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First thing practice your vibrato at the point of least resistance ... so around the 12th fret.
Now practice bending up the B string a tone .... this is easier to get spot on
Then work your way down the fretboard.
Tone is nice...'touch' is good...pitching is okay.
I would take this issue back a step and fundamentally look at your vibrato *without bending* first.
Observations:
- that first bend at 0:02 (10th fret B string) shows signs of where you want to be...just needs to be more meaty
- immediately afterwards the 1st finger on 7th fret B string is everything that's wrong for me: you've got barely any purchase on the neck, it's kinda rapid fire (not sexy like!), and it feels/sounds/looks entirely sharp (where's the note you started on?!!)
- well pitched whole-tone bend at 0:07 (9th fret G string) followed by another wobble like point #2 above
- another flash of where you want to be at 0:18
- ...and so on...
Your bending is good...your vibrato needs work...there's hopeEveryone's different but my advice would be to stop hanging that thumb over the top all the time.
I might have to get the biomechanics book out from the loft and check
Back to the main subject, I’m thinking it’s all about fast twitch muscles/fibres, and if you don’t have them, you don’t have them
- pronation: palm faces downwards
- supination: palm faces upwards
Is a tasty vibrato really a 'fast twitch' thing? Pretty rare that I want to hear it happening with high speed.Disclaimer: I dropped Biology as soon as
I think you're on the right track - I can see what you mean about the lack of control when bending right at the end of the video - but you've got the foundation there - it just needs working on.
I think you just need to play, play, play - and most importantly build up the hand strength. Perhaps learn a few classic rock solos - Hotel California is a bending masterclass...
and even the greats don't always get it right!
Cheers - up the neck I go!CaseOfAce said: Appreciate the advice mate!!
Thanks to everyone who has chimed in, if I could have dropped more than just one wisdom for each post I would have.
It really is a special community when you can post something like that on the internet and not get completely mauled for how bad it is. You've all given me plenty to think about, and lots of tangible advice that will hopefully culminate in progress.
Most importantly, it's back to putting in some solid hours practise for me now!
*Cheers legends!!*
Your tone sounds great.
How do you get on with shorter scale types of guitars, Les Pauls etc? My first experiment would be to try something like that with 9's / hybrids on.
You may just have a grumpy tight Strat! I would go and bother my local guitar shop till I found one It was easier to it with irrelevant of the guitar type.
another great bit of advice I was given was to raise the action a bit - I’d always thought you had to have it low to the point of just not buzzing. But try raising the action and see if that helps you as much as it did me.
I would concentrate on getting the bends right, so fret the 15th fret B and get the sound, then bend the 13th up to match the sound.
I tend to go for a wider slower vibrato with my first finger. You can do that thing where you splay your other fingers off the fretboard and then you've got a nicer pivot point for your wrist.
This is great! Thanks for taking the time to communicate the wisdom - you've laid out some great exercise tips and the reality of relearning the muscle memory etc. It makes sense, I regret never having a lesson before. Makes sense that I'm now plagued with a decades worth of consolidating bad technique. Cheers!
Thanks mate - I think this will be the biggest hurdle for me, unlearning the bad habits and easing off on gripping the neck. I hadn't thought of the action but the Strat is due for a re-string soon so might play around with that when I do.
Agree about your comment about TFB members - what a good bunch of humans!
Supportact said: [my style is] probably more an accumulation of limitations and bad habits than a 'style'.
If I were to pin it on a single bend, one comes to mind. The first note (G bent up a whole step) and subsequent vibrato is "that sound" in my head that I am trying to achieve. The cover below (at 1min 30) shows it up close ,and may be a good starting point for me to emulate technique wise.
Thank you for the advice, i've collated everything useful above onto a single A4 sheet that I'm using to practise from now. Trying to incorporate a lot of these ideas into my approach.
Although this has taken me a few steps back to re-write some muscle memory and change the way I'm thinking about the bend, I definitely feel fresher going into this and progress now seems on the horizon. I'm going to post a follow up video once I start top get the hang of it. Might inspire others to use this amazing resource we have in the collective wisdom of fellow FB members, to help cross those challenging hurdles