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Re: Percussive Sounds on El. Guitar
Sorry about the late post to this….I have been a bit busy of late
scraping,
patting, thunking and muting on my own!
Alright, the “faux drum” thang is something I do quite a bit, yet not on
an
elec. Gtr but rather on an acoustic bass guitar. Some years back, when I
first started doing solo bass/looping shows, I was using A LOT of
processing and as many as three drum machines to supply drum/percussion
parts. I found that as much as 70% of my audience would grow bored (or at
least apathetic) of my show once the machines started. Looping solo bass,
on the other hand, who keep their attention. I tend to think of this as a
reaction to “canned tracks” and sequences being the opposite of a “live”
performance. I even tried “playing” a drum machine at times (tapping in
the
patterns I would use in real time to give the resemblance of a real
performance). And, while the reaction to this was perhaps a little
warmer,
there was always to “boredom factor” of having to watch someone tapping
little buttons and then hearing “big” drum sounds.
So, I went to playing drum parts on my bass (this was at Rick Walker’s
initial suggestion…and it was a remarkable bit of advice!) I use all of
the
afore mentioned techniques (string mutes, playing behind the nut,
strumming
behind a natural harmonic, use of pinch harmonics, multi-finger pats and
mutes—think paradiddles—nail scrapes, finger rubs, palm rubs and
pats—which
when applied at differing positions can produce an array of differing
timbres—and of course the use of foreign objects to “prepare” the bass
(see
John Cage and prepared piano for reference…)
I will at times use the Derek Bailey/Fred Frith trick of “drumming “ the
strings with either metal, plastic or wood objects (each for a different
“flavor”—plastic swizzle sticks and bamboo chopsticks are my
favorite)….and
even use my wedding ring to tap out patterns against the strings. And, I
have been somewhat renown for the use of alligator clips which give me a
fantastic ersatz-gamelan effect. I also tap, hit and smack the back of the
neck, the headstock, the bridge and various parts of the body (a’la
Hedges,
Badi Assad and Preston Reed). Sometimes I use a metal slide as well…
I don’t currently use any electronic effects for this—I have in the past,
but now do all my sonic manipulation “manually”.
But here is the big advice from what I have learned: If one is trying to
create the “sounds” of drums, be that of kick snare, hi-hat etc. , then
you
are setting yourself up for disappointment. The sounds coming off the gtr
really do not sound like the real thing. What actually is emulated in
these
techniques is the envelope of certain drum sounds and their rhythmic
placement in the music. Often times is is easier for us to “hear” drum
parts when using “drum sounds”. I have found that any sound when employs
a
necessary percussive envelope ( ask what is the attack, decay and pitch of
the sound I “hear”) will fit. I often use references to drum sounds
(“gamelan” “gong”” bongo” or “snare”) to catalog the sounds and techniques
I
use on my bass, but I really do not try to emulate the actual drum sound
(“bongo-ish” might be a better description…), and often I find myself
using
those sounds out of context of which would be used in a traditional drum
kit
i.e. often I use a “snare-ish” sound on what might usually be filled with
a
kick drum…
The thing here is not to try to emulate/imitate drum or drum machine
sounds
but rather develop a vocabulary of interesting tones and timbres which
employ various types of “percussive” envelopes and then develop a rhythmic
sense and acuity to employ those in a unique and creative way ---vis a vis
the use of loops.
I have found this direction to be both more rewarding and more musical.
Max