PART5 SLAPPED HARMONICS EXERCISES

Ex 1: This exercise demonstrates the slapped harmonics at the 12th and 19th frets. The 19th-fret slapped harmonic gives the same sound as at the 7th fret. When using the picking hand for the slap, the 19th fret might be logistically easier to get to.

Ex 2: The harmonics here are in the same areas as in Ex 1, but being incorporated with a fingerpicking pattern over an Em chord. Use the picking hand for the slap.

Ex 3: Here the picking hand creates slapped harmonics over different strings within an Em chord. Although the tab indicates specific strings to target, in reality this is an approximation, as the idea is to get a gradually separated sound going from low to high to low again. As the flat of the finger is used, it’s difficult to be 100% precise, but just get enough separation to hear the ascending and descending pitches.

Ex 4: This exercise utilises chord changes up the neck, over an open E chord into a barred A chord (5th fret), into a barred B (7th fret). Your results may not sound some notes clearly as you can’t slap strings exactly at various places so as long as some harmonics come out, you’re doing fine! Practise the chord change first, then go for the harmonics.

Ex 5: Here the notes at the top of each chord create a melody. Play the chords without the harmonics first, so you can hear what the melody should be. The slap harmonics create the pitches an octave higher. Change to the B6 chord on the last off-beat B note of bar 1, and watch out for the jump from the open E chord to the 4th-fret E triad at the end of the exercise.