Play Natural Harmonics on Guitar

Natural harmonics are found on all stringed instruments, although their position and audibility vary from instrument to instrument. Harmonics played on a guitar, are defined as notes that are produced when a string is played in such a way, that vibrational overtones are created. This can be as a result of amplification, or restriction of vibration.

Natural guitar harmonics occur at certain positions on a guitar string. They are formed when the string is played openly, so no notes are fretted.

The points on a guitar neck where natural harmonics occur, are referred to as nodes. These are points on the string that appear to be stationary, when the string is plucked and is vibrating. The nodes are located on the 24th fret, the12th fret, the 7th fret and the 5th fret. It is possible to use the node position on the 4th fret, but it may be a little tricky to get it right for beginners.

When a guitar string is struck, or played, the note you hear is actually made up of a number of tones. The note that you play, be it an open string, or fretted note, is known as the fundamental tone. The other tones, made up of the node points on the string that appear motionless, are the overtones. It is these overtones that are used to create natural harmonics on the guitar.

Although the overtones are always sounded when their corresponding fundamental tone is played, they simply are not all that audible, so you don't really distinguish them as individual tones, but rather as one rich-sounding note. To make these overtones audible, you need to manipulate the string in a slightly different manner than you normally would, when playing a note.

Take the harmonic on the 12th fret on the 6th string, for example. To play a natural harmonic at this position, you play an open E on the sixth string. While the note is sounding, you gently touch the string right above the 12th fret. If you push down too hard, the string will touch the fret and the sound will stop.

What you are doing by touching the node point above the 12th fret of the string, is effectively dividing the oscillation of the string into halves. This causes a note to be sounded that is one octave above the open E string.

What happens when you touch a node point, such as the 7th fret, is all the node points nearby are dampened, and the 7th fret node point becomes the new fundamental tone. Depending on which node you sound a natural harmonic on, it divides the string into different oscillating sections. If the 5th fret harmonic is used, then the string oscillates in four sections, while the 4th fret node divides the string into fifths.

When playing an open string note, the fundamental is referred to as the 1st harmonic. Playing the 12th fret harmonic tone, the tone is referred to as the 2nd harmonic. The 3rd harmonic is located on the 7th and 19th frets, since the string oscillates in three sections, as mentioned earlier. The pattern goes as follows: the 2nd harmonic will have one node, the 3rd will have two nodes, the 4th harmonic will have three nodes and so on.

Natural Guitar Harmonics:

• Are produced with a left-hand technique
• Are played with an open string
• Can be produced anywhere on the neck, but are easiest to produce at certain places
• Are indicated in tab with carets surrounding the fret number, for example <12> or <7>.
• Are indicated in Guitar Pro with a diamond symbol to the left of the fret number

How to Play Natural Harmonics on Guitar

Lightly touch the string you are playing at one of the following places along the neck:

• The space between the 3rd and 4th frets
• Over the 4th fret
• Over the 5th fret
• Over the 7th fret
• Over the 9th fret
• Over the 12th fret
• Over the 16th fret
• Over the 19th fret

It is possible to produce natural harmonics elsewhere on the neck, but is infinitely easier at these spots. The easiest place to learn to play natural harmonics is at the 12th fret, where there is greater variance in the pressure you can use while still creating the correct sound.

Correct                                                                       Wrong

Hold your finger softly against the string, so that the only thing the string is touching is your finger. Experiment with pressure and plucking the string until you hear the string ring, rather than sound deadened, or just like normal. Remove your finger from the string after the note begins to sound.

Video Guitar Lesson On How to Play Natural Harmonics On Guitar

Guitar Natural Harmonics Exercise

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Songs that Utilize Guitar Harmonics

• Nothing Else Matters, Metallica
• Yellow Ledbetter, Pearl Jam
• Harvest Moon, Neil Young
• Various songs, Black Label Society
• Blurry, Puddle Of Mudd
• A Fire In Babylon, Shadows Fall

That's all for this guitar technique lesson on natural harmonics. If you enjoyed this lesson, remember to subscribe to our newsletter as we will post new updates of this website regularly. Cheers!

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