Do you avoid playing open strings whenever possible?

[farren]

In the violin world, most players will advise you to avoid playing open strings whenever possible. The timbre is different and it's evident to most ears when you're playing, say, an open D as opposed to the same note higher up on the G string. This seems perfectly reasonable to me and not just an artifact of traditionalism like many lesser bits of conventional wisdom in the culture surrounding any instrument.

I've never heard this applied as a rule to the guitar before, though it's something I believe in and I'm sure many people practice it without actively considering it. Obviously there are times when playing an open string is necessary due to fingerings, the impracticality of playing a single fretted note before a fast and lengthy position change when you could give yourself more time by playing the same note on an open string, or when you require a note to continue to sustain after a position change.

The difference in timbre is primarily determined by the substance of the nut and will be less obvious with certain materials as opposed to others. The ultimate solution to the timbre difference is, of course, having a zero fret.

Just something to think about from the collective pool of knowledge of another not-so-distant string instrument.

 

[davemeistro]

Hmm, I actually try to hit open strings as much as possible. I love the contrast in the deep timbre of playing the low strings high up on the neck while having a few clear, bright, open strings act as a pedal of sorts. To each his own I guess, if it sounds good, it sounds good!

 

[tedtan]

I treat this on a case by case basis. Sometimes I want the open string sound, sometimes I don't. Sometimes the only way to play a passage is to incorporate the open string, sometimes it's not. So for me, it varies based on what I am going for.

 

[ncfiala]

I'm a little ashamed to admit it, but I'm lazy and sloppy so I keep fret wraps on the fretboard all the time on most of my guitars to completely mute open strings. So playing open strings for me isn't even an option most of the time. I am starting to experiment with open strings more though.

 

[Fantomas]

I avoid them when possible. I find that I have less control over the sound with open strings.
Also if you play fast riffs, the open string has a noticeable different tension which is something you need to compensate for.

My bandmates often come up with riffs that incorporate a lot of open strings and I always rework them so I can play them on fretted positions.
Sounds a lot better. I play in a deathmetal band though, mileage may vary with other styles.

 

[dcoughlin1]

I try avoiding them when I'm playing fast. When I play something slow that is a completely different story. When I played the viola and cello a couple of years ago I really liked playing open strings for some reason even though I was advised not to play them so often.

 

[Daf57]

I don't mind open strings at all, I treat them as special notes - they are free notes, they don't cost a finger. They are welcome in most of the music I write, but I can see how they could be rogue in other styles.

I did not know that about the violin - interesting for sure!

 

[ElRay]

That's why zero frets exist.

Ray

 

[Nykur_Myrkvi]

For me it depends on the part I'm playing.

I love using open strings in riffs but if I'm shredding I'll avoid it.

 

[Jzbass25]

It depends, same for orchestra instruments too. Like others said it depends on what timbre you want/interpret. When I played in philharmonics we wouldn't avoid open notes meticulously per se, we would just use open strings or closed notes depending on what timbre the conductor wanted or what we interpreted the composer wanted. Often really "beautiful" pieces called for closed notes without open strings so that there is more continuity and control. On guitar though I see a lot of open note use with things like peddling, etc. Again, it just depends no matter what instrument or song.

 

[Fat-Elf]

I only avoid them when tremolo picking or playing basic power chords on a 7-string.

 

[AugmentedFourth]

Anyone who plays upright knows to use open strings as much as possible, as it allows you to keep in tune much closer, (no frets on a 44" scale, haha). Plus, it sounds better.

 

[TRENCHLORD]

Just like a good woman, they love to be used and I like using them.

 

[yingmin]

I play open strings frequently, to the point that my style depends on it. I've written things that either literally can't be played without taking advantage of open strings, or would be excessively difficult with no or negative gain in sound.

 

[Osorio]

I use open strings as much as I can.

Here is an anecdote about timbre and playing in a band: I used to tune my guitar different (one step lower) then the other guitarist in the band, so we had different open strings and played similar riffs in very different ways.
In the end, our instruments, although similar, generated very different sounding phrases, even if we were playing in unison. It was a pretty cool effect.

 

[piggins411]

I use them a lot in chords, and I love to tap so they're pretty important to me

 

[Given To Fly]

I generally try to avoid them. Part of it is due to how I was taught but the other part is the timbral difference between a fretted note and an open string, especially on classical guitar. However, sometimes using an open string makes something 100x easier to play in which case I go with the open string.

 

[Mr. Big Noodles]

In the violin world, most players will advise you to avoid playing open strings whenever possible. The timbre is different and it's evident to most ears when you're playing, say, an open D as opposed to the same note higher up on the G string. This seems perfectly reasonable to me and not just an artifact of traditionalism like many lesser bits of conventional wisdom in the culture surrounding any instrument.

Anyone who plays upright knows to use open strings as much as possible, as it allows you to keep in tune much closer, (no frets on a 44" scale, haha). Plus, it sounds better.

As AugmentedFourth wrote, for string players, intonation is a concern. As far as I know (not being a string player, but knowing a few and having to deal with them on occasion), open strings are encouraged to check intonation.

Anyway...

I like fretted notes because I have more control over them. Open strings are all shimmery and beautiful and make the rest of the fretboard look bad.

 

[Experimorph]

I absolutely love the sound of open strings when playing clean or acoustic passages. I usually find myself using them for extending chords.

 

[celticelk]

I'm a big Bill Frisell fan, so I definitely love me some open strings. I also don't play very fast, which may bias my opinion. =)