How to mute guitar strings

How to mute guitar strings: String muting is one of the most important skills a guitarist must master. This technique is one of the main methods of playing control, namely sound control and determines the level of the guitarist. Many chord shapes and techniques require the guitarist to master string muting, so mastering this technique is a must for guitarists who want to progress beyond simple chord songs.

Complete muting of the strings can be performed with both the left hand and the right. With the right hand, it is performed as follows: when striking down the strings with nails or a plectrum, you need to put your open palm on the strings, without changing the trajectory of movement much. Silencing can also be performed with a pre-strike, the main thing is to have time to open your palm after it.

Full muting with the left hand is even easier – just cover the strings without pinching them with your fingers.

The low strings can be muted with the thumb of the left hand. You need to grab the neck a little tighter, stretch your thumb over it and lower your finger to the strings. This method allows the sixth and fifth strings to be muted, but requires sufficient finger length.

You can also put your index or middle finger on low strings if they are free. This method is often used to mute the sixth string when the guitarist is playing fifths.

The string-pulling method allows you to mut the strings that are close to the string you want to clamp. This is done as follows: by clamping, for example, the second fret of the fourth string, we move the finger with the clamped string lower if we need to muffle the third string, and higher if the fifth one. It is necessary to lower the finger to the point where it touches the string, which should not sound. This is not an easy technique, but mastering it gives you much more control over the sound.

You can muffle high notes with the lower phalanges of the fingers, which pinch the strings. To do this, you need to hold down low notes, for example, an Em chord, and then move your palm closer to yourself so that the phalanges of your fingers touch the third, second and first strings.

All these techniques work well, but require training and implementation in your arsenal. So look and try, good luck on your way to finding a new sound!