Whammy Bar Guitar Lessons

Pay attention to the whammy bar's positioning if you plan to use it frequently.

From gentle vibrato to screaming dive bombs, using the whammy bar properly can add flavor and flair to your guitar playing. However, using the whammy bar correctly is about more than simply manipulating notes. Whammy bar positioning and guitar tuning stability must also be taken into account when learning how to use the whammy bar. As with any guitar technique, the best way to get better with the whammy bar is to practice using it often.

Tuning Problems

If you have a guitar without a locking nut or locking tuners, using the whammy bar will eventually knock your guitar out of tune. How long this will take depends upon the quality of your guitar, the amount of vibrato bar usage and the degree to which notes are manipulated with the bar. That said, tuning fears should not scare you from experimenting with the whammy bar. Instead, practice tuning quickly by ear so you can fix any tuning problems as they occur.

Vibrato

Expressive vibrato can be added to notes and chords using the whammy bar. Vibrato is a rapid fluctuation of pitch, in this case caused by quickly pushing and releasing the whammy bar after you strike a note or chord. If your guitar has a floating bridge (where the back end of the bridge actually floats off of the guitar body), you can also raise the pitch of the note by pulling up on the whammy bar. Keep the bar within hand's reach at all times if you use a lot of whammy bar vibrato.

Note Dips

Whammy bar note dips are played by striking a note, dropping the pitch a few steps by pushing the whammy bar toward the body of the guitar and then releasing the whammy bar back, thus bringing the note back to its original pitch. These note dips can be thought of as the opposite of string bends (lowering the pitch as opposed to raising it).

Dive Bombs

Dive bombs are played by striking a note or harmonic, then completely depressing the whammy bar (the strings will go slack) and then releasing the whammy bar back to its original position. In function, dive bombs are similar to dips, but they sound significantly different and require more force to play. In order to get the best sound with a dive bomb, use a lot of distortion. Dive bombs will knock a guitar without locking components out of tune very quickly, so use them sparingly if you have a guitar without these locking parts.

References

• I Breath Music; The Whammy Bar -- Basics & Weird Effects; Eric Vandenberg
• Guitar Player World: Learn How to Use the Whammy Bar -- Tremolo Arm
• "Guitar for Dummies"; Mark Phillips, et al.; 1998