how do u do a pick squeal?

[D]

my guitar skillzzz have diminished slightly i think and im concerned

back in the day i could pick squeal on command

i try to now and i cant fuckin do it anymore

so im goin back to basics, whats the easiest way to do this?

i wrote a song 5 years ago and the guitar solo has pick squeals in it, very important, but god damn it i cant do one to save my life anymore

help help help!

[slashglp]

you need to have alot of distortion in ur sound and acheive the squeel by moving the pick end futher in towards ur thumb so that when u pick a note ur thumb and the pick hit the string.... thats the best way i can put it really.


there are also hotspots along the string where it will squeel more...

[Miz]

Well, basically you gotta hit the string twice.  As an example of how it works, just pluck and open string, and then touch the the string quickly above the 12th fret, and you'll get a harmonic (works better on the wound strings).  So what most people do is choke up the pick, so there's only a little bit sticking out beyond your thumb, then hit the string with your pick and your thumb.  It's easier if you turn you pick at an angle to the strings too.
You can do it with your finger to.  If you hit the string with your first finger (or whichever you hold the pick with) and then let the pick hit it, you get the same effect.

It only really works at the harmonic nodes on the string, so halfway or a quarter of the way from the bridge to the fret you're on gets you the loudest ones, but if you move you're hand around you get different notes, but at lower volumes.

Hope that helped/made sense!

[D]

thanks alot guys!!!

now my memory is refreshed!

i use to do em all the time and then i sorta got into a different style of playin guitar and quit doin it, u go a couple years without doing something u get rusty and forget

im gonna go practice that, and im sure ill get the hang of it again

does it matter what size pick u use?

i normally use mediums, does it matter?

[jrs2001_99]

I use 0.73 mm tortex picks (fairly light by most people's standards), and can get a mean pinched harmonic no problem.

Sometimes I find myself, instead of catching the string with the pick and my thumb, picking the string, but then using the pinky of my picking hand to catch the string at the harmonic node to get the squeal... basically I sometimes use my pinky to carry out the fnction that most people would use the thumb of their picking hand for!

Does anyone else do this, or even know what I'm talking about? I'm curious.

[Miz]

I use 0.73 mm tortex picks (fairly light by most people's standards), and can get a mean pinched harmonic no problem.

Sometimes I find myself, instead of catching the string with the pick and my thumb, picking the string, but then using the pinky of my picking hand to catch the string at the harmonic node to get the squeal... basically I sometimes use my pinky to carry out the fnction that most people would use the thumb of their picking hand for!

Does anyone else do this, or even know what I'm talking about? I'm curious.

I don't do it, but I think Bass players do it if they're playing with their fingers as opposed to a pick.

[Butch Français]

Im not so good on pick squeals

[Jesse James]

I use the 1.14 dunlop tortex works best for me (also the ultex series are nice picks)

and dont forget, to get the most out of a squeal u have to keep your strings clean(rust dirt n stuff)

[Oddy]

ok i've read everyones input and i still haven't the faintest idea of what exactly it is i should be doing.

to get a natural harmonic, i know i need to touch the string at a particular harmonic node (lets say 12th fret) just as i pick the string and pull it off quickly so the effect that is instead of the string vibrating as a whole it is vibrating on one side from the nut to 12th fret and on the other side from the 12th fret to the bridge creating a higher frequency blah blah blah.

now thats all well and good.........but all my natural harmonics sound like bells........and its not hte sound im after.......i have no idea exactly what im doing with a pitch squeal/harmonic.

sorry to be annoying, but i just dont understand what it is that im supposed to be doing with a pick squeal. If you've given up explaining in writing could you please provide a website or something that can explain it better.

[Skeba]

http://www.cyberfret.com/techniques/harmonics/pinch/index.php