Octaves and Drone effect...

An octave is a musical interval, (an interval is a measurement of the difference of pitch between two notes). For example A to B is called a second because it spans 2 scale degrees A & B). Similarly 'octave' is the name given to the musical interval that spans 8 scale degrees. As there are only 7 degrees in a scale it means the notes that form this interval will have the same name but different sound.
For example the low E on the open sixth string and the E on string 4 fret 2 form an octave between them.
Or, to put it in more usual terms, the E on string 4 fret 2 is an octave higher than the E on the open sixth string. The first string open E is an octave higher still - and is two octaves higher than the open sixth E.

Technically the frequency of the higher note forming an octave is exactly twice as high as the lower note.

A drone is a low continuous note that underlies melodies being played above it. Bagpipes and sitars produce the drone effect.

Just to add to Fretsourse an octave is simply playing the same note on two strings at the same time.


Octaves

e----------------6p---5r--------7i--
b-----------6p---X---------3i-------
g------5r---X----3i-----------------
d-5r---X----3i------------------9r--
a-X----3i------------------5r-------
e—3i------------------5m------------


Here are some various octaves and suggested fingering. Octaves are used a lot in Jazz, and especially as played by Wes Montgomery who was famous for his use of octaves.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bbY1cVR0BtE&search=wes%20montgomery

You will hear Wes using many octaves starting about 1:14 into this song until the end. Octaves have a "hollow" sound.

Often when playing octaves you use the upper finger to mute the string below as shown in the first four examples. But you can also use hybrid picking, using the pick on the bass note and another finger to pick the higher note as shown in the last 3 examples.

A drone is usually a single note played over an entire progression. This is very common in Eastern music, but Heavy Metal and even Blues as well.


e--------------------------------------------------
b--------------------------------------------------
g--------------------------------------------------
d-----------9------------7-----------5-----------7-
a-----------7------------5-----------3-----------5-
e---0-0-0-0------0-0-0-0-----0-0-0-0-----0-0-0-0---


This is an example of power chords played against a single bass note. Often this bass note is palm muted.

Often open strings are used for a drone because they will sustain or ring for a long time.

Some people tune their guitars to an open chord. This will give a singing, hypnotic feel to the song. A great example is Suite Judy Blue Eyes by Crosby, Stills and Nash. I believe this song was played with a very exotic tuning EEEEBE if I remember correctly.

To add a bit more to the drone effect....

Drones are actually the backbone of harmony. Way back when - a few thousand years ago - we had only melody. Then somebody got the idea of singing just one note while another voice sang the melody... and this created intervals (the style is called organum, and you can hear it today in some Gregorian chant music)

Technically, a drone is called a 'pedal point'. That term comes from church organs, where the organist would hold one low note on a foot pedal while the hands played higher notes. But a pedal point doesn't have to be the lowest note - it can be the high note... like the B and E strings in the Allman Brothers' "Melissa", or it can be a note in the middle of chords... as in many tunes with high open string chords. As the upper note it's sometimes called an 'inverted pedal' and as an inside note it's called an 'internal pedal'.

I use the drone a lot on both bass and guitar. One of my favorites is to tune my guitar to DADDAD, and drone the lower strings while playing a melody on the high D string. On bass, I tune it to DADG (drop D), or sometimes DDDG, and play a melody on the G string starting on A (second fret), so I don't have to tune it up to A, or tune it so low to D that it flaps.

Just to add to Fretsourse an octave is simply playing the same note on two strings at the same time.

Minor correction: that's an harmonic octave. It doesn't need to be played at the same time.

Thanks for correcting me Arjen. :D

A song I have always loved with a drone that is barely perceptable is Listen to the Music by the Doobie Brothers. If you listen very carefully to this song you will hear the keyboard player play a single E note throughout the whole song. Most people would probably only notice this if they really listened for it, but this single note makes the song go. It gives the song an Eastern feel, a hypnotic quality.

Don't feel bad. 99% of the time it's the audio installation and not your ears. Kinda like how listening to your favourite classical music on a excellent Hi-fi set can suddenly make you realise that there are a whole bunch of flutes playing you never could hear at home.

I'm Deaf! I downloaded "Listen to the Music" and I can't even hear a piano. Just a couple of repetitive guitars, a bass and a tamborine.

LOL. :lol:

I told you it was barely perceptable. But it is there. Listen again. It is not a piano, but a long sustained E note throughout the song. So probably an electronic keyboard.

I promise, it's there. :wink:

I came in for a lesson once with a version of "Dark Was The Night, Cold Was The Ground" that I'd worked out. My teacher loved it. I was playing it in Open D, and he had me play it over a very low volume constant D drone he held on his electronic keyboard. It really did sound cool. I'd forgotten about it till this reminder, but it really is a nice effect.

Check out "Back Back Train" on Aerosmith's "Honkin' On Bobo." It's played in Open D for the slide guitar part, over a D drone on a hurdy-gurdy.