Whew! Somehow today, they just "clicked." I am having a blast with them, I have to say. I always seem to go through a stage of way overusing whatever technique I most recently figure out. While I still have it fresh in my head, here are my tips to those who are trying to figure them out. Keep the pick with just a little tiny bit showing (like everyone always says), but I also found it really makes a difference when you turn the pick so you hit the string on the side of the pick (not angled up or down like you would with tremelo picking, but actually turned to the side). I also found it really helps to keep your index finger tucked well under the pick so it doesn't get in the way (lots of pick showing on the bottom, just a little bit on the top so your thumb just brushes the string). Sometimes they dont always sound, or they come out a bit weak, but hopefully that will go away with practice.
Now my next challenge/question is how to switch between holing the pick normally and holding it so I can get harmonics. Seems to take me a good 30 seconds or so to switch back and forth(I can do some picking holding it choked up, but its difficult). If I could get that down, I could be on my way to playing some of those cool Billy Gibbons/ZZ Top solos...seems like lots of harmonics in there!
EDIT: Trying to figure out where to uplaod a little clip so you can tell me if it sounds like I am playing them properly, but not sure where to go! :)
EDIT: Trying to figure out where to uplaod a little clip so you can tell me if it sounds like I am playing them properly, but not sure where to go! :)
Soundclick is a great place to post music for free.
Dan
"The only way I know that guarantees no mistakes is not to play and that's simply not an option". David Hodge
now that you have the pick holding part down try picking in different areas of the guitar. let's say you are fretting at the third fret. pick the string at the harmonic intervals and listen; very cool tones come out.
it is most evident picking an octave up from where you fret.
also, on my strat, for example, where the 28th fret would be if it had one is a sweet spot for picking and achieving overtones.
search around on your guitar for similar spots.
Sounds like you experienced a moment of epiphany! :lol: Ahh yes, I can remember when I first discovered (finally) how to achieve them. It took me awhile, I was a slow learner, I guess. After viewing several youtube videos, it one day just seemed to click however.
I believe I know what you mean about angeling the pick when you do them; I sort of angle my pick downward when I do the harmonics, and for me it works best by "brushing" my thumb across the string, instead of "digging" the string like so many guys instruct you to do.
I can get them by "digging", but my way seems to work better for me, at least. When I am fooling around with them, I will just "brush" or "rub" my thumb over the strings at various points, (while picking it first) creating many harmonics & seeing where the sweetest ones are hiding.
I know that may sound confusing, it is sort of hard for me to explain; If I had more initiative I would actually record a clip for youtube :roll: ...maybe sometime!
At any rate, keep practicing them; in my experience, this is one guitar trick where most people get "real good real fast", once they learn the secret. :D
Now if I could just improve my sweep picking... :oops:
Like President Ronald Reagan once said, "You can't knock success". So if you are getting good harmonics with this method then go for it. But I have never had to really turn the pick angle in anyway whatsoever to get harmonics like this. For me, I just choke up on the pick. I don't know how much pick shows, but absolutely less than 1/4 inch, maybe as little as 1/8 inch (never really measured it). Even when playing straight, my thumb just barely clears the string. To get harmonics I simply have to dig in just a wee bit and my thumb will graze the string after plucking it with the pick. I really don't have to think about it at all, and I don't change the pick attack angle. I can get harmonics anytime I want without having to adjust my pick.
But maybe I got the wrong impression from your post. It almost sounds like you are using the edge of your pick to pick. I have seen players do this, but to me it sounds terrible, like you are "scratching" the strings.
Try just choking up good on the pick, you really don't need to turn the pick angle like that.
That said, if you are getting great results with your method, keep using it. Who am I to tell you how to play? :D
If you know something better than Rock and Roll, I'd like to hear it - Jerry Lee Lewis
Good advice guys! Dog, I see what you are saying with the different sweet spots. That actually helped me, as I was having difficulty getting them up on higher frets, but if I pick a little further back, they sound.
Wes, I wish I could get them without having to change how I hold my pick. I'm hoping in time both of them will kind of meld into a way that I can always hold my pick - would make it much easier to throw them into solos. I'll get around to taking a video or some pics to show how I ma holding it - might be a week or so though.
Anyway, heres a sample: http://www.soundclick.com/bands/default.cfm?bandID=831636 Again, dont mind the useless playing - im mostly curious to see if it sounds like i am playing them right. You can hear what I am talking about - I can switch back and forth between regular picking and AH's, but its difficult to play anything long with the pick in that position. Go a bit easy on me 8)
falcon1
You are doing them right. But you will get more out of them if you give the string vibrato or shake.
I have been on a Roy Buchanan kick lately, he was pretty famous back in the late 70's and early 80's. Tragically, he died young. But Roy was famous for his whistling harmonics. Here is a good song to learn if you really want to get harmonics down.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aQbukSTSSi0
Here is a video of Roy playing live. Check out the second song, he does some pretty high speed harmonics and you can see his technique.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GzA7_vMADdg
Another guitar player to check out is Billy Gibbons of ZZ Top, another master of harmonics.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w5TVV3wqrZY
Learn this solo and you will get people's attention. :D
If you know something better than Rock and Roll, I'd like to hear it - Jerry Lee Lewis
I also turn the pick to the side, but instead of repositioning my hold on the pick, i turn my wrist, so a simple flicking action is all that's needed to hit an AH and then go right back to playing the way you usually do. i figured this out after about 6 months of having the same problem as you. if you hold the pick with a little of your thumb coming off the side throough ur normal picking technique, you neve have to change the way you hold it.
Maybe now you could try the classical method of AH where you put your index finger on the fret wire twelve frets up from the fretted note and, holding the pick with your thumb and middle finger, play the string from above the index finger, quickly removing said finger as soon as the note sounds. Its ridiculously hard to do and takes hours of practice but the resulting sound is truly haunting and ethereal. kudos on mastering one of the coolest sounding techniques tho dude.
Don't sweat it dude, just play!
