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Guitar Skills and
Improvisation
Guitar Skills Necessary to be a
Successful Worship Leader
Skills of the Worship Guitarist• Solid Metrical Rhythm• Extensive Knowledge of Chords, Scales and Music Theory• Ability to Play and Sing at the Same Time with Solid Metrical Rhythm and
Clear Pleasant Vocal Ability• Basic Lead Guitar Skills • Ability to Rehearse, Lead and Perform With a Rhythm Section- Guitars, Bass,
Keys, Drums.• Understanding of Biblical Worship Principles and Sensitivity to the Holy Spirit• Proficiency in a Variety of Musical Styles• Technical Knowledge: Amps, Effects, and PA• Flexibility to do the Day-to-Day Activities Associated with Running a Church-
Visitation, Payroll, Administration, Counseling, Drama, Youth and Many Other Things.
What Will be Covered in this Class
• Chord Theory• Rhythms• Guitar Technique• Guitar Styles• Open and Bar Chords• Basic Lead• Amps and Effects
What Will Be Required of You
• Consistent Attendance- Only 2 Unexcused Absences Allowed
• Practice Outside of Class- 1-2 Hours Per Day, 5 Days a Week
• 4 Tests and 2 Quizzes- Including Midterm and Final. Test and Quizzes are 50% of Grade
• At Least Two Worship Leading Performances in Class- One Solo and the Other Duet or Trio.
• Class Participation- 50% of Grade
Knowing the Fingerboard
• Knowing the notes on the entire fingerboard is critical to understanding how the keys, scales and chords relate to one another on the guitar.
• Your first quiz will cover the low E, A and D strings.
Wallach, p. 1.
Basic Chord Theory
• Any two notes played simultaneously can be considered a chord
• The chords we use today are developed from the root, 3rd and 5th of the major scale. This basic chord is called a triad.
• There are 4 types of triads: Major, Minor, Diminished and Augmented
The Major Scale
• The major scale consists of the intervals whole-whole-half-whole-whole-whole-half
• C-D-E-F-G-A-B-C • Each note of the scale is
given a corresponding number: 1 (or root)-2-3-4-5-6-7-8 (or root)
Building the Chord
• The triad is built by starting with the root of the scale, skipping the second to the third and stacking that on top of the root.
• From the third, the fourth is skipped and the fifth is stacked on top of the third.
• The interval from the root to the third consists of two whole steps or a major third.
• The interval from the third to the fifth is a whole and a half step or a minor third.
Building the Chord
Alternate Single Note Picking
• All downstrokes for single note picking will eventually hamper speed.
• Alternate, or up/down, picking is the way to create speed and fluidity in single note picking and soloing.
• Downstrokes are on the strong beats; upstrokes on the weak.
• A chromatic exercise is a good way to develop the up/down technique.
(Lafleur pp.11-22)
Other Types of Picking
• Economy Picking- continuation of pick direction on adjacent strings.
• Sweep Picking- using a downstroke sweeping motion for ascending arpeggios.
• Hybrid Picking- uses right hand fingers and pick simultaneously.
• Gypsy Picking- in the style of Django Reinhardt. Like economy picking but with rest strokes.
• Tremolo Picking- rapidly repeating single notes. (Lafleur pp. 27-32)
Gypsy Picking
• Stochelo Rosenberg playing Django Reinhardt
The Minor Chord
If the interval between the root and third is a whole step and a half step, it is a minor third. By moving the third closer the root the interval between the third and the fifth is widened to two whole steps making that interval a major third. The resulting chord is a minor triad.
Major Third + Minor Third = Major Triad Minor Third + Major Third = Minor Triad
Major and Minor Triad
Major 3rd + Minor 3rd = Major Triad Minor 3rd + Major 3rd = Major Triad
Principles of Rhythm Guitar
• Every song has a “feel” or “groove”• Almost always- the strong, or downbeats (1-2-3-4),
will be down strokes.• The weak beats or “ands” will be up strokes.• Different strings and parts of the beat gets
emphasized differently• Simple rhythms played steadily are almost always
best. • Three common grooves are 8th note, 16th note and
triplet.
Eighth Note Rhythms
The Syncopated 16th Note Groove
Darrell Evans
“Let the River Flow”
was the song that broke it open by former ORU student Darrell Evans. This and “Open the Eyes of My Heart” by Paul Balouche were two of the first songs incorporating the syncopated 16th note groove.
The Shuffle Rhythm• Shuffle and swing are very similar. Both use a triplet feel with
the first two notes tied. Swing tends to have an emphasis on beats 2 and 4. A shuffle is usually tigher emphasizing all 4 beats.
• Gospel, blues, jazz, rock, urban gospel, country and other styles use shuffle or swing rhythms.
• Modern “British-style” worship rarely uses it.
Snyder, p31.
Keys and Chords
The keys and key signatures are a system which keeps the scale’s intervallic spacing intact regardless of the starting point. This makes it possible to keep the melody and chord progression consistent at different tonal centers.
Chords in the Key
If a triad is built from each tone in the scale, the chords in the key will always layout in this format regardless on key: I-Major, ii- Minor, iii-Minor, IV- Major, V-Major, vi- Minor, viio- Diminished.
Chords In All Keys
Wallach, p6.
Chords in the Key of C
I ii iii IV V vi vii dim C Dm Em F G Am B dim
IV - I - V - IV - I- V IV - I - V - IV - I V vi - IV - I - V - vi - IV - V - I
• Inside Out• • Intro : |: F | C Gsus4 :|• • Verse 1:• F C Gsus4
• A thousand times I’ve failed still Your mercy remains • F C Gsus4
• Should I stumble again I’m caught in your grace• Am7 F C Gsus4
• Everlasting, Your light will shine when all else fades • Am7 F C Gsus4
• Never ending, Your glory goes beyond all fame• •
• Pre-chorus:• F C Am7
• In my heart and my soul I give you control• G• Consume me from the inside out Lord• F Am7 Gsus4
• Let justice and praise become my embrace• Dm7
• To love you from the inside out
• Chorus:• Am7 F C Gsus4 • Everlasting, Your light will shine when all else fades• Am7 F C Gsus4
• Never ending, Your glory goes beyond all fame• C F Gsus4 Am7
• And the cry of my heart is to bring you praise• F Gsus4 F Gsus4
• From the inside out Lord my soul cries out
Chords in the Key of G
I ii iii IV V vi vii dim G Am Bm C D Em F# dim
SHOUT to the LordG Em C DShout to the Lord, all the earth let us sing:• G Em C DPower and majesty, praise to the King.Em D CMountains bow down and the seas will roar D Em D D/F#At the sound of Your name.• G Em C DI sing for joy at the work of Your hands• G Em C DForever I'll love You, forever I'll stand.Em D C D GNothing compares to the promise I have in You.
7th Chords
• The next tone past the triad is the seventh. • There are three types of seventh intervals: Major
7th, Minor 7th and Diminished 7th. These refer the 7ths distance from the root.
• CMaj7- Major 7th Interval• C7- Minor 7th Interval• Cmin7- Minor 7th Interval• Cmin7(b5)- Minor 7th Interval• Cdim7 – Dimished 7th Imterval
Spelling 7th Chords The major seventh is the
natural occurring 7th tone in a major scale. It is also a half step down from the octave.
The minor seventh occurs as a dominant 7th, m7 and m7(b5) chord. It can be thought of as a flatted 7th.
A fully diminished chord has a “double flatted 7th”.
The best way to learn how to spell chords is to understand the formula.
The 7th in the Chord Progression
• The I and IV chords are diatonically major 7th chords• The ii, iii, V and vi chords are diatonically minor 7th chords. • The viio chord is diatonically a minor 7th (b5) chord. It is considered
“half diminished”• The fully diminished chord does not diatonically occur in the chord
progression but is used fairly often in jazz and classical music as a transitional chord. The m7(b5) is also a transitional chord.
7th Chord Forms
Chords in the Key of D
I ii iii IV V vi vii dim
D Em F#m G A Bm C#dim
Lord, Let Your Glory FallMatt RedmanVerse 1:D Dmaj7 G D/F# GLord let your glory fall, ׀ as on that ancient dayBm7 D/F# G Em7 G DSongs of enduring love, ׀ and then your glory cameD Dmaj7 G D/F# GAnd as a sign to you, ׀ that we would love the sameBm7 D/F# G Em7 G DOur hearts will sing that song, ׀ God, let your glory comeChorus: D/F# GYou are good, You are good, And your love endures D/F# GYou are good, You are good, And your love endures Bm7 D/F# G D GYou are good, You are good, And your love endures today
Chords in the Key of A
I ii iii IV V vi vii dim A Bm C#m D E F#m G# dim
Mighty To SaveWords and Music by Reuben Morgan and Ben Fielding
Intro: D A F#m E (2x)Verse 1:D A F#m Everyone needs compassion, Love that's never failing E D Let mercy fall on me A F#mEveryone needs forgiveness, The kindness of a saviour E D E D EThe hope of nations
Chorus:A ESaviour, He can move the mountains D A My God is mighty to save F#m EHe is mighty to saveA EForever, Author of Salvation D AHe rose and conquered the grave F#m EJesus Conquered the grave
Chords in the Key of E
I ii iii IV V vi vii dim E F#m G#m A B C#m D# dim
Finger picking Basics
RIGHT HAND TERMINOLOGY• Thumb is p or pulgar• Index finger is i or indicio• Middle finger is m or medio• Ring finger is a or anular• p-i-m-a• The pinky finger is usually not used.
Finger Picking Tips
• On a classical/nylon stringed guitar have the RH thumb at about the rosette on a steel string, not quite to the middle of the sound hole.
• Try to have a slight arch to the wrist of the RH, avoid “flat fingers”
• Keep RH fingers as close together as possible. Avoid splaying them.
• Avoid anchoring the RH pinky on the soundboard.• Practice patterns slowly and deliberately, with a
metronome. Bring the speed up over time.• Practice with as much volume as possible. Loud
and clear is the goal.
Transposition on Guitar
• Guitar is one of the easiest instruments to transpose because of the visual nature of the fretboard.
• To transpose chords first analyze the chord progression of the song and write the Roman numeral chord numbers down. After that find the corresponding chords of the new key and write down the new chords.
• C-Am-F-G → I- vi- IV- V → Eb- Cm- Ab- Bb
The Circle of Fifths
• Going counterclockwise, each key is the V chord or dominant of the next. G is the V of C and C is the V of F, etc, etc. Clockwise it is the IV chord. F is the IV of C and C is the IV of G…
• The V to I interval is the strongest harmonic tendency.
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Modulation or Key Change• A modulation is a key change within a song. In worship and pop
music it is often used for dramatic effect. In classical music it was used to develop or introduce themes.
• There are two types of modulations: direct and pivot/common chord. In a direct modulation, the key changes suddenly with little or no harmonic preparation. In pivot or common chord modulation, the new key is set up or telegraphed by some type of closely related chord- usually the dominant chord of the new key.
• In worship, the pivot/common chord method is most desirable because it helps establish the new tonal center.
• The easiest way to accomplish this is to find the dominant (V) chord of the new key and insert it into the music in a logical rhythmic place just before the entrance of the new key.
Capo and Keys
When to use a capo? • When you need open chords in a flat key. • When you want to add different voicings. • When you need a special sound which only occurs in
a certain open key such as a Dsus in the key of F.
YOU SHOULD NOT USE A CAPO AS WAY TO KEEP FROM LEARNING CHORDS AND GROWING AS AN
ARTIST!!! AT THAT POINT IT IS NO LONGER A TOOL BUT A CRUTCH!
Capo Position and “Play-In Keys”
Capo Position/KeyC III/A V/GG III/E V/DD II/C V/DA II/G V/EE II/A IV/GF#/Gb II/E IV/DF I/E III/D V/CBb I/A III/G VI/EEb I/Eb III/C VI/AAb I/G IV/E VI/DDb I/C IV/A VI/G
Everlasting God Key of C (Capo V Play in G) Brenton Brown/Ken Riley
Verse: G (vamp)Strength will rise as we wait upon the lordWe will wait upon the LordWe will wait upon the Lord
Pre-Chorus:G/B Cadd9 G/B Cadd9 D Em DOur God, You reign for ev erG/B Cadd9 G/B Cadd9 D Em DOur hope, our Strong De liver er
Chorus 1:G Cadd9You are the everlasting God EmThe everlasting God You do not faint Cadd9You won’t grow weary
“Everlasting God” Video w/ Brenton Brown and Chris Tomlin
• New Song Cafe
Closed Position or Bar Chords
• Any chord with an open string is an open position chord. Open position chords are not movable.
• Any chord with no open strings is closed. Closed position chords are movable.
• There are many more closed position chords than open.
• Keys clockwise of C on the circle of fifths tend to be open. Keys counter clockwise to C tend to be closed.
• Bar chords refer to the index finger taking the place of the nut on a guitar.
Why Should You Learn Bar Chords?
1. Makes it easier to play in “flat” keys2. Essential for transposing on guitar3. Helps in developing new chord voicings4. Makes it possible for you to access higher
parts of the fretboard so you can play with other instruments without clashing
5. Makes it possible to play in other styles not guitar driven such as R & B, jazz, blues or urban gospel.
Wallach, p38
Wallach, p.39
CAGED System
• Assumes that every chord played is a variation of an open C A G E or D.
• By focusing on the triad components (R-3-5) within the chord structure it becomes easier to learn more complex chords.
• Makes it easier to learn chord voicings.• Because each chord-form has an
accompanying scale form, the CAGED system helps in learning scales in various positions as well as navigation of the fretboard.
The CAGED Chord Forms
Chord Voicings• Chord voicing refers to
how the chord is arranged. • The same chord can be
voiced many different ways.
• Knowing chord voicings is an excellent way to eliminate clashing tones, color up your playing and spread out the harmonic range of the guitar.• Chord Voicing Video
Chord Extensions
• Chords with scale tones besides R 3 5 7 are usually called extensions.
• Any chord with tones past the triad (and usually the 7th) is a chord extension. This would include 9th, 11th, 13th chords.
• Any chord with tones added to the triad without the seventh can, for the purposes of this class, also be considered extensions. These would include add 2, add 4, 6, sus 4, 2 (no 3rd).
“Add” Chords
• If a 2nd or 4th is added to the triad, the chord is called Add 2 or 4. For example, if a G chord has an A inside of the chord its called Gadd2. The G major scale is G-A-B-C-D-E-F#. The second tone is A.
• If the sixth tone is added the chord is a 6th chord. So if an F chord has a D in it, it is F6. The F Major scale is F-G-A-Bb-C-D-E. The sixth tone is D. When the jazz chord system was created, the 6th chord was more common.
• If the 3rd is missing and replaced by the 4th, the chord is suspended or “sus”. So if D has no 3rdbut instead a 4th, it is Dsus. The D major scale is D-E-F#-G-A-B-C#. The 4th tone is G.
The “2” Quandary
• One popular chord is the 2 with no third. A few decades ago it was common to see the sus2 chord. That usually meant that there was a root, 2 and 5 without the third. That terminology has gone out of favor during the last 15 years or so. Now it is common to see a chord written as A2. The problem is that A2 doesn’t inform the player about the status of the 3rd. In many worship lead sheets it is becoming more common to see A2(no 3) without third and Aadd3 with third.
Chord Extension Formulas Chords without 7ths
• Cadd2 R 2 3 5 C D E G• C2(no3) R 2 5 C D G• Csus R 4 5 C F G• Cadd4 R 3 4 5 C E F G• C6 R 3 5 6 C E G A• Cm(add2) R 2 b3 5 C D Eb G• Cm(add4) R b3 4 5 C Eb F G
9th, 11th and 13th Chords
• Any of the numbers above 8 usually means there is a seventh inside of the chord. These chords are very frequently used in jazz, R&B, urban gospel, blues and other blues based music.
• 2=9, 4=11, 6=13• A 9th is R 3 5 b7 9, 11th is R 3 5 b7 9 11 and 13th is R 3 5 b7 9
13. The 13th may include an 11th. • Players may often exclude 9th when playing the 13th chord.
Many years ago there was a 7/6 chord which was R 3 5 b7 13 but that symbol has gone out of favor and the voicing of the chord is left up to the discretion of the player.
Other Facts About Tall Chord Extensions (not to be confused with long extension cords).
• If the chord symbol has an M or Maj in it, it means there is a Major 7th in the chord instead of a b7. CM13 is R 3 5 7 9 13 or C E G B D A. AM9 is R 3 5 7 9 or A C# E G# B. Major seventh type chords are very popular in modern worship music.
• The 6/9 chord falls is like a 9th chord with no 7th. R 3 5 6 9 or C E G D A. A “jazzy” sounding chord.
• A m6 chord like Cm6 is often played with the 7th included: R b3 5 b7 6. It usually functions diatonically as a ii chord.
• The m9 chord is R b3 5 b7 9. Am9= A C E G B. It can be used as a ii or vi and is fairly popular in modern worship and rock.
Chord Extension Formulas for Chords with 7ths
• C9 R 3 5 b7 9 C E G Bb D• CM9 R 3 5 7 9 C E G B D• Cm9 R b3 5 b7 9 C Eb G Bb D• C11 R 3 5 b7 9 11 C E G Bb D F• CM11 R 3 5 7 9 11 C E G B D F (ugly sounding chord)• Cm11 R b3 5 b7 9 11 C Eb G Bb D F• C13 R 3 5 b7 9 13 C E G Bb D A• CM13 R 3 5 7 9 13 C E G B D A• C6/9 R 3 5 6 9 C E B D A
Different Worship Styles- British vs. R&B
• In modern worship there are two broad categories of musical styles which I like to call British and R&B.
• The British styles are the ones which owe much of their musical roots to U2, Jars of Clay and even the punk/new wave movement of the 70’s and early 80’s. It retains much of the qualities of 90’s alternative rock.
Characteristics of the British Style
• Very guitar driven with keyboard often taking a secondary “pad” role.
• Straight syncopated rhythms.• Often modal with a repetitive chord progression. • Very few dominant 7 chords.• Anti-Blues- very little use of traditional blues/gospel
idioms.• Chris Tomlin, Hillsongs United, Charlie Hall and similar
groups fall into this category. Much of ORU’s Chapel worship is more of a British style.
Characteristics of the R&B Style
• Keyboard driven with guitar taking a supporting role.• Often includes shuffle rhythms.• Much more cadential with less chord progression
repetition.• Lots of dominant 7 chords and their extensions.• Very bluesy and soulful. Often includes “funk” guitar.• Israel Houghton, Fred Hammond, Marvin Sapp fall
into this category as does ORU’s Souls-a-Fire.
Urban Gospel Guitar Style
• Single note “popcorn” style• Bass doubling• Riffs• Funk chords• Power chords• More electric than acoustic• Less loyalty to any one key-
more flat keys• Piano driven
Scales and Modes
• There are many different scales which can be used for improvisation.
• Modes are a type of scale. Modes often refer to a diatonic scale using a note other than the normal root as a tonic.
• An entire song can be created from a mode or different modes can be played over chords as the chords change.
• There are scales with five and six notes.
Major and Minor Pentatonic Scales
• Major Pentatonic• Penta (five) , Tonic (tone
or note)• R-2-3-5-6• Can be played over most
major chords. • In most situations, can be
used over entire diatonic progression
• Can also be switched with each major chord.
Minor Pentatonic
• R- b3- 4-5-b7• Used in many different
styles- blues, jazz, country, rock
• Can be played over most minor chords.
• Easy to access
The Major and Minor Blues Scales
• The major blues scale adds a b3. Used in blues, rock, gospel, and country. A very southern American musical quality.
• The minor blues scale is adds a b5. Used in almost all modern forms. Many, many, many rock songs use the blues scale as riff material. It’s used very often in blues and jazz.
Major and Minor Blues Scales
Minor Pentatonic and Minor Blues ScalesMajor Blues Scale
Two Songs Featuring Major and Minor Blues
RUSH Metallica
Modes of the Major Scale
• Modes are created by using notes in the scale other than 1 as a starting point.
• For example, if 2 to 2 is selected (d to d in key of C) the scale would be in the dorian mode.
• Different starting points change the intervallic make up of the scale creating major, minor and diminished modes.
The Intervals of the Seven Modes of the Major Scale
• Ionian- R 2 3 4 5 6 7• Dorian-R 2 b3 4 5 6 b7• Phrygian- R b2 b3 4 5 b6 b7• Lydian- R 2 3 #4 5 6 7• Mixolydian- R 2 3 4 5 6 b7• Aeolian- R 2 b3 4 5 b6 b7• Locrian- E b2 b3 4 b5 b6 b7
FINGERINGS OF THE SEVEN MAJOR MODES
Alternate Tunings
• Drop D- most popular and easiest.• DADGAD- a favorite of many
fingerstyle players- Michael Gungor, Phil Keaggy, the late Michael Hedges• Tunings in open chords for
slide like open E or G tuning
Harmonics
• Natural Harmonics- created using open strings• Artificial Harmonics- does not occur naturally• Pinch Harmonics- sometimes called “Billy
Gibbons” harmonics. • Tap Harmonic• Palm Harmonic
LaFleur pp.62-67
Guitar Amps
Guitar Amps- There are three types of amps in use today: Tube, which uses vacuum tubes to amplify the signal, Solid State, which uses transistors to amplify the signal, Modeling, which uses digital technology to copy the sounds of other popular (usually tube) amps. Most guitarists tend to prefer the tube amp for its warmer sound.
Guitar Amps
Guitar Effects
• Guitar effects most often fall into these categories
• Distortion• Modulation• Time Based• Volume• Envelope/Filtering, Pitch.
Distortion/Overdrive• Distortion- for the guitarist this is probably one of the most important and
elusive effects. Essentially distortion is achieved by clipping or manipulating the normally rounded sine wave produced by an undistorted tone. The more squared off the wave is, the more distorted it sounds. Virtually every type of distortion is doing this to some degree. Overdrive is a term derived from the practice of turning up the pre-gain on an amplifier and driving the post-gain or “master” volume. For most guitarists this is a very desirable type of distortion. An overdrive pedal like the famous Ibanez Tube Screamer was designed to emulate amp overdrive. Many of the pedals today like the Fulldrive manufactured by Fulltone are based upon the basic circuitry of a Tube Screamer. Other pedals try to achieve a more “fuzzy” tone such as the Fuzzface or OCD pedal. The Visual Sounds pedal Dr. Jeckyll and Mr. Hyde has both types of pedals in one effect. The Sparkle Drive by Voodoo Lab is designed to provide a little bit of overdrive while keeping the basic integrity of the amp/guitar tone intact. The degree of distortion could be thought of as a continuum with light overdrive (Sparkle Drive) on the left side and heavy distortion (Fuzzface) on the right. For the guitarist, it’s important to find a distortion effect/amp combination that possesses both distortion and clarity.
Distortion Pedals
Time Based• Time Based- refers to devices which affect time causing actual repeats.
Examples of these are Tape Echo, Analog and Digital Delay and Reverb. Reverb is something that occurs naturally in any room but has been replicated with such things as reverb rooms, spring reverbs and today, digital reverb. The first delays where called tape echos and were essentially reel to reel tape players with multiple play back heads. Later, analog delays were invented. They essentially worked by delaying the electronically the source signal. Digital delay came a few years later and like other digital products, worked by replicating the source signal digitally. Digital delay has become very important in most forms of modern music but especially in worship. The Edge from U2 first popularized the dual delay set up especially on “The Unforgettable Fire” LP from 1984. Today this technique is used by nearly all modern worship styles. Many, if not most, of the Hillsongs United and Chris Tomlin releases have lots of delay
Modulation
• Modulation- refers to devices which use slight time delays to affect pitch tunings creating an out of tune, thickening effect. Examples of these are Phase Shifter, Flanger, Chorus and Univibe. All of these create some type of warbling sound which can be varied increasing such variables as depth, speed and frequency. This is usually achieved by manipulating and/or overlapping the sine wave. Most new delay pedals have a modulation setting which adds that warbling effect to the delayed sound.
Various Modulation Effects
VOLUME EFFECTS
• • Volume Effects- refers to effects like volume pedal,
tremolo and auto-gates. Tremolo was initially an effect included on many of the amps from the 60’s and is associated with the “surf” guitar styles of artists like Dick Dale or The Beach Boys. Volume pedals can be used for dynamics and flute like effects or volume swells. In modern worship, volume swells are essential and used by many of the current artists.
Volume Effects
Wah Pedals and Filtering Effects
• Filtering Wah- refers to wah, auto-wahs and envelop follower/filter. This is any device which filters certain frequencies out to create a specific effect. The most notable is the wah pedal. The wah pedal essential sweeps through a range of frequencies by foot manipulation. It can almost be thought of as tone knob on steroids. The auto-wah does the same thing but automatically and the envelope follower is similar but based on the percussive attack producing a wah effect every time a note is played.
Filtering Effects
Pitch Effects
• Pitch- refers to effects which change or manipulate pitch like harmonizers, octavers and pitch shifters. The original octavers like the ones used by Jimi Hendrix on “All Along the Watch Tower” and “Purple Haze” basically worked by manipulating the wave on a distortion pedal. Essentially it was a distortion pedal. Eventually, an octave down effect was created without the distortion. Today’s harmonizer creates the pitch digitally. It can add any interval imaginable to the source pitch. Many of the harmonizers are “smart” meaning that the key and scale can be programmed in and the effect can harmonize with the source note.
Pitch Effects
Other Effects of Note
• Compressor/Limiter-these devices limit the input signal while at the same time attempt to lengthen (or sustain) it. Guitarists will use this for sustain, balanced attack or even more attack.
• E-Bow- a device which moves the string magnetically making a violin type effect.
Compressor/Ebow
References
LaFleur, Bill, Ultimate Guitar Technique: The Complete Guide, Hal Leonard Corporation, Milwaukee, WI, 2006.
Snyder, Jerry, Jerry Snyder’s Guitar School Method Book 1, Alfred Publishing company, USA, 1998.
Wallach, Howard, How to Play Guitar in Every Key, JT Publication/Heartland Music Inc, Peoria, IL, 1997.
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