A Mel Bay Publications, Inc. Webzine
February 2009 · Bimonthly
     If you liked this article, you might be interested in:  Old-Time Festival Tunes for Clawhammer Banjo by Dan Levenson  Old-Time Festival Tunes for Fiddle & Mandolin by Dan Levenson |
In this issue: Harmonics on the Banjo: Part 1 | Joy to the World | Slowhand Irish Banjo | Hammer-ons, Pull-offs and Slides
Print this Article (PDF) Email Article to a Friend  Click here to visit the purchase page. Hammer-ons, Pull-offs and Slidesor Where does he get all those notes?One of the great techniques are known as the hammer-on, the pulloff and the slide. They are all techniques that allow you to play more notes than you can with just the right hand alone. They also allow you to play some of the same notes you would usually play with a plucked note by the right hand, and have them sound different because you played them with your left hand. In these techniques, the left hand note sounds when the 5th string WOULD have sounded. It can also sound at the same time as the 5th string is sounded, which results in two notes being played at the same time. Here, as in so many things, timing is everything. In fact, the timing will be at least as important as technique. Let's look at them one by one. Hammer-on - In this technique, you are striking a string with the right hand for the first note of a pair of notes, then bringing a finger of your left hand down to a different fret for a higher note on the already sounding string with enough pressure to sound that string again for the second note of the pair. You can hammer-on from an open string to a fretted note or from one fretted note to another fretted note above that note (higher fret number) on the same string as in this example.
Hammer-ons from Open String & Hammer-ons from Fretted Note MP3s The timing is such that the hammer happens on the second eighth note EXACTLY where the thumb would have sounded. Also remember to let the thumb hit the 5th string but not sound it while you lift your hand up. Here is a short scale made up of hammer-ons for you to try.
Basic Hammer-on Scale MP3 There are occasionally hammer-ons to unplayed strings. That is not really any different than a standard hammer-on except that you just hammer-on to a string without having played that string first. This happens in the final tab version of Soldier's Joy. Just try hammering on to any open string at any fret and notice that the hammered on note makes a sound just as it did when you hammered onto a plucked string. See, that wasn't hard. There is also a special double hammer-on which contains a set of 3 notes known as a triplet. Here, 3 notes are played in the space of one beat. This is accomplished by hammering-on two notes in succession after striking the first one. You'll be seeing this in Forked Deer.
Triplets MP3s Pull-off- This technique is just the opposite of the hammer-on. In a pull-off you strike a fretted string for the first note of a pair of notes then pull-off or pluck that same string with the finger you were fretting with for the second note of the pair. You can pulloff to either an open string or another fretted note on that same string. If you are going to a fretted note, then the new finger has to be in position before you pull off the original one. Again, the timing is such that the pull-off happens on the second eighth note EXACTLY where the thumb would have sounded. Also, remember to let the thumb hit the 5th string and lift your hand up as if the 5th string were going to sound. Try it with and without sounding the 5th string as you pull-off. Here are a couple of examples to get you going.
Pull-offs to Open String Pull-offs to Fretted Note MP3s
Basic Pull-off Scale MP3 Hammer-ons and pull-offs combined.
Hammer-ons and Pull-offs Combined MP3 Slide - In a slide you play a note by striking a fretted string with the right hand for note one, then move or slide the left- hand finger up or down to another note (without lifting it off the fingerboard), while the string is still sounding. The result is a continuous sound beginning with one pitch and ending with another. In order to move the fretting finger, you lighten up the fretting pressure just enough to allow you to move that finger or slide it along the string to the other note. The finger maintains contact with the string throughout the slide. Timing? You got it. The timing is such that the slide happens so the second eighth note is ending EXACTLY where the thumb would have sounded. Which finger should you use to slide with? That's a better question with a more elusive answer. I find that I slide with my first or second finger. You may find that for the exercise here in example 34 that the first finger works best for the slide up and a different finger works for you for the slide down from the fifth fret. Experiment and see what works best for you. Sometimes it depends on the note that follows the slide. Also, remember to let the thumb hit the 5th string and lift your hand up as if the 5th string were going to sound.
Slides MP3s Here are a couple of good hammer-on, pull-off, and slide exercises that should give your hands a pretty good workout and set them firmly in your mind, er, hand.
Hammer-on, Pull-off and Slide Exercise MP3 These are not the easiest scale exercises in the world, but they should give your hands a pretty good workout. Don't worry if these are not 'perfect" before moving on to the tunes. Yes, measures 7 & 15 DO contain hammer-ons to an unplayed string. Yes it works. And, yes, that is a slide to and from the 10th fret at the 4th and 5th measures in the first scale. I have recorded this exercise one line at a time to give you a chance. By the time you finish this, you should be able to handle almost anything tab can throw at ya! About the Author
Dan has been a coffee house performer, dancer with the Coal Country Cloggers of Pittsburgh, PA and played with several bands. He is a sought after teacher and performer. The joy that he finds in traditional music spills over, so that every song has a story and every story has a song. Levenson has been voted one of the top ten clawhammer banjo players by "Banjo Newsletter" readers. Dan is also a regular columnist for "Banjo Newsletter" and "Dulcimer Times." In addition to all this, he is a founding member and manager of the Boiled Buzzards - Old Time Stringband. As Banjo player "Bluegrass Unlimited" calls his playing, melodic, meticulous and uncluttered. A seasoned professional with many recordings to his name. Check out his newest CD "Barenaked Banjos". You can reach Dan at: http://www.oldtimemusic.us/ [ top ]
| |
Dan Levenson is a multi-instrumentalist who shares his talent, knowledge and respect for traditional music in a variety of settings. He was raised in a musical family and took music lessons in school beginning with piano in the second grade. He took up the violin in the third grade and then in the fourth grade he picked up the guitar.