Pedal Point Guitar Licks

The musical device known as "pedal point" turns up frequently in classical music. Pedal point is simply playing a tone in a phrase and then referring back to it frequently or repeatedly as other notes change in relation to it. You'll understand what it is after you play this first lick:

|-18-17-18-15-18-13-18-12-|-18-17-18-15-18-13-18-12-|

|-------------------------|-------------------------|

|-------------------------|-------------------------|

|-------------------------|-------------------------|

|-------------------------|-------------------------|

|-------------------------|-------------------------|

|-18-17-18-15-18-13-18-12-|-18----18----18-----|

|-------------------------|----15----13----12--|

|-------------------------|--------------------|

|-------------------------|--------------------|

|-------------------------|--------------------|

|-------------------------|--------------------|

In case you don't know how to read guitar tablature, here is a brief explanation: Each guitar string is layed out horizontally. The highest string, E, is at the top, while the lowest string, (also E but two octaves lower) is at the bottom. The numbers represent frets, e.g. an '18' above means you press down on the 18^th fret on that particular string as you pick the note to sound it, etc. The '~' symbol means to apply vibrato. Notice the tablature is arranged in a way that seems reversed, or upside down, from the way you normally look at someone holding a guitar. Also note that our tablature above is a simple ASCII-based representation and not the fancy kind normally seen in popular guitar magazines.

The lick above sounds quite classical, doesn't it? Yngwie Malmsteen, the Swedish guitar virtuoso, can play pedal point licks of this type at blazing speeds. But you should start off slowly and work your way up. Also, playing things too quickly can sometimes ruin the lick in my opinion, since each individual note cannot be heard well. Remember to use all four fingers for the lick above to obtain maximum control and efficiency. And watch out for the stretch between the 18^th and 12^th frets since that can tax the hand muscles considerably. Place your thumb far behind the neck to make the stretch easier - you won't be able to play this lick with your thumb hanging over the top of the fretboard, which is physically impossible unless your fingers are a foot long.

With pedal point licks, hybrid picking also comes in handy. Hybrid picking is where the pick is used along with other fingers of your picking hand to pluck various notes (mainly the middle and ring fingers are used for plucking, but also the pinky on occasion, while your pick takes care of the lower notes). Hybrid picking can be used for both rhythm and lead parts. It's especially useful for fast string-skipping in which it would be almost impossible for the pick to grab wide interval notes quickly. Danny Gatton was an absolute master of hybrid picking, and occasionally when I watch videos of him playing, I get the urge to put my guitar in its case and never touch it again - I recommend checking out Gatton's albums and instructional videos as soon as you can.

Try this pedal point lick, using your middle finger to execute the note on the 9^th fret of the high E string (the 'm' above the tablature), and your pick to execute the other notes:

m m m m

|----9----9----9----9--|

|-11---13--------------|

|-----------13---11----|

|----------------------|

|----------------------|

|----------------------|

Repeat that lick until you get the proper feel, then take a short break to relax your hands. Next, try this lick which is an extension of the one above and similar to various pedal point licks performed by the great Texas guitarist Eric Johnson:

m m m m m m m m

|-11---13-------------|----------------------|

|-----------13---11---|-----------11---13----|

|---------------------|-13---11--------------|

|---------------------|----------------------|

|---------------------|----------------------||----9----9----9----9-|----9----9----9----9--|
With this one, you should also play the C# on the high E string by plucking it with the middle finger of your picking hand, while using the plectrum in the normal fashion for the other notes.

Make sure your picking hand is relaxed when you attempt any hybrid picking. It may be difficult to get the feel of the technique at first, since at certain times the fingers of your picking hand will be doing completely different things, but once you practice it for a few weeks it should become natural to you.