is that His style worked for him and mine works for me......BUT.........

It has nothing (in 90% of cases) to do with how big or small your hands are (or even whether you have a big guitar neck). I have smaller hands than most of my students, and can easily manage fretting the sixth string (and often the fifth...although that took work!) even on a classical guitar. It's a matter of "hand angle" and gaining wrist flexibility. Getting your hand to (sort of) "slide back and forth" around the neck. Takes a bit of work, but not that much really (nowhere near as hard as learning that first "F" chord! The biggest obstacle I've found is having the person allow (if were using an "F" chord, with the thumb on the sixth string) themselves a couple of days of "muffled messy sounding Fs". By the third day, you hand will start to adapt, and by about the fourth, it'll sound fine, and you'll have added not only a six string full sounding "F", but by making it a movable chord, you'll have F#, G, Ab, A, and Bb, all from one position. That's when you go out for a celebratory drink!!

Now my problem today, is that I've got to get some work done but I'm gonna get the guitar out and start workin' on some of these neat positions. I think it's safe to say that all of us in this thread should have been born wealthy with huge amounts of time to lay around and play guitar!

Rick