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How To Play THE HAWAIIAN GUITAR

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The vibrato or tremolo produces another beautiful effect and
is used to sustain a note or keep it singing for a moment or
two. The vibrato is accomplished by moving the steel quickly
back and forth over the fret on which it has been placed to pro-
duce a note. Hold the steel firmly and at first practice moving
it slowly back and forth. Increase the speed of the movement
as you continue to practice. The steel should be moved only a
fraction of an inch to each side of the fret.

Hawaiian Guitar Chords

You can obtain beautiful effects from the Hawaiian Guitar
by playing chords. The chords can be used in conjunction with
single notes when playing a melody or can be strummed as an
accompaniment for a song.

The major chords are all very easy to form on the Hawaiian
Guitar because of the way it is tuned. All you have to do is put
the steel straight across the strings at any fret and you will
have a beautiful harmonious chord. This is called "barring with
the steel."

The chords formed with the open strings and the chords
formed by placing the steel on the different frets are shown in
Fig. 47.

Experiment with the different chords until you get familiar
with them. Take a simple melody written in the key of C to
begin with and play the C major chord (3rd fret) and the F
major chord (8th fret) as an accompaniment. First one chord
and then the other, as they fit in with the melody. As you play
tunes in different keys you will soon learn by ear how to use
the right chords. A good deal of the music arranged for the
Hawaiian Guitar tells you what chords to use and this will be
a help to you as it has been to all other beginners.

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