artificial harm. essentials

[clifford]

i love this effect.. people complain about how hard they are.. i dont have that much trouble, but then again i usually go pretty slow.
i was wondering.. who are some artificial harmonic masters i should know about? any songs in particular? dont say anesthesia by metallica.. im not too interested on bass a.h.'s
i think they're tragically underused. i really havent heard much other than pinch and natural ones in most recordings, id like to hear some examples.

[darkstar54mm]

zakk wylde, joe satriani they seem to know what there doin personally i cant do em at all

[clifford]

i meant artificial, not pinch harmonics.. to explain, its like a natural harmonic only you fret a note, then sound a harmonic using your picking hand a certain number of frets away from the fretted note.. that's confusing, i know.. but THOSE kind of harmonics, anybody famous utilize them?

[540SLTD]

I remember seeing Andy Summers on TV doing a.h.'s during the chorus of Every Breath You Take. They sound more like single piano notes on the original CD, though.

[Black Lynx]

I know what you're talking about... I've seen a few articles and transcriptions about these harmonics, but rarely seen anyone using them, except from a few people, like Bill Frisell (who's actually master at natural harmonics, but use both) and Steve Morse (he uses it since his Dixie Dregs days)...

I've just found an article by Matt Blackett about those harmonics, and he mentions Chet Atkins (he's a true master... check out his natural hamonics+fretted notes cascades[sp?]), Eddie Van Halen (actually, tapped harmonics) and The Edge (check out The Unforgettable Fire... of course he overdubbed everthing, but anyway...)

BTW, Matt Blackett said his biggest influence for that article was Lenny Breau. I don't know him, but Chet Atkins himself said good things about him.

Also (it's the last one, I promisse)... I've read an article about that signed by Eric Johnson

Hope it helps!!! It took me a long time to answer, because I was trying to find an magazine article about the subject... I can try to scan it for you, but it's in portuguese... if you really need it, I can translate it - my english isn't very good... but I think you'll understand.

C-ya!

[clifford]

i appreciate it man! any additional help would be way beyond welcome.. i guess im just going to have to lead the artificial harm. revolution, im a fan

[Highway Chile]

I know Eddie(Van Halen) used them as well

[matb]

I never understood artificial harmonics but your explanation made sense. How do you know how many frets away to do it?

[Highway Chile]

It's exactly 12 frets higher. It doesn't really fit into my style so I don't use them. (I have that video of Andy Summers doing it)

[matb]

Originally posted by guitara73
It's exactly 12 frets higher. It doesn't really fit into my style so I don't use them. (I have that video of Andy Summers doing it)

Wow, that's sounds pretty easy...

[skyneverclaimed]

I still dont get it

[Highway Chile]

It's weird bro! you fret a note and pick it, but you use your "other" finger on your picking hand to slightly dampen the note you just picked. ........I know, w/o looking at it it's hard to understand.

[matb]

Don't you kind of stick you thumb farther than the pick to deaden it faster or something?

[Highway Chile]

Originally posted by matb
Don't you kind of stick you thumb farther than the pick to deaden it faster or something?
Like anything, do what feels right for YOU. But the basic technique is this: You lightly lay "a" finger (on your pick hand) over the fret (12 frets higher than your fretted note),Basically your picking over the neck! stay with me,......... then pick or pluck the string with "a" free finger on your pick hand. And that should give you that "piano" or "bell" like effect. (sorry if I'm being elementary) Let me know if this makes sense.

[All I Fear]

Don't you kind of stick you thumb farther than the pick to deaden it faster or something?

i think thats a pinch harmonic. dont take my word for i though, im crap at harmonics.

[El_scoobysnack]

You fret a note (hold it), then exactly 12 frets away on the same string you pluck the string whilst holding your finger over the string (12 frets away).

[Highway Chile]

Originally posted by El_scoobysnack
You fret a note (hold it), then exactly 12 frets away on the same string you pluck the string whilst holding your finger over the string (12 frets away).
Exactly:)

[TheWizard]

David Gilmour does that sort of crazy ****... I remember in one guitar world he had a whole solo that went like that i just cant remember which song... maybe i'll go dig it up later...

[prime_monkfish]

I just thought id say dont fear artificial harmonics-theyre not actually very difficult to do, but can sound very effective.

[clifford]

well done on the explanations, but ill try my hand at it as well.. first step to doing a artificial harmonic is to know how to do a natural harmonic.. which im confident we ALL know how to do..

next step: take the technique of a natural one, and recreate it with your picking hand.. i like to use my pointer finger of my picking hand, barely placing it over the fret, then picking behind your dampening finger with the pick/finger, lifting the pointer finger up after hitting it. i would practice it open/over the twelth fret to begin with, then start fretting: 1st fret-->13th fret harm. etc..

it also doesnt have to be an octave/12 frets!! you can do them in any position that there's a natural harmonic (5, 7, 12 ETC).. harmonics are about string length, and while you're fretting, you're essentially just shortening the length of a string.. so you're still producing "natural" harmonics, just on a shorter string everytime you use this effect..

it sounds confusing, but there's really not a lot to it

and Wizard, if you wouldnt mind, id love to see what gilmour song that is! that's why i started this thread, to see how other people utilize this effect.. and it doesnt seem like many do

[Highway Chile]

Originally posted by clifford
well done on the explanations, but ill try my hand at it as well.. first step to doing a artificial harmonic is to know how to do a natural harmonic.. which im confident we ALL know how to do..

next step: take the technique of a natural one, and recreate it with your picking hand.. i like to use my pointer finger of my picking hand, barely placing it over the fret, then picking behind your dampening finger with the pick/finger, lifting the pointer finger up after hitting it. i would practice it open/over the twelth fret to begin with, then start fretting: 1st fret-->13th fret harm. etc..

it also doesnt have to be an octave/12 frets!! you can do them in any position that there's a natural harmonic (5, 7, 12 ETC).. harmonics are about string lenght, and while you're fretting, you're essentially just shortening the length of a string.. so you're still producing "natural" harmonics, just on a shorter string everytime you use this effect..

it sounds confusing, but there's really not a lot to it

and Wizard, if you wouldnt mind, id love to see what gilmour song that is! that's why i started this thread, to see how other people utilize this effect.. and it doesnt seem like many do Oh Cool, I didn't know you can it play other places(5,19, etc), Thanx Clifford. P.S. I'd be interested in the Gilmour solo as well!(wow Guitar World, what was that like '90?)

[clifford]

Originally posted by guitara73
Oh Cool, I didn't know you can it play other places(5,19, etc), Thanx Clifford. P.S. I'd be interested in the Gilmour solo as well!(wow Guitar World, what was that like '90?)

its a lot more difficult at the +5 and +7, to me anyway, but it can be done.. and most of use done have enough frets to use the +19 one much!

[prime_monkfish]

and most of use done have enough frets to use the +19 one much!

If you run out of frets just start aiming halfway (or 1/3 or 2/3) between your bridge and the note your fretting.

[idm13]

Okay...here is a short skinny on Harmonics. Also, for those inclined there is a really good book/cd called Harmonics from Musicians Institude and Hal Leonard.

Harp Harmonics or also knows as the Koto Technique is when you fret a note and then use the fore finger and the thumb of your picking hand to voice the harmonic. You place your fore finger 12 frets above the fretted note, gently dampening the strings vibration, while you pluck it with the thumb behind the fore finger. This creates a nice harp or koto sound. Guys who do it include Lenny Breau and Eric Johnson.

Tapped Harmonics occur when you have already played a note, and then gently tap above the fret 12 frets (or other places) from the original note. This really sounds great with some distortion or with a good gain. Guys who do it include Eddie Van Halen and just about everyone from the 80's.

Pinched Harmonic (the only actual artificial harmonic, as it does not apply a porportional dividng to the scale lenght of the note) occurs when you dig in with your pick, and immediately follow it up with a damping of the string with your thumb on your picking hand. Takes some work, but can be done anywhere on the neck. Does not follow any logic of 12 frets, or splitting up the guitar into havles, thirds, fourths or fifths. Noteable user, Zack Wylde. With practice you should be able to do it on an acoustic.

Natural Harmonics are done by dividing an open string into even porportions, halves, thirds, fourths, fifths, etc. The technique is the same as Harp or Tapped...gently dampening the string above the fret..and can be done easily at the 5th, 7th, and 12th frets. But can also be done at the 3rd, 4th, and 9th. Check out the intro to Summer Song by Satriani for a good show on using the 4th fret.

[clifford]

thats awesome idm, thanks

[3v3+Z]

Originally posted by idm13
Pinched Harmonic (the only actual artificial harmonic, as it does not apply a porportional dividng to the scale lenght of the note) occurs when you dig in with your pick, and immediately follow it up with a damping of the string with your thumb on your picking hand. Takes some work, but can be done anywhere on the neck. Does not follow any logic of 12 frets, or splitting up the guitar into havles, thirds, fourths or fifths. Noteable user, Zack Wylde. With practice you should be able to do it on an acoustic.

Is that how you're SUPPOSED to do that??? I discovered it that way -- from my thumb accidently hitting the string. But very shortly after I discovered that, I realized that it's kinda tricky 'cuz I'm USING my thumb! That's what I'm holding my PICK with! So I just naturally started using my pinky instead. I just assumed that's what EVERYBODY did. It just seemed so natural, and so obvious! But that's NOT what people do????? Am I giving away a big secret here? Should I have kept it to myself?

Maybe that's why I've been confused by this thread from the start. I couldn't see the difference between "artificial harmonics" and "pinched harmonics". I thought what I was doing were pinched harmonics. What the hell was I doing? Sounds like it's somewhere between artificial and pinched and the harp/koto technique and... I really need to play with other people more.

[clifford]

i think what you were doing was called "touch harmonics" .. did you put your finger over the pickups/sound hole, then pick behind it?

and the "pinch harmonics" are typically produced dampening with your thumb after striking the string.. some people can alternate pick-pinch harmonic by dampening from the underside of a string with their pointer finger, and hitting from the top with their thumb

these are difficult to explain, i wish i could just show you

and theres a LOT of confusion and overlapping with what these techniques are called.. so i made this thread (http://guitargeek.com/chat/showthread.php?s=&threadid=5582), since im not sure what the generally accepted terms for these styles are, and im trying to get to the bottom of it

[3v3+Z]

Originally posted by clifford
i think what you were doing was called "touch harmonics" .. did you put your finger over the pickups/sound hole, then pick behind it?

Well, no, not necessarily. I'll do it anywhere on the string.

[clifford]

well.. i meant like not over the fretboard.. damn these confusing things..

[3v3+Z]

Originally posted by clifford
well.. i meant like not over the fretboard.. damn these confusing things..

YES! Sure! Why not? Over the fretboard, on the wrong side of the headstock, inside the piano, on the xylophone, floor tom, musical saw, saxophone, turntables ... okay, I STARTED serious. Yes, I'll do it over the fretboard sometimes.

[3v3+Z]

Hey Clifford,

I just wanted to take a second to thank you for starting this thread. And thanks to all the people who contributed to it as well. I still don't know exactly what to call the technique I use (which I described above) except that it's SOME kind of harmonics, but I've been experimenting with them A LOT more lately. It's like, I knew about using these kind of harmonics before, but I would just use them more-or-less randomly. I am now far more conscious of getting specific notes using my technique. It's opened up a whole new world of possibilities for me. I'm far from perfecting it, but I can see a lot of potential for future usefulness of this technique in that I could theoretically play ANY note in the 12 tone scale and over several octaves as a HARMONIC! And I could -- again, just theoretically at this point -- use that to make for strange chords or to play a high melody over other, more "normal" guitar stuff!!! My wheels are turning, and I have you guys to thank!