Best Guitar Techniques

I don't think it's objective to say that sweep picking is better than tapping. I mean, all of these techniques are great. One could even say that vibrato is the best technique.

But for me, both tapping and sweep picking are great. Tapping kind of sounds emotional or like crying to me, while sweep picking kind of sounds like some fast-paced fighting or running.

Including the visitor's comment, "Eruption" is tapping. Yes, "Eruption" is tapping, but that doesn't mean it can't be shredding. What he did was shredding. How he did it was tapping. It's just another example of shredding. The rapid tapping licks were a prominent part of the solo.

I thought this list was about the best techniques, not the hardest or most impressive. Vibrato brings music to life.

You can create incredible solos without sweeping or tapping, but you'd be hard-pressed to find something that doesn't use any kind of vibrato or string bending and still manages to sound good or "alive." Of all techniques, vibrato is easily the most important for sounding good.

Listen to the solo from "Tornado of Souls" by Megadeth - proof that vibrato makes music much better.

Vibrato should definitely be #1. All of those shred heads are choosing sweeps and tapping.

I like sweeps and taps, but vibrato and bends are the best and most important techniques in guitar because not only can you play well, but you can also add soul to your playing. You don't have to tap or sweep to be a better player than someone who doesn't use those techniques.

I didn't want to repeat, but yes, these two should be separated. It's just that hammer-ons and pull-offs often come one after the other. But they are different techniques - opposite techniques, actually - used to create more varied sounds from the notes.

Yeah, I agree they should be separated too. Hammer-ons are useful for playing a lot faster instead of picking all the time. Pull-offs can also be used for playing faster.

Pulling off is flicking the note, not just lifting it. Otherwise, there will be a weak signal.

Watch professional guitarists like Randy Rhoads, Steve Vai, and Paul Gilbert to see that they FLICK THE STRING, not lift it!

In my opinion, sweep picking is one of the most difficult techniques to learn and one of the most versatile. It can range from simple single-string transitions, often used in jazz, to quick shredding in rock.

Learning this skill was not only a task but also helped me more fully understand a lot of music theory.

Not only audibly and visually pleasing, but it also takes a certain amount of skill to avoid eating the notes with right-hand technique. Extremely hard to master, with many shapes to learn (did I mention that it is RIDICULOUSLY hard to integrate into a solo?), it is one of the most impressive things for a guitarist to master.

Where would blues, rock, and even metal be without the humble string bend?!

Including blues, rock, and metal. I have also seen it in country songs.

The most common and effective technique used in guitar playing. It involves sliding the fingers on the fretboard along the string.

The palm mute is a playing technique for guitar and bass guitar, executed by placing the side of the picking hand below the little finger across the strings to be plucked, very close to the bridge, and then plucking the strings while the damping is in effect. This produces a muted sound.

It was popularized by Black Sabbath in the song "Paranoid."

For rhythm guitar, especially in thrash, this is essential.

A dive bomb is a guitar technique in which the tremolo bar is used to rapidly lower the pitch of a note, creating a sound similar to a bomb dropping.

One of the most recognized pioneers of this technique is Eddie Van Halen, not Jimi Hendrix. Other notable musicians who are widely known for using this technique include Joe Satriani.

Pinch harmonics are a popular technique in which the player's thumb or index finger on the picking hand slightly catches the string after it is picked, canceling the fundamental of the string and letting one of the overtones dominate.

It is used by popular guitarists such as Eddie Van Halen, Steve Vai, and Joe Satriani, who utilize the tremolo arm and high-gain amps together with the pinch harmonic to produce horse-like wails from the instrument.

This list is called "Best Guitar Techniques," not "Hardest Guitar Techniques." People are focusing on some of the more shreddy elements first, but many other things are far more important.

I think alternate picking is one of the most important because it is the technique that truly gives you control over individual notes (not chords). It is commonly used in both rhythm and lead guitar, unlike sweep picking, which is mostly used by shredders.

All these techniques are important, but it's worth considering some of the more basic techniques first.

It's the most common technique used in heavy metal and is difficult to master. It was brought into the mainstream by Ulrich Roth of the Scorpions and was later popularized by Eddie Van Halen in his solo "Eruption." It involves extremely fast guitar playing with precise note articulation.

The technique is often executed by the little finger of the guitarist, which is wrapped around the volume pot of the guitar. When the note is struck, the volume is increased from zero by a rolling motion of the little finger. Alternatively, the effect can be achieved with a volume pedal.

It is sometimes called "violining" because the sound is similar to a bowed violin. Allan Holdsworth pioneered the technique of pedal swelling along with a delay unit to create a thicker sound that is more associated with the cello.

Is the whammy bar a technique or a style/mode?

It's not on here but should be. It's like arming yourself with a few extra picks and then taking your playing speed to a new level. Very difficult to learn, but once you've put in the effort, you will use it for everything!

This technique is achieved by slapping the string with a down and up motion (like when alternate picking). Once you've done that, immediately follow through with a pluck. You could also add in two plucks with your index and middle fingers.

Double Thumb + Index Finger Pluck + Middle Finger Pluck.

Check out Victor Wooten for some tips.

Harp harmonics are a guitar technique that involves the guitarist pressing down on the desired fret, then lightly touching the fret an octave above the note, and finally picking the string with the thumb. This guitar technique is unique, underrated, and rarely used.

This technique can be played in different patterns.

For example:
1-2-3-1-2-3
3-2-1-3-2-1

I prefer using the 1-2-3 pattern to achieve high speeds.