This series of articles will deal with concepts for playing up the neck in the flatpicking style. Most discussions about playing in higher positions on the guitar are accompanied by a set of shapes and patterns for chords and scales that can be moved horizontally up the fingerboard. While this kind of approach is valuable, it doesn't give flatpickers the whole picture. Let's talk for a moment about how playing up the neck is different for flatpickers.

One thing that separates flatpicking from guitar styles found in the blues, rock, country and jazz is the liberal use of open strings to create different timbral effects. That's not to say other styles don't employ open strings, but in flatpicking they're a real staple. Open strings can ring together to outline chords in a melodic line; they can be mixed with fretted notes in different places on the neck to create a cascading effect (sometimes called "floating" notes); their resonance is essential to the chord accompaniment in flatpicking music. The use of open strings is the reason many flatpicking tunes are played in the lower positions.

So why do we even need to play in higher positions in flatpicking? I suppose it depends on who you ask. One famous flatpicker has been quoted as saying "There's no money past the fifth fret." But many players in the style find reasons to reach for the upper regions of the neck. Besides the timbral considerations mentioned above, it just makes good musical sense to extend the range of the instrument as much as possible. Why not let a melody soar if it wants to? Why put unnecessary limits on our playing?

The good news is that we can play up the neck and still have open strings available. It just means that flatpickers have to think in different ways than other guitarists. Let's start with a simple example - a major scale in the key of C. Figure One shows a standard first-position fingering. The range of this fingering only goes up to the note G on the first string.

Figure Two is a closed position fingering "up the neck" found in fifth position. This fingering extends the upper range of the scale by three notes, allowing us to get to the octave "C."

Now the fun begins. Figure Three shows four different examples of how these fingerings can be joined together. In each of the four examples we use the moment created by an open string to move into a new left-hand position without interrupting the flow of the music. I like to call these open strings "escape-notes". Example One uses the open 2nd string to give the left hand a chance to "escape" to fifth-position. Example Two uses the same concept with the escape note on the 1st string.

The last two examples illustrate the cascade effect created by letting strings ring into each other. Follow the fingerings closely and hold the notes as long as possible. These two examples might sound a little dissonant but that's the effect we're going for. Example Four in particular requires the fingers to hold notes while stretching across several frets. This example will be very unforgiving of sloppy technique, so practice slowly and carefully using the recorded example as a guide for how it should sound.

Now let's use these concepts in a song. Figure Four shows three different ways to play the A section to "Billy in the Lowground". The first example is a basic version of the tune in 1st position. Use this version to learn the melody and get it in your ears. Try to play it from memory before moving to the other versions.

Example Two takes the tune up an octave and blends notes in the 1st and 5th positions. The open string "E" is used as an escape note for the left-hand shift. I've varied the melody slightly to make it work in 5th position. Tasteful variations on a melody are an acceptable and desirable practice in flatpicking. For more on that topic see my earlier article; Improvising in the Flatpicking Idiom.

Example Three starts with notes in 3rd position and shifts up to 7th and 5th positions. The 7th position gives us easy access to the high "D" note found in the basic version. The fingering in this version allows for the possibility of having the notes ring into each other for the floating effect. Use the audio example to hear how this passage should sound.

I hope this will give you some ideas on how to start moving up the neck. In addition to practicing the examples above, I would also recommend a focused study of the closed-position major-scale patterns. I'll pick up the thread of this discussion in the next installment.

Good luck with your practice!

Jeff