In The Woodshed
Hammer-ons from nowhere? Free up your picking hand by adding a different type of legato to your tool kit. Charlie Griffiths shows the way.
This technique is the same as a regular hammer-on, but in this case we are using it to initiate the string, rather than the traditional method of following a picked note with a hammer-on. Hammer-ons from nowhere are very useful for creating smooth legato lines across multiple strings as the pick sound can disrupt the flow, so this omitting of picking as much as possible can open up new possibilities.
One technical aspect to consider is cleanness, especially when playing with gain. Dropping your finger on to the fretboard will make all of the strings vibrate, so we need to use muting to have a nice clear single note. Start by hammering on to a note with your first finger. Utilise the underside of your finger to mute any strings on the treble side and also use the tip of your finger to mute the string directly below it. Any remaining bass strings can be taken care of with palm-muting.
Example 1 is a chance to test the technique with all four of your fingers. Experiment with different muting options to attain a clean, ‘one note at a time’ sound.
Example 2 demonstrates the power of the fourth finger. When descending through the strings it is possible to play the entire scale with b3- no picking at all. This Dorian mode (1-2- 4-5b7) 6- shape is a good one to practice as it uses all the finger groups, but experiment with as many scale shapes as you can.
Example 3 is a Richie Kotzen pattern that uses a sequence of four through a Dorianb3- b5- b7). Blues scale hybrid shape (1-2- 4- 5 -6- This downbeat is played with a picked downstroke each time, but the in-between notes are all played as either pull-offs of hammer-ons from nowhere. This is a cool way of adding accents to your lines.
Since this technique frees up the picking hand quite a bit, it makes it a perfect companion with two-handed tapping licks; as shown in example 4; an Eddie Van Halen inspired lick using the same notes as lick 3, with extra tapped notes at the 12th fret. Each string change is led by the fourth finger of your fretting hand.
Example 5 shows hammer-ons from nowhere and tapping incorporated into a Tosin Abasi style riff, inspired by his work with Animals as Leaders.
Play each example swith a focus on being as clean as possible, before gradually speeding up and playing along with the tracks.
NEXT MONTH Charlie looks at the technique of playing chords using harmonics
hammer-ons from nowhere ar e useful for creating smooth legat o lin es across multi ple string s