I recently switched from lap style dobro playing to electric slide and I love it. My question is this: When playing lap style I would angle the bar to only touch the string I was playing, but in the electric slide clips I've seen it appears that the slide is laid over all the strings and I'm guessing the rest are just dampened out. Is this correct? And if so is it due to string height?
Most electric lap steel players will tilt the bar for single note playing, but it depends on what's most 'practical' there and then of course. I think most of the players who never tilt the bar and only rely on pick- and palm blocking are coming from a pedal steel background, they rarely tilt the bar, if ever..
There are no hard rules here - that's one of the beautiful things about lap steel...... 8)
Steinar
Yes. Bottleneck. Sorry
Sometimes you tilt a bottleneck. Particularly to play a first string melody without barring the rest of the strings.
"A cheerful heart is good medicine."
Thats what I tought, but if you were playing a lick on the 4th and 5th strings would you tilt to play those strings with the tip of the slaid or would you barre and dampen? I seem to hit the frets alot when tilting on an electric
but if you were playing a lick on the 4th and 5th strings would you tilt to play those strings with the tip of the slaid or would you barre and dampen?
I dampen, and only tilt the bottleneck if I have to play a lick alongside an open string, say a melody line on the 3rd string while the 2nd rings open. My right hand 'default' position is to dampen all the strings and then 'open up' the one I want to play.
Steinar
Thanks alot for taking the time to answer my questions guys. I'm trying to make sure I don't start any bad habits, and since I don't know anyone who plays slide, I figured this would be the place to come. Looks like I was right !
In open tunings I don't pay a lot of attention to muting the unplayed strings. I'm not the cleanest player around. I often don't damp behind the slide, either. Sometimes you want to. It's a different sound, and both sorts of playing have their places. If you ever want to slide in standard tuning, though, you've got to get proficient at muting and damping.
"A cheerful heart is good medicine."
I never tilt with a bottleneck, I rely on damping to eliminate issues; I even attempted slants, but decided that it was defeating the point of playing slide as opposed to lap steel. It is a different technique, and a different sound. there are limitations with any guitar related instrument. I just accept that at least at this point if I want slants or tilting I simply need to use a lap steel for that tune.
Well, with all this new info I can't wait to get off work and go put it to use. There's just nothing quite like getting home before the wife and being able to crank the amp and pretend like I'm good :mrgreen: .
I thought (and still do) that I had discovered a top secret of the masters, or masters to be, or to improve the masters, when I discovered the inward tilt to slide on individual strings across the fretboard and I have a secret weapon I made to do that with.
I started making this particular slide some months ago, began using it before I got it finished and I love it. It isn't finished yet, I've been too busy with other stuff but I'm clearing off my kitchen table of other projects right now to set up a grinder and belt/disk sander to finish it out. I can't turn on those machines tonight or I'll get in trouble with my neighbors (I live in an apartment complex) so I'll have to finish it out tomorrow but I'll put up some pictures later tonight (or as soon as I can) showing how I made it and the last step (which I need to do tomorrow).
Phangeaux
BadBadBlues
