Difference between revisions of "Artificial Harmonics"

Revision as of 13:51, 14 April 2014

Artificial Harmonics are a way to get harmonic resonance from a string while it is fretted. Like natural (open string) harmonics, artificial harmonics involve dividing the string into an integer multiple of separate resonating pieces, by placing a finger on one of the pivot points or "dead spots" and sounding the string. The big difference is that since our left-hand is busy fretting the note, we have to use the right hand to do so.

Artificial harmonics are usually indicated by a * before or after the fret number. Sometimes the actual pitch of the sounded note is written above the tab. And sometimes the * is simply above the tab.

         E   *
e--<5>--*12--12--

The above is a natural harmonic created by using the left-hand as a pivot above the 5th fret. The next note involve actually fretting the 12th fret, but using an artificial harmonic to get that same note. We are given the actual pitch that should be sounded's note name, but we don't know exactly which harmonic this is. It could be the 2nd, 4th, or higher. The final note is an ambiguous artifical harmonic - we know we are getting a harmonic of the 12th fret E note, but we don't have any information about which harmonic to sound.

The way artificial harmonics are executed using the right hand thumb usually means the harmonic sounded is the 4th, 5th, or 6th harmonic, which is going to be very high-pitched compared to non-harmonic notes played at the same location on the left-hand. For this reason, they are often called squeals or squealies.

Picking Technique

This is what is most commonly referred to when saying "artificial harmonic". This technique uses a slighted tilted picking hand to allow the thumb to touch the string as the pick plucks it. The thumb acts as a pivot point to create the harmonic, just like the left-hand finger for a natural harmonic. And again like natural harmonics, you want to lift the thumb off the string as soon as the harmonic is sounded. Usually its just a normal picking motion, but you add the thumb.

It is possible to use your right hand index finger (or another finger) as the pivot point; however, I find this is more difficult. For my pick grip, my index finger's nail would likely touch the string, which doesn't work as well as the flesh of the side of my thumb.

For this technique to work correctly, you must focus on pressure, timing, and accuracy. You must use enough right hand thumb pressure on the string to deaden that point on the string but not so much that you end up muting the string instead of simply deadening the pivot point. Your thumb must touch the string at the appropriate time - right before the pick plucks the string or right after (basically at the exact same time), and it must be pulled off the string as soon as possible after plucking the string with the pick. Finally, the location of your right thumb (the pivot point) must be correct. This will depend both on which harmonic you are trying to sound, as well as what fret your left hand is fretting.

Tapping Technique

Beginner Excercises

3rd harmonic
---<7>---<19>----*0---

4th harmonic
---<5>---<24>----*0----

5th harmonic
---<3.8>---<?>---*0---

6th harmonic
---<3.2>---<?>---*0---

7th harmonic
---<2.6>---<?>---*0---

First we need to practice getting the motion down, and locating the pivot points for open strings. The fret numbers inside <>'s are natural harmonics. Notice how each line has two natural harmonics, then an open-string artificial harmonic. All 3 pitches should be identical.

The first two examples have fret numbers for the 2nd natural harmonic. If you measure the distance from the nut to the 7th fret, this is the same amount of distance as the bridge to the 19th fret. Same thing for the nut to 5th fret and bridge to 24th fret. Remember that a harmonic has the string resonate in equally-sized chunks on the string, divided by pivot points. The distance from the nut to the first pivot point is the exact same distance as the bridge to the last pivot point.

Once we find the closest pivot point to the bridge, we know where to apply our thumb for the artificial harmonic. So in the first two examples, your thumb should touch against the string above the 19th and 24th frets, while your pick strikes the string slightly closer to the bridge. These are the best places to practice the actual artificial harmonic picking stroke. Your artificial harmonic should sound almost identical to a properly-played natural harmonic. The pitch should be pure, not the open-string pitch plus a slight harmonic pitch. It will take quite a bit of practice to get this to start sounding right, and even more practice to get it consistent.

Once you have the stroke working well, let's move to the 5th, 6th, and 7th harmonics. For these, the last pivot point is not over the fretboard, so it is basically impossible to list exactly where it is without getting a ruler and taking an actual distance measurement (but even this will change if your instrument has a different scale). My advice is to sound the natural harmonic on the nut side, then lightly press your left hand finger against the string near the bridge like you are trying to sound a natural harmonic. Deep picking the string with the right hand (you may have to pick over the fretboard, so your hands are criss-crossed), while you slide the left hand finger towards the string. You should hear a bunch of muted thumps and occasionally some harmonic pitches. Stop when you hear a pitch that matches the one you are trying to find. It should be the same distance from the bridge as the nut to the fret listed above.

Once you've found the correct distance, try making the open-string artificial harmonic, with your thumb touching that pivot point. You should be able to sound the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, and 6th harmonics using artificial harmonics.

Notice the position of the natural harmonics from 3rd to 7th: 7, 5, 3.8, 3.2, and 2.6. The higher the harmonics go, the closer together their pivot points occur on the fretboard. Try to sound the same artificial harmonics:

Harmonic:   3rd 4th  5th   6th   7th     3rd  4th  5th  6th  7th
Tab:      --<7>-<5>-<3.8>-<3.2>-<2.6>----*0---*0---*0---*0---*0--

Notice how just as you move your left-hand closer and closer to the nut but in increasingly smaller distances for the natural harmonics, you also move your right hand closer and closer to the bridge in increasingly smaller distances for the artificial harmonics. Physically speaking, natural and artificial harmonics are the same thing - only the technique used to create them is different.

Now, we get to the tricky part. When you fret the string, you shorten the resonant portion of it. This means that the resonant divisions of the string for a harmonic have been shortened as well. Let's take a simple example to illustrate:

--0--<5>--12--*12--

First we have the open string, then its