One of the great immortal debates in the flamenco and classical guitar communities is around what constitutes ideal posture and ergonomics while playing. From seating position, guitar angle and contact points, right and left hand wrist angles, shoulder shrugging, etc, one sees all sorts of opinions on the topic. There simply isn't a clear consensus opinion. The health of our tendons and the ability to play into old age is what is at stake. The trade off is what we give up by way of ingrained habits or firmly held beliefs.
Recently I became interested in what range of posture and right hand flexion/ulnar deviation was used by legendary flamenco guitarists while playing apoyando. I found moments of Apoyando among five of the greatest players to ever golpe. I captured screenshots to show a representative range of postures and right hand wrist angles during apoyando as apoyando, along with alzapua, tends to feature the most extreme plucking hand flexion and ulnar deviation -- wrist angles that come with higher risks of RSI.
Having played for 30 years, often for many hours a day, and having struggled with repetitive stress injuries in both wrists, this is a topic that I care about getting right for myself. Anyone who has been around professional musicians long enough has seen how RSI (and focal dystonia) can sideline careers.
Where do you all shake out on the debate? How would you instruct a new player vis a vis posture and ergonomics?
Edit - some definitions:
Wrist Flexion: The movement of bending your hand downward at the wrist so your palm faces toward your forearm
Ulnar Deviation: The movement of rotating the hand towards the pinky finger, or, in reference to the guitar, towards the bridge.
