Harmonic Notes

Natural And Artificial on Classical Guitar

"Harmonic - Pertaining to harmony, as distinguished from melody and rhythm..."

There are two different types that are played on the guitar strings, natural and artificial. The natural ones are played on the open strings of the guitar and are particularly clear at the 5th, 7th, 9th and 12th frets.

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To play a "natural" you need to place your finger on the string directly above the fret, rather than just before it as you do when you are fingering a note. Next you pluck the string with your right hand and remove your left hand finger from the string. If you pluck the string closer to the bridge you are more likely to get a clearer tone. Try it on your guitar.

Artificial harmonics are performed with the left finger on a note as normal. The right hand "i" finger touches the string at the point where the note is produced and the "a" finger (usually) of the right hands plucks the string. This is more difficult than playing open string ones.

This graphic shows you how you play them properly from Play Classical Guitar by David Braid

Here's a little Carcassi piece called "Galop" which employs the use of open string harmonics...

As mentioned above, because the left hand is fingering a note on the fretboard the right hand has to both play the harmonic noad with the index finger and pluck the note with the annular or "a" finger. It is an aesthetically pleasing additional technique for guitarists which really adds to the charm of our instrument.

They give a beautiful bell-like sound when played properly. There is a large amount of music for classical guitar that uses these techniques, so it is worth your while learning them properly. For more than just harmonic techniques click here...

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