Vibrato

[Jack Napalm]

Does anyone have any tips or pointers in practicing vibrato, specifically while you have bent a note? When I don't bend a string my vibrato is passible. When I bend a 1/2 step it's weak and when I bend a full step it's hosed. Just trying to improve my technique and this is one area that needs work.

Thanks

[Newc]

Re: Vibrato

Improve your unbent vibrato first, then work on the others.

I know some people just push with their fingers (like Lynch), but I tend to "lock" my fingers and use my wrist/arm to do all the work.

[electrico777]

Re: Vibrato

Best vibrato EVER is John Sykes try to listen to him.

[Number Of The Priest]

Re: Vibrato

I've been working on my bending vibrato technique for a LONG time and made my breakthrough just a few days ago. I was suddenly able to just do it. Obviously it doesn't have the nice singing/sustaining quality I want out of it yet, but I felt like I just made a quantum leap in my playing.

I push with my fingers as Newc describes for George Lynch. I had always wanted the Adrian Smith and Phil Collen vibrato (very wide vibrato, long and clear sustain, and vocal-like singing quality) and got lazy so I used the trem bar at the top of my string bends. [img]/images/graemlins/laugh.gif[/img] Not any more!! [img]/images/graemlins/crazy.gif[/img] [img]/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]

It's weird how regular unbent vibrato is essentially bending a note up a few cents out of tune, but string-bent vibrato is releasing the note to go DOWN a few cents after the top of the bend. My next challenge is to bend/vibrato ABOVE the top of the bend and seeing what THAT sounds like. [img]/images/graemlins/laugh.gif[/img]

I tried Newc's way of locking my fingers and then using my arm to shake the guitar, and I could never master keeping my guitar from wobbling all over the place, and it was especially uncontrollable as my fretting hand reached the upper frets (close to the center of gravity or pivoting fulcrum of the guitar). [img]/images/graemlins/crazy.gif[/img] Any tips for countering this, Newc? [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

[Newc]

Re: Vibrato

Let it wobble - as long as the sound comes out right [img]/images/graemlins/toast.gif[/img]

And you're not supposed to shake the guitar, you're supposed to move the string but do it from the wrist/forearm instead of pushing with your fingers. The string still slides across the frets (sideways).
See some Clapton footage for reference.

Look around for soem BB King footage - he's got a great 'fan-hand' thing going for unbent vibrato.

[Endrik]

Re: Vibrato

I would call myself an expert on vibratos....eheee
I started practicing it from the day one when I picked up the guitar, it was an old acoustic with unbelievably high action and heavy strings. My hands are pretty strong because of that, I can do Sykes, Yngwie, Lynch, Schenker, DeMartini, Vai, SRV or whatever with ease.
You have to do it constantly, make it the biggest part in your playing. If you play some solo then try do vibrate as much notes as you can. Do it ALL THE time.
You have to build the strenght and strenght comes from heavy practicing.
Great vibrato comes from a great teamwork where the players are your fingers and your ears.
You have to listen CAREFULLY EVERY SINGLE NOTE you vibrate.
Analyze how you would like to make it sound.
Just think in your head how should your perfect vibrato should sound and then apply it to the guitar.
When you are doing it, first time it sounds like shit, your fingers and brain and ears aren't used to work together that way and you don't have so much strength and controll in your hands. Just do it all over again and again and again and again, every day. If you have build some strenth and it still doesn't sound like you wanted it then just try change the tempo and/or the radius/width of the vibrato. You have to have the FEEL and the control to do it. Just try different ways until you find the perfect one.

When you have developed your vibrato style then you should be capable of doing it with all your 4 fretting fingers and on every string. Pulling with the ring finger on the 3rd string is probably the easiest but you have to do the same sound with the index finger by pushing. Practice Practice Practice.

And I suggest you start your vibrato development with full step bending up and down, don't start with some narrow and super wast wibbling, it doesn't do you no good. Just bend up and down, try to make it as it is a vibrato, that way you gain a lot of strength and controll. And if you have done it some time and feel REALLY comfortable with it then start changing the speed and the width until you get the sound what you wanted.

[JC_Denton]

Re: Vibrato

One thing id like to add is , that you should keep away form Kirk Hammett's vibrato and dont limit yourself with only one type of viborato.

[Jack Napalm]

Re: Vibrato

Thanks everyone, this gives me some thing to think about and work on. I do try and use wrist for my vibrato now. I used to use my fingers and one person described it as the Ethel Merman Vibrato. It's gotten better but the combination of bending and vibrato is really given me fits. I need to put it into the daily practice regimine.

[Newc]

Re: Vibrato

Practice scales and apply vibrato to each note - especially way down on the first fret. That'll build you up [img]/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]

[Number Of The Priest]

Re: Vibrato

Bending up a whole step, and then vibrato, on a first fret note? Yeah, that'll build you up alright. [img]/images/graemlins/laugh.gif[/img] [img]/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]

Jack, there's no easy way for me to put it, because I struggled with it for a year and a half before making my breakthrough. I just applied the bend/vibrato thing to every bend and it sounded HORRIBLE. I always blamed the string tension or my weak hands. But one thing I kept doing was to "air guitar" my bending. I'd be sitting on the bus on the way to school, either listening to music or hearing a song in my head, and then practicing the bend/vibrato with my left hand (discreetly to avoid weird stares from passengers thinking I was shadow-finger-banging a woman sitting near me or something [img]/images/graemlins/laugh.gif[/img] ). I know it sounds absolutely stupid, but I'd like to think that it ultimately helped me with the timing of the vibrato.

[VitaminG]

Re: Vibrato

while I was developing my vibrato on bent notes, I'd like to hit the unison note on the adjacent string occasionally to check my pitch. That helped me develop control.

Otherwise, I'd bend a note and apply vibrato, and it would be all over the shop, with no regard to whether I was above or below my targetted bent note. And consequently, it would sound like shit. [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

ps. that Adrian Smith wide vocal-like sound that Alex referred to was what I was chasing too. The BB King hummingbird vibrato has never appealed to me.

[SeventhSon]

Re: Vibrato

[ QUOTE ]

And you're not supposed to shake the guitar, you're supposed to move the string but do it from the wrist/forearm instead of pushing with your fingers. The string still slides across the frets (sideways).


[/ QUOTE ]

Really? [img]/images/graemlins/scratchhead.gif[/img]

Shaking the guitar and using it's inertia is a great way to get vibrato on a bent note. I see a lot of blues masters use this technique. IMO, it's the best way to get a nice + even vibrato on a bent note.

[shredmonster]

Re: Vibrato

Endrik makes some good points. Finger strength, ears, using all 4 fingers.

I would add just like picking there are several ways to do vibratos and lots of vibratos you can do.

Takes literally years to develop so don't get discouraged.

It is best to bend the string perpendicular to the frets as much as possible. Lots of practice is needed to make sure you hit the correct pitch you are aiming for. Timing is also a factor - take a beat and hit one vibrato per beat, then 2 vibratos to that beat, then 3 then 4. This will start developing the speed of your vibratos.

Standard is bend to the center of the neck - up on the upper three strings and down on the lower 3 strings. Although I bend usually down on the G string also.

Sometimes I use just my finger - giving me a very fast vibrato. Sometimes I use my finger and wrist. Other times I use my finger , wrist and whole arm. Sometimes I shake the guitar. Sometimes I have my hand anchored securely on the neck and other times I use take my thumb off of the neck and use my bicep muscle to bend the high e string up.

Ideally you want a whole "vocabulary" of vibratos - the more the better. Listen to Michael Schenker or Uli Roth - best vibratos I have heard from any of the more popular guitarists.

Experiment with the width. For example learn to do a very wide vibrato and speed the frequency up gradually as you maintain that width - this is a more advanced technique.

Then once you get good at vibratos you add "tone" using the timing of grabbing the note and picking the note and how hard you pick the note. You can make it sound smooth or growl or give it a harmonic content.

[Soap]

Re: Vibrato

Hmmnn, simple, when you practice spend more time shaking notes here and there without bending them. Then, when bending some notes shake them while holding the bend. To me, and each to their own, theres to types of vibrato. One, a fast vibrato( fast short I'm in a hurry vibrato) and a longer or slow vibrator, (longer and slower spend some time with it vibrato). Kirk Hammet has got a really good fast vibrato. Slow vibrato, more of a a bluesy soulful vibrator, found among blues and rock players.

[Endrik]

Re: Vibrato

yeah Kirk Hammet has a really "good" out of tune vibrato [img]/images/graemlins/poke.gif[/img]