Page 184 - The Exceptional Harley Fetterman

JUDY K JOHNSON

Harley understood that when life overwhelms us, music soothes
and restores us by providing encouragement when we're surrounded
by dread. It supplies spiritual expression when thoughts or words fail
by providing instant transition to a better quality of life and self
worth. It reminds us of the value of harmony with others while
benefiting all with compassion, honesty, dignity, and creative
expression. Music relates to everyone with a universal language
beyond ordinary conversation. It allows our souls to relate to one
another and bond our united expressions. For Harley, music was an
endless source of creative thinking and self-expression.
Blindness requires true dedication to excel in the pursuit of almost
any interest. This is especially true of music. With his dedicated
effort, Harley excelled at Braille chord diagrams which detail finger
placement for each string on the fretboard.

Complicating things even further, Harley was left-handed. So, he
held the neck of his guitar in his right hand. When playing guitar, the
strings are positioned with the highest pitch on the lower edge of the
fretboard and lowest pitch on the higher edge of the fretboard. If you
are looking at the front of a right-handed guitar, the highest pitch is on
the right edge, on a left-handed guitar, the highest pitch string is on
the left edge.
But Harley was in good company of left-handed guitarists such as
the great Paul McCartney who first tried playing a right-handed guitar

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