harmonics notes positions, learn by heart?

[Lagado]

I guess it depends, some like the 1/6 and 2/5 nodes are a bit in front of the fret. But in the case of the 3rd position you can vary between 1/6 and 1/7 node on either side of the fret marker. Gives you either the 5th or flat 7th of the open string.

I don't go for anything that I have a high likelihood of missing. That's the way I've mapped them.

 

[Lagado]

I've used this as a little practice piece for arching for a while now, trying to let the harmonics ring while moving the root, without muting the harmonics, up to 0.50:

 

[raal]

Nice intro ostinato and ambient vibe through the tune. Do you double as drummer? and yeah not trivial to arch the fretting fingers to clear the way for harmonics to ring.

 

[Lagado]

Nice intro ostinato and ambient vibe through the tune. Do you double as drummer? and yeah not trivial to arch the fretting fingers to clear the way for harmonics to ring.

No, I don't play drums, Tom Jenkinson plays both on that track. From accounts, he's a better drummer than he is a bassist...

I can play the melody with moving roots for "My Funny Valentine" (B minor scale above), just one harmonic is missing the octave voicing so that note has to stay in the first octave. The amount of arching is difficult to say the least, it will be a while before I get that cleaned up and up to scratch.

Edit: On a 5 string, need the B string.

 

[raal]

No, don't dig a map. Think and listen!

The harmonics I gave you above are the most prominent ones (harmonics 2, 3, 4, 5).

Position 3 is a 1/6 of the string length (check it), so its 2 octaves and a 5th above open string.
Position 6 is approximately 2/7 of the string length, so it sounds the 7th harmonic, which is 2 octaves and a minor seventh (flat with respect to equal temperament, but very sweet sounding and much used in barbershop singing).

I'll let you locate by yourself the next ones:
- harmonic 8 sounds 3 octaves above open string
- harmonic 9 is 3 octaves and a major 2nd above open string
- harmonic 10 is 3 octaves and a major 3rd above open string
- harmonic 11 is 3 octaves + a (flat) triton above open string
- etc.

Those may be hard to get on BG. On a double bass with a bow, one can sound them very clearly.

With my technique and instrument, anything past the 1/8 node seems unlikely to find any practical application, the finger muting noise dominating the tonal spectrum. Could add chorus and compression to mitigate that but wouldn't bet on it delivering musical result. Maybe it's is an upright thing.

 

[Lagado]

One of my favorite E minor chords in harmonics is open E with thumb, index 3rd fret A string, mid 4th fret D string, pinky fifth fret G string. Play it all together in a rake using thumb and three fingers on the right hand. It's a nice finishing chord now and then, if the last chord of the tune is E minor that is.

 

[raal]

Not surprisingly, used something similar for G maj 7 in Pent up,
G --- 5
D --4
A -3(1/6 node)
E -3(1/6 node)

When hitting 3 notes on adjacent strings at the same time, found thumb/index/middle twist pinch to be more effective than rake (that's me learning). The F7 is done like that.

 

[Lagado]

Not surprisingly, used something similar for G maj 7 in Pent up,
G --- 5
D --4
A -3(1/6 node)
E -3(1/6 node)

When hitting 3 notes on adjacent strings at the same time, found thumb/index/middle twist pinch to be more effective than rake (that's me learning). The F7 is done like that.

When I said rake, it's more of a claw, fingers positioned on the strings, from E to G. Thumb E, index A, mid D, ring G, pulled in quick sequence. Coming down, I'd use a one finger rake (index) from G to E. Rake is the wrong description really, but I can't remember the name of that particular technique. Flamenco style.

A certain amount is provided by the wrist to curve the hand out in a motion, rather than all deliberately plucked independently, a percentage is in the wrist movement outward.

 

[Papageno]

Playing the same harmonic on 3 successive strings sounds a sus4 (or sus2) chord.

For example: harmonic on 4th position on G, D, and A strings sounds F#sus4 = F# B C#. It's a nice open sound for the last chord of a tune (think quartal harmony).

 

[Lagado]

When I said rake, it's more of a claw, fingers positioned on the strings, from E to G. Thumb E, index A, mid D, ring G, pulled in quick sequence. Coming down, I'd use a one finger rake (index) from G to E. Rake is the wrong description really, but I can't remember the name of that particular technique. Flamenco style.

A certain amount is provided by the wrist to curve the hand out in a motion, rather than all deliberately plucked independently, a percentage is in the wrist movement outward.

1.05, ascending arpeggio, that's the picking I use for 4 in a row, descending, just the index rake.

 

[JW56789]

Raal, they're one of those things I know about, but don't really play a lot of things where it's appropriate.

Had a fretless friend who was deeply Jaco-influenced (imagine that . . . . .) who played those kinds of music and knew them really well. His advice was that the 'smaller' ones you needed to hit hard in just the right place to get them to speak, and as always, newer strings made it easier. He felt like on old strings, the harmonics were among the first things you lose, which he thought he heard as that 'old, dead' string tone.

 

[raal]

1.05, ascending arpeggio, that's the picking I use for 4 in a row, descending, just the index rake.

Different than i thought, arpeggiated, not a simultaneous hit or fast rake on all 3 strings.

 

[Lagado]

Different than i thought, arpeggiated, not a simultaneous hit or fast rake on all 3 strings.

I like to spell it out a little, only a slight delay between them but you get the individuals for a microsecond then it blends. I've found plucking three or 4 notes all at once, has quite a few overtones that could do with muting, because of the force required to pull all of them at once.