Exploring the exhilarating world of guitar shredding transports us back to the 80s, an era defined by iconic figures such as Eddie Van Halen and Yngwie Malmsteen. This guitar technique, known for its exceptional speed and accuracy, continues to enchant audiences and inspire guitarists globally, from legends like Joe Satriani to Kirk Hammett.
The definitive guitar sound of the 1980s has endured and remained popular among many guitarists to this day.
At a Glance: Shredding Guitar Technique
- Originated in the 80s, shredding showcases guitar speed and precision, popularized by legends like Eddie Van Halen and Yngwie Malmsteen.
- Speed and control are essential, demanding extensive practice to play cleanly at high velocities and master techniques like sweep picking and tapping.
- Distinctive tone is achieved through high-gain amplifiers, creating a rich, overdriven sound that supports long, sustained notes and thick, rapid sequences.
- Techniques such as sweep picking, alternate picking, economy picking, and tapping are foundational, each adding a layer of complexity and expressiveness.
- Persistence in practice is crucial for overcoming technical challenges and enhancing musicality, moving beyond speed to express deeper musical ideas.
Although shredding sometimes stirs debate and gets unfairly criticized for being too showy, it’s undeniably crucial to the evolution of not just the instrument, but the entire music scene.
Speed
Speed is crucial for shredding. Without it, shredding just isn’t the same!
Shredding on the guitar is an intense style, where playing cleanly at high speeds is crucial for a shredder.
Players need to practice extensively to master fast shred guitar techniques, or their music will sound chaotic. Without regular practice, what should be sharp, melodious solos turn into clumsy errors on the fretboard.
Control
For shredders, control is crucial. A metronome is essential for mastering fast music with precision. Every high-speed passage played by a shredder comes from hours of dedicated practice.
Playing quickly reveals flaws in technique that stay hidden during slower performance – moving fast is incredibly uncompromising!
A common critique of shred guitar is that it prioritizes speed and control at high velocities, often at the expense of other musical elements. This overemphasis can overshadow the genre’s broader musicality.
This might hold for some players, but the style is both widespread and varied, making it an oversimplification for everyone.
However, a shredder must be able to play challenging passages at high speeds competently.
The high speed of these segments can make them challenging – a player who’s less skilled might struggle to move their hands quickly and accurately.
Tone
A key element of shred guitar is its distinct sound, characterized by a highly overdriven output from a high-gain amplifier.
This sound isn’t just loud; it’s incredibly rich in harmonies. While larger chords might get a bit cluttered, smaller chords with closer voicings bring out a distinctive fullness and depth that fully compensates for the lesser notes.
Moreover, individual notes can sound almost as loud as full chords because overdriving a guitar signal naturally compresses it, bringing the loudest and quietest sounds closer together in volume.
Pushing the amplifier hard transforms the guitar from a gentle instrument with a soft tone into a powerful beast that commands the entire frequency range.
With a heavily overdriven sound, individual notes can sustain longer at higher volumes, and fast note sequences become richer and thicker, thanks to the added harmonic undertones and overtones from the distortion!
The electric guitar is ideal for solos, which explains its widespread use by bands and guitarists alike. Even in pieces without any other guitar parts, a distorted guitar tone remains a popular choice.
Techniques
Shred guitar involves a variety of techniques. Here are a few key ones to explore!
Sweep Picking
Sweep picking is a sophisticated guitar method that lets you play arpeggios very fast and smoothly. When done right, this technique enables you to effortlessly navigate multi-octave arpeggios across the fretboard, something that’s harder to achieve with standard picking.
Sweep picking starts with simple arpeggios, hitting one note on each string. You strum with the picking hand like you’re playing a chord and press down each note on the arpeggio with the fretting hand as you pick it.
The picking hand moves the pick across the strings in a smooth, continuous motion, not stopping to pick each note separately.
Advanced sweep picking techniques feature ascending and descending arpeggios, complex patterns with several notes per string, and the integration of methods like tapping.
Alternate Picking
Alternate picking involves a simple up-down movement with the pick, consistently used even when switching strings. This technique ensures smooth transitions and accurate rhythm.
Playing runs on single strings works great with this technique because the alternating motion makes playing fast easier and feels more natural than economy picking, which requires more effort to master.
However, playing with strict alternate picking often requires larger jumps across strings with the picking hand, which leads many fast players to adopt economy picking as well.
Economy Picking
Economy picking offers a smoother way to play across strings. Unlike the strict up-down sequence in alternate picking, economy picking moves in the direction you’re going as you switch strings. This method streamlines your playing, making it more efficient.
For example, if your next note is lower, choose to pick downwards, even if you typically alternate your picking. This approach is somewhat like sweep picking, where your picking hand must move smoothly and accurately, even quickly.
Tapping
Tapping requires using your picking hand’s fingers to fret notes on the guitar, allowing you to hit higher octaves swiftly or to execute fast passages.
You can perform this on single or multiple strings. While it’s achievable without the high gain sound typical of shred guitar, the added volume boost and compression from high gain excellently amplify tapped notes.