Why not work on your Vibrato while you're stuck in?

JohnCordy

I was asked on instagram about working on vibrato, so I put together my thoughts - might be something to be conscious of and working on a bit whilst you're inevitably playing guitar more!

axisus

I'll take a look when I get home. My vibrato with bending must be amongst the worst on the forum, it is way behind the rest of my playing.

JohnCordy

@axisus that's probably one of the harder aspects to be fair!!

midiman1962

good video - useful - thanks - just need to see if i can get that guitar sound out of a Boss GT1 ?

JohnCordy

@midiman1962 ummm never tried a boss gt1 to be honest? This is my Eric Johnson style lead tone that I programmed for helix / Hx stomp

axisus

JohnCordy said:

@axisus that's probably one of the harder aspects to be fair!!

Yeah, but at 56 I should have got somewhere with it!

JohnCordy

@axisus the way that works for me, is to bend to your target, and instead of trying to do the normal vibrato thing which would be to bend further, instead relax beneath the note and back to target.

axisus

JohnCordy said:

@axisus the way that works for me, is to bend to your target, and instead of trying to do the normal vibrato thing which would be to bend further, instead relax beneath the note and back to target.

Thanks for the tip.

Switch your guitar over so that you are playing left handed, now try bending vibrato with the wrong hand. You will get a result somewhat akin to my attempts! I really can't believe how bad I am.

midiman1962

JohnCordy said:

@midiman1962 ummm never tried a boss gt1 to be honest? This is my Eric Johnson style lead tone that I programmed for helix / Hx stomp

it's a great sound - i'll see if i can get near it "on a budget" with the Boss GT1 ....i need to start with a monster reverb

JohnCordy

I'd suggest starting with a plexi model, and turn the mids all the way up, and trebles nearly all the way down, switch to your bridge pickup...that's some of the fundamentals

susbemol

Yes, this is a great thing to work on. Especially if you have not done it before, it can be a lot of fun (and also a great eye-opener!) to try and work on different types of vibrato like BB King's, Vai, classical, etc.

clarkefan

JohnCordy said:

@axisus the way that works for me, is to bend to your target, and instead of trying to do the normal vibrato thing which would be to bend further, instead relax beneath the note and back to target.

Pete Thorn demonstrated this exact approach recently in one of his weekly live things, stressing that you don't go sharp, bend up to the desired pitch then lower, back up, etc.

He also suggested starting by just bending up to pitch for a while, to get the note in your ear, then try the vibrato bit.

One tip I'd suggest is to get the technique under your fingers with strings lighter than you normally use, then switch back to your preferred qauge.  Once you hear it you've got it.