Acoustic guitar bending

Paolo

Blues Newbie
Hi all ... I find pretty hard bending on my acoustic guitar. I’m using d’addario n8. Any suggestion on the type chords to be used?
Happy blues to everybody
 

Norfolk Bill

norfolk uk, just knoodling along
what chords to use? how do you mean?

back to bending,,,several choices,,,easiest and cheapest drop down to Eb tuning

buy thinner gauge strings,,i actually use 9's on mine

suck it up and strengthen your fingers by keeping going with whatever you have on their,,,i know what i do see point 2 lol :)
 

MarkDyson

Blues Hound Wannabe
Like Bill Said: one idea is to use lighter strings. There's a really nice Earthwood "silk and steel" style that's in 10s that sounds good and is much easier on the fingers than 11s+.
 

JPsuff

Blackstar Artist
Bending on an acoustic is just plain tough and will take lots of building up finger strength, short term you could try simply sliding up to the note.

David Gilmour made a career of sliding up to the note.

Mid-neck or 1&2- string bends are relatively easy. But thicker string bends close to the nut are almost impossible and sliding up makes things much easier.
 

sdbrit68

Student Of The Blues
wasnt it @Griff who said

"How do you do bends on an acoustic, buy an electric "......lol

When I play the acoustic I dont even try a full bend, just a little nudge to add some spice in the playing
 

MarkCurtis

Blues Newbie
This is a general question about bending not just for acoustic. When bending a single full bend (well any bend that isn't a return) the tone should rise to whatever step your target is and what is the best way to end that tone. Palm muting, pick or is there another way? Any help will be appreciated and I'm having a hard time with that. Thanks, Mark
 

Zzzen Dog

Blues Junior
This is a general question about bending not just for acoustic. When bending a single full bend (well any bend that isn't a return) the tone should rise to whatever step your target is and what is the best way to end that tone. Palm muting, pick or is there another way? Any help will be appreciated and I'm having a hard time with that. Thanks, Mark
You answered you're own question, although I'd add that you can also mute it with the side of your thumb or index finger, as it holds the pick.
 

MikeS

Student Of The Blues
Staff member
This is a general question about bending not just for acoustic. When bending a single full bend (well any bend that isn't a return) the tone should rise to whatever step your target is and what is the best way to end that tone. Palm muting, pick or is there another way? Any help will be appreciated and I'm having a hard time with that. Thanks, Mark

Any of them will do (Though I seldom use my pick)
More often than not I just ease pressure on the bent note as I move to the next note.
 

KurtTrampler

Blues Newbie
Great question! I had to stop and think about it, and when that wasn't good enough I picked up my guitar.

Don't get hung up b/c you are bending. Unless you are hammering off the bend (a thousand nuances here, too), I think you should end bent notes just like any other.

Do this: bend your string and keep it bent for this exercise. You are going to strike that note several times. Counting is not necessary but will keep you in Griff's good graces.

Anyway, play a series of quarter notes or whatever, but keep that string on pitch. Don't let it slip.

I think you'll find you treat the bent string just like any other .... ending with your pick before striking the next note (staccato) or letting it ring until striking the next (legato).

So the question becomes ... how does the bent note fit into your phrase? What are you doing with it and what comes next?

Disclaimer: this is just me and the way I do it. I do some things well, but I am no pro

Staccato or legato?

For me, legato pretty much means I end my notes either simply by striking the next note (if it's on the same string) or by muting as I release the fret. I don't end notes with my pick if I am playing a phrase legato Open fingering is trickier and has a different approach

Staccato, to me, means distinct ends for each note, and I think I always do this with my pick.

I do not use my palm to end notes unless at the end of a phrase. I do, however, use my palm in general to keep the lower register strings muted as needed.

And I never ever ever hold my pick such that my index finger and thumb get anyplace close to the strings. I used to do this and it was a hard and ugly habit for me to break. I pick with my pick, mute with my palm.

It's good to think about stuff like this.
Great question.
 
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