Guitar Lesson Five - Right Hand Technique

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Guitar Lesson Five - Technique

Right hand

In the tuning section of this lesson, we explored the Harmonic Overtone Series (usually just called harmonics) and it's effect on tuning the guitar. In this section, we're going to look at a couple of ways to use these harmonics for making music.

Harmonics can be used as special effects within a peice of music to add interest, or as an integral part of the composition itself.

There are two types of harmonics that can be put to good use:

NATURAL HARMONICS - Those that occur naturally on the open string.

ARTIFICIAL HARMONICS - Those that occur at other locations, due to special right hand techniques.

The playing of natural harmonics is a simple matter of touching the string at a node with the left hand while the right hand plays the string just as it would for any other note. The harmonics at the 5th, 7th and 12th frets are the most commonly used. You can search out other nodal points and use those as well, but you'll find that these three locations are, not only the most in tune, but, also, the clearest sounding harmonics. Keep in mind that each string has it's own set of harmonics at these locations.

The harmonic at the 12th fret is one octave higher than the open string (in the case of the low E-string, that would be E'), the harmonic at the 7th fret is an octave and a 5th above the open string (in the case of the low E-string, that would be B'), and the harmonic at the 5th fret is two octaves above the open string (in the the case of the low E-string, that would be E'').

There are several ways to achieve artificial harmonics, and each one requires it's own special technique. Therefore, we will only explore a couple of the more common meathods in this lesson, and save the rest for a later time.

Perhaps the most commonly used artificial harmonics are what are refered to as PICK HARMONICS (also called pick squeals or pinch harmonics).

This is a technique used by practically every rock guitarist that I can think of, but Billy Gibbons of ZZ Top and Zak Wilde formerly with Ozzy Osbourne are two that have made this sound an essential part of their style.

This technique is hard to describe and even harder to illustrate, so I'm going to give you my best description and an audio example and hope for the best.

The first thing that you have to do is to "choke up" on your pick until just the very tip is sticking out from between your fingers. Then, you have to push the pick through the string in such a manner that the side of your thumb grazes the string immediately after the pick. It will feel almost as though you are hitting the string with the pick and the side of your thumb simultaneously. Be careful not to "dig" into the string too forcefully or you may break the string by applying too much torque.

Now, you may have to experiment with how close to the bridge or neck you pick the string in order to get the note to "squeal". In fact, by varying the position of your picking hand along the string, you can generate different harmonics from the same note.

Listen to this example: "... like a stuck pig"

The first note is just a normal note. All the rest are harmonics generated from that same note by varying my pick-hand position along the string.

A common practice is to combine pick harmonics with bending strings. This can add strong emphasis to the note you are bending.

Another technique used by Eddie Van Halen is to strike the string over the fret itself with a right hand finger. This is a lot like normal finger tapping, except your generating harmonics instead of regular notes.

The technique goes like this:

Fret a note with your left hand (don't play it, just hold it down).

Now, find the note 12 frets higher on the same string.

While holding down the original note (12 frets lower), strike the string with your right hand finger, 12 frets higher, right on the fret itself.

Don't try to hold the string down with your tapping finger like you would for normal finger tapping. Just give the string a sharp smack with your finger tip, directly onto the fret wire.

This technique can also be used 5 or 7 frets above the original note.

This one sounds like this: Smack it!

A very similar technique is to go ahead and play the original note (the one your holding down in the technique above), and while that note is ringing, lightly touch the string either 5, 7 or 12 frets higher, directly over the fret wire. This one sounds a lot like when a singer jumps up into their head voice or falsetto range.

Check it out: Touch it!

The last technique that we will look at in this section is used mostly by classical guitarists, although, Steve Morse and Eric Johnson have used this one extensively:

First, fret a note.

Then, touch the string 5, 7 or 12 frets higher with a right hand finger, and use a different right hand finger to pluck the string while you touch it.

Another approach is to shift your pick so that you are holding it with your thumb and middle finger. This leaves your index finger free to touch the string while you pick it. That's how Steve Morse does it.

Here is an example of me playing a scale with the above technique: Pluck it!

This lesson is divided into seven parts:

Tuning

Theory Part I

Theory Part II

Theory Part III

Left hand Technique

Right hand Technique

Music

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