Guitar Harmonics Techniques
Guitar harmonics are high-pitched, bell-like tones produced by a few specific guitar techniques. Three different harmonics can be played on a guitar: natural, two-handed and pinch. Two-handed harmonics and pinch harmonics fall under the umbrella of artificial harmonics, but the methods of producing these harmonics are significantly different.
Other People Are Reading
-
Natural Harmonics
-
Natural harmonics are played by lightly touching (not fretting) a guitar string at a specific place on the neck, picking the string as you normally would, then immediately lifting your finger off of the string. The easiest places to produce natural harmonics on a guitar neck are above the twelfth, seventh, fifth or third frets.
Two-Handed Harmonics
-
To play a two-handed harmonic, fret a note as you normally would, then, with the pointer finger of your picking hand, lightly touch the string 12 frets above the initial note. Pluck the string with your thumb or a pick held between your thumb and your middle finger, then immediately remove your pick-hand pointer finger. Two-handed harmonics can also be sounded at three, five or seven frets above the regularly fretted note.
-
Pinch Harmonics
-
Pinch harmonics are produced by letting the fleshy tip of your pick-hand thumb hit the string immediately after you pick a note. Hold the pick close to the tip to make playing pinch harmonics easier. Pinch harmonics are simpler to produce if played with a great deal of distortion. Try picking pinch harmonics up and down the length of the string to find the sweet spots for each fretted note.
-
References
- Photo Credit Jupiterimages/Polka Dot/Getty Images
