Re: missing glissando features (bugs?)

[Graham Percival]

On Wed, May 20, 2009 at 10:48:58AM -0600, Carl D. Sorensen wrote:
> 
> I've always thought that pushing against the fingerboard created a fixed end
> to the string, while just touching the string created a node.  Perhaps the
> "pulling the string towards the arm" technique creates enough force that it
> functions as the "end" of the string, in contrast to the relatively light
> harmonic touch?

Yeah; if you pull it gently (and if you're in the right position)
you get a harmonic, but if you pull it more, it drops down to the
"regular" pitch.

As for the actual physics, I'm not certain whether the
non-harmonic is caused by the extra tension, or the width of the
finger[1], or what.

[1]  if you touch the string lightly, you only have a small area.
But if you pull the string a lot, your finger occupies an arc with
a wider angle (albeit still on the order of 2-3 degrees).  This
wider arc will deaden a lot more vibrations than a small-area
touch.

Cheers,
- Graham