The Jazz Guitar Chord Dictionary
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  1. #1

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    Hi Folks!

    Do you have any advice how to impelemnt open strings into single note soloing/improvisation? How to practice that?

    Some examples:
    1:20

    2:46, 3:52


    Cheers!

  2.  

    The Jazz Guitar Chord Dictionary
     
  3. #2

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    Listen to Gabor Szabo.

  4. #3

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    I unfortunately cannot give you specific exercises to work on, but this video has given me some ideas that I hope to work on and explore further at some points.

    Starting around 12 mins in.

  5. #4

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    Quote Originally Posted by chemiorro
    Hi Folks!

    Do you have any advice how to impelemnt open strings into single note soloing/improvisation? How to practice that?

    Some examples:
    1:20

    2:46, 3:52


    Cheers!
    Ah Reiner! Such a great sound.

    i don’t know about Reiner, who I think has been quite mathematical, but many players are quite experimental about this. You take the theoretical/mathematical and see whether open strings belong to a mode/voicing etc, or you could just experiment and see what sounds good.

    the important thing really is just to get used to it. Maybe make a note of sounds you like?

    I like Peter Bernstein for open strings as well.

  6. #5

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    Campanellas or over-ring scales are cool too. Can you play a given scale with a combination of open and and stopped notes over ringing as much as possible?

    Great for fretboard knowledge

  7. #6

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    Carl Verheyen talks a little about open strings here:



    If your not familiar with him, not a jazz guy, he's a studio musician with his own band also...


  8. #7

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    There's a video where Eric Johnson talks about playing an open string to enable jumping the left hand to another position. Same thing Carl Verheyen ^ is talking about.

  9. #8

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    Three jazz guitarists who often incorporate open strings in their playing are Ralph Towner, Gene Bertoncini, and Bill Connors (listen to Swimming with a Hole in My Body). Significantly all have some classical training. Perhaps seeking out some advice from a classical guitarist might be of help. Be glad to reach out to my friends at Austin Classical Guitar if you would like.

    Dan

  10. #9

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    It's one thing to use open strings in arranged contexts like licks, riffs, chord-melodies but I find it difficult to accommodate open strings in single line improvisation smoothly.

    I work on using the the first few frets deliberately as I don't tend to spend much time in that area. However I don't like the tonal shift between the fretted notes and open strings. Also you have to pay extra attention to stop the open string from ringing.

    Is anybody able to seamlessly use open strings in their improvised lines? I suspect Wes Montgomery was a master of this.

  11. #10

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    Quote Originally Posted by Tal_175

    Is anybody able to seamlessly use open strings in their improvised lines?
    Sure, why not? If I'm playing in F on the first few frets and I want a D I just play it. No point in stretching over to the A string, 5th fret for it. Same goes for the other strings too. They don't ring if they're part of a line.

    This uses the open D, G, B and E strings.


  12. #11

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    Sid Jacobs comes first to my mind in his "The Bill Evans Guitar Book", definitive arrangements of 14 pieces.

    Very impressive.

  13. #12

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    Quote Originally Posted by chemiorro
    Hi Folks!

    Do you have any advice how to impelemnt open strings into single note soloing/improvisation? How to practice that?

    Some examples:
    1:20

    2:46, 3:52


    Cheers!
    They are more something I tend to incorporate into voicings but I like that thing you do when you play a scale across the strings, using the open strings. Bill Frisell does it but I got it from classical guitar. I think it’s call campanelas? Modern editions seem to like this type of fingering.

    hasnt come out in two many jazz solos yet, should probably practice it more.

    Reinier Baas is cool

    EDIT: ah nuts I posted the same thing ages ago above lol

  14. #13

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    Quote Originally Posted by ragman1
    Sure, why not? If I'm playing in F on the first few frets and I want a D I just play it. No point in stretching over to the A string, 5th fret for it. Same goes for the other strings too. They don't ring if they're part of a line.

    This uses the open D, G, B and E strings.

    Nice. I don't seem to hangout in the first three frets enough to consider open strings as options. I have noticed a couple of times that I may subconsciously hit the open strings when it's the natural phrase continuation.

    I think guitar sounds best in those lower frets but unfortunately being close to the nut means more limited phrasal options. I also think the more acoustic the guitar, the less of a timbre difference between fretted and open notes, solid body electric guitars having the biggest gap not just in terms of the timbre but also the sound envelope.
    Last edited by Tal_175; 10-07-2022 at 02:16 PM.

  15. #14

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    Indeed there are those that say the guitar sounds best in its first five frets. See players like Wes spend so much time in lower positions it’s quite interesting. Not that I think Wes used open strings much if at all.

  16. #15

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    Pat Martino had a trick to keep his favorite patterns in use in open position. He would 'finger' the open strings at the nut, as if it were a fret. Try taking a 1st position lick you play (maybe something in F minor?) , move it down a half step, and keep the same fingering. It's not something I end up using a lot, but I'm glad I know it's there....


    PK

  17. #16

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    I came across the following recently:

    How High The Moon, original key of G. Play the D on A str. / 5th fret w/ ring finger, G open, 2x A w/ index on G str., B with ring finger on G string, then C and F on A and D str, w/ index, G on D string w/ ring finger, next G open, A on G str. w/ index etc. (just to get the idea)

    Works nicely if you want to play the head in that register.

  18. #17

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    Joe Pass used open strings as pedals all the time and wasn't averse to popping in an open string for effect at the right moment.

    It's also a well-known trick to use an open string as a bridging note to get from a high position to a lower one.