Unison bend
Bending one string up to match the pitch of another string played at the same time.
The unison bend is a blues and rock staple: one string is fretted above and bent up to meet an open or fretted string, so the two arrive on the same pitch. Because the notes are identical, the ear hears one thicker sound rather than a chord, which is why the technique sounds so immediate in a pentatonic context. The bend has to be accurate, since a few cents either side produces an audible beating between the two strings rather than a single note.
Example: Bending the third string at the seventh fret up to match the open second string, played together, is a unison bend.
See also
Related
- PageDouble stop
- PageBend
- PageInterval
- PageAccent
- PageAction height
- PageAlternate picking
- PageAaron Dessner
- PageAce Frehley