Guitar players add vibrato to the notes they play for various reasons, but does vibrato increase sustain? In this article, I’ll reveal how vibrato can add sustain to your solos and everything else you need to know about vibrato for electric and acoustic players.
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Vibrato can increase the sustain of a note by combining it with several other pitches as the string is bent up and down. Bending the string adds kinetic energy that keeps it sounding (vibrating) for longer periods of time. The faster or wider the vibrato, the longer the note can be sustained. The sustain helps make a note with vibrato “sing” because it takes on the characteristics of the vibrato in a singer’s voice.
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Vibrato is a popular technique used by virtually all string instrument players, not just guitar players. It changes the pitch (frequency) of a note or chord by making it rise up and drop down.
Vibrato can be done from the forearm, wrist, fingers, and whammy (vibrato) bar. Creating sounds below the pitch of the original note requires the use of a whammy bar, which is connected to the vibrato bridge of an electric guitar.
It gives the notes a more “singing” quality that makes them sound more natural because it mimics the vibrato of a singer’s voice.
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Vibrato is also used to highlight particular notes in a musical passage to build interest and excitement. For example, blues, Rock, and Metal players use vibrato to create an “edgy” sound.
This gives the string additional kinetic energy, and various pitches are heard above and below the note that was originally played. If the pitch variations are small, the human ear hears the original note as an “ongoing” part of the guitar riff or solo.
Vibrato can be wider by bending the string above and below the original note by one to two steps or more. This can give the impression of multiple sustaining notes centered around the original tone.
Guitar Vibrato Technique
Both the speed and width (depth) of the vibrato can affect a note’s sustain. Generally, faster and wider vibrato increase sustain the most because they both add additional kinetic energy to the string.
The speed of a note’s vibrato is the number of times the pitch is raised and lowered per second. The vibrato speed will often match the song’s tempo. Faster vibratos sound more aggressive than slower ones.
The width of a note’s vibrato is how far the note is bent up or down in pitch. Wide vibratos can bend a note 1 to 1 ½ steps or more, up and down. Wider vibratos sound more dynamic and dramatic than shallower ones.
Dual Fulcrum Vibrato
Using a whammy bar can give you a faster and wider vibrato than would be possible than by using your left hand on the stings. A whammy bar “divebomb” that comes back up to pitch is a type of vibrato.
Vibrato can be the thing that makes a player’s style most unique. All the great guitarists have their trademark vibrato. It can sound artificial or as natural as the vibrato of a singer’s voice.
B.B. King had one of the most unique vibrato techniques I’ve ever heard. B. B. could play a single note with vibrato, and you would already know it’s him playing the guitar!
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Vibrato gives you more tonal options because it allows you to bend a string to whatever pitch you want, even if it’s not a note.
Eric Clapton became famous for his quarter-step bends and vibrato in the band “cream, ” and Jeff Beck is the undisputed master of micro-tonal bends and vibrato!
Therefore, a “tremolo bridge and arm” is really a vibrato bridge and arm. You can call it a whammy bar if you can’t remember the difference.
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No, not necessarily. It’s more a matter of what you need at the time, not what’s better. If it sounds better, then use it.
For example, listen to the song “For What It’s Worth” by Buffalo Springfield, and you’ll hear the brilliant use of tremolo in the opening riff. In my opinion, vibrato wouldn’t have sounded anywhere as good!
Vibrato and tremolo are distinctly different effects and can be used separately or combined to give your playing a variety of sounds.
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Rock, Blues, and Metal players commonly use left-hand or whammy bar vibrato. Here are the techniques that electric and acoustic players have used.
To get the fastest, widest, and most consistent vibrato, rotate your left forearm to get the vibrato effect instead of trying to use your wrist and fingers.
Then, there’s Eric Clapton’s vibrato method. He doesn’t rotate his forearm. Instead, he bends the strings by moving (not rotating) his left arm so that his fingers push the string up and let it come back down.
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This gives you that unique “Clapton Sound.” Eric is such a master of the guitar that I highly recommend you try it! Watch any of his music videos, and he clearly demonstrates it.
Some players keep their left forearm still and move their wrists back and forth to get their vibrato. I’ve also seen players keep their left wrist still and bend the strings by moving their fingers.
Although these methods can work with some classical guitar techniques, I don’t recommend them for electric players because it’s much more difficult, and your vibrato generally will be less prominent with this method.
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A vibrato bridge comes installed on some electric guitars. It allows a player to bend the strings of a guitar with the right hand by using a whammy (vibrato) bar.
A floating vibrato bridge allows the bar to be moved in both directions so that the pitch of the strings can be brought up or down.
A decked vibrato bridge only allows the pitch of the strings to be lowered because the bridge sits flush against the guitar’s body so that the whammy bar can’t be pulled up from the resting position.
How To Use And Create Beautiful Vibrato On The Classical Guitar
It’s possible to raise the pitch of a note by bending a guitar string behind the nut. This type of vibrato is sometimes performed by players that want to bend an open string but don’t have a whammy bar.
One of the most famous songs that use this technique is “Dazed And Confused” by Led Zeppelin. Jimmy page bends the open note behind the nut of his 1959 Les Paul and gets a spectacular-sounding vibrato effect!
Some electric players get a vibrato effect by bending the neck of their guitar by holding the guitar’s body with their right hand and pushing the neck forward or pulling it backward with their left hand.
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Bending a guitar string up with the left hand and holding it at that pitch while adding vibrato can be one of the most challenging techniques to master, especially if you have small hands.
Greg Koch is one of the masters of the “bend and add vibrato” technique! In addition to his own savory brand of bent vibrato, you can hear him emulate the methods of such greats as B. B. King, Albert King, Freddie King (none of whom are related), Eric Clapton, and the list goes on and on!
This technique is definitely worth mastering because it can be used to create some of the most exciting sounds in guitar riffs and solos!
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Take your time and get good at bending strings with your left hand up to the correct pitch before you try to master this technique. Next, add vibrato to a bent note to raise and lower its pitch. Don’t cheat by using a whammy bar!
You don’t have to spend a fortune on a starter guitar, but learning on a crappy used or hand-me-down guitar can be a difficult and discouraging experience. Strings that are too difficult to press down on the frets will be twice as hard to bend or perform vibrato!
Bending strings and adding vibrato is easier and sounds better if you rotate your forearm and keep your wrist and fingers still. This is because using the muscles in your forearm gives you more power.
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You’ll find it a lot more difficult if you try to learn to bend notes or add vibrato to strings that are too close to the nut or where the neck meets the guitar’s body.
Lighter gauge strings will tune up to pitch at a lower tension than thicker ones. The trade-off is a loss of tone and sustain, so if the string gauge is too thin, you might not like the way your guitar sounds.
I recommend starting with a set of 0.009 to 0.042 gauge strings for electric players. These will give you good bendability and a decent tone. Acoustic players can start with a light gauge set of metal strings. Use standard gauge nylon strings if you have a classical guitar.
Does Vibrato Increase Sustain? Make Your Solo Sound Awesome!
However, be aware that if you change the gauge of your strings, your guitar may need a setup to play and sound right.
If you’re having trouble bending strings
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