Harmonics
Natural, artificial, pinch, semi and feedback harmonics, and the pitch Reflow plays for each.
Available on iPad, iPhone and Mac.
On this page
A harmonic is the bell-like overtone a string gives when it is touched rather than pressed. Reflow plays each kind at the pitch it rings at, and draws a natural harmonic with a diamond notehead.
The Harmonic tools
In Edit, Harmonic is among the tools’ categories. Its five buttons are the five kinds: Natural, Artificial, Pinch, Semi and Feedback. Each applies to the note at the cursor, or to every selected note; choosing the kind a note already has takes it away, and choosing another replaces it.
The five harmonics
- Natural: the string touched lightly over a fret, at the 12th, 7th, 5th, 4th or 3rd fret (and 19th, 24th, 9th, 16th). Reflow plays the overtone of the open string at that fret: an octave up at the 12th, an octave and a fifth at the 7th, two octaves at the 5th. On another fret it plays the fretted note.
- Artificial: the note fretted, and the string touched an octave higher by the picking hand; played an octave above the fretted note.
- Pinch: the thumb brushing the string as it is picked, the squeal of a rock lead; played an octave up, short.
- Semi: a pinch harmonic only half there; played an octave up.
- Feedback: the note held until the amplifier’s feedback takes it over; played at the fretted pitch.
Artificial, pinch and semi harmonics play with a guitar harmonics sound; natural and feedback harmonics keep the track’s own instrument. Only the natural harmonic changes how the note is drawn: the other four aren’t marked on the score.