tone and technique
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Hampshire Guitar Orchestra » Guitar stuff » hints & tips » tone production » tone and technique
Tone and Technique
Onto the final page in this little teach-in on tone production.
We have seen that playing away from the bridge will give a rounded tone, and that it is important not to seek volume at the expense of tone.
There are 2 more aspects of technique that will ensure a rounded tone.
Plucking Angle
The first applies particularly if you have slender fingers and nails, as opposed to broad fingers and nails. If the finger is applied to the string exactly at right angles (pointing towards your nose), then as the finger starts to pluck, the string will leave the tip and roll into the gap between tip and nail, giving a spurious click just as the string departs. This, coupled with the tiny plucking surface afforded by the tip of the nail, gives a high harmonic content to the sound.
- This is the metallic sound we're trying to avoid
By contrast, if the wrist follows the line of the forearm, the fingers will point towards the right shoulder. As the stroke is made, the string cannot roll into the gap between finger and nail, because the finger is angled. There is no click and the string is released by sliding from the nail, not by jumping over the tip of it.
Provided the nails are rounded and polished, the string will release cleanly and without trauma.
- This is the rounded sound we're trying to achieve
String Release
The second is to understand that the front of the guitar works by pumping air in and out of the guitar, and therefore the bridge moves in and out too.
That means that the direction of vibration of the string that couples most effectively to the bridge will be the one where the string vibrates (at least initially) towards and away from the soundhole.
When the string moves in this direction, the fundamental will be louder and the harmonics less so.
- This is the rounded sound we're trying to achieve
This can be achieved simply by pushing the strings into the soundhole as part of the plucking stroke, instead of just dragging them towards the next lower string. As the string is released, it has a large vertical component of vibration, making the sound rounded and considerably louder at the same time.
And so...
We've seen how a rounded tone is a real boon to any ensemble, concealing timing and tuning issues and promoting clarity and sustain.
Time to go and put all this into practice...