Guitar position for irish fiddle (non-mando)

[mahogola]

I just purchased an acoustic guitar and would like to know your preference for playing Irish fiddle tunes. Where are your main anchor points on the guitar for plucking these tunes and being able to hit the high notes without a major shift of the fretting hand? Is it more acceptable to play open strings than on the mando? I get the impression that guitarists also like to play closed strings, though I could very well be misguided. And this is why I am asking. I can more or less play in C,G,D,F and B-flat scales within the first five frets. In some places I find myself tripping finger-over-finger during arpeggios. Your guidance is most appreciated. #

[EdSherry]

I came to Irish from bluegrass, and usually capo on the second fret to play in D major, A major. B minor (e.g., "Musical Priest") and A mixolydian, while playing open for G major, G dorian, Am, Em, E mixolydian and D dorian. #

Most Irish fiddle tunes don't go above a B. #I'll shift up to play that, whether with the index finger on the G on the E string and using my pinky for the B, or with my index finger on the B and my second finger on the G (8th fret) on the B string. #Most of the rest of the time I'm in root position.

IMHO, much of the aesthetic of Irish tunes comes from ringing open strings. #I play open strings as much as possible on both mandolin and guitar when playing Irish tunes. #That's one of the main reasons I use a capo. #(That said, I play fairly frequently with a monster guitar player who never uses a capo.) #

Trying to play lead on a regular flat top at noisy sessions is an exercise in futility; you simply can't hear yourself.

One guitar player who used to come to the Irish sessions I regularly play at was tired of not being able to hear himself playing lead on a "regular" flat-top guitar (a nice Martin HD-28). #He got a National Tricone roundneck, capoed at the second fret all the time (which meant that he had to play "G" tunes out of an "F" fingering), and played the @#$% out of the thing. #Loud, too. #Nobody complained because they couldn't hear what he was playing. #

In the past, I've sometimes played lead on a Django-style Selmer/Macaferri "clone" at sessions. #For some reason, they tend to "cut" through a session better than a regular flat top.

Playing arpeggios does take some work to get used to. #The only cure I know is practice.

Follow-up: #Paul posted about the same time I originally did. #I agree that flatpicking Irish tunes is more difficult on guitar than on mando, and that stretches up to the seventh-fret B can be brutal.

My comments were largely directed to flatpicking. #There is a whole 'nother world of fingerpicking Irish tunes, many of whose adherents recommend alternate tunings, whether DADGAD or Steve Baughman's CGDGCD "Orkney" tuning or El McMeen's CGDGAD or ... #

I love to play that stuff around the house, but I find it totally impracticable at sessions. #(YMMV.) #Also, be careful about a lot of published fingerstyle arrangements: #they're often in keys that do not correspond to the keys that the tunes are "traditionally" played in by other instruments. #Again, that's not an issue if you're not playing sessions, but ...

[Paul Kotapish]

In general, I think you'll find that flatpicking fiddle tunes on the guitar is a bit more challenging than on the mandolin. Different guitarists use different approaches--standard tuning, open tuning, open position, capo, etc.

In general I flatpick tunes in G, C, D, A, Em, Dm, Bm, and Am in standard tuning without a capo. I tend to pick mostly closed strings except for low-string drones. Not every tune works equally well with this approach, and the stretches to the seventh fret can be pretty brutal on some pieces.

Many of the bluegrass and old-time flatpickers I know tend to work out of G and C position mostly, and let the capo take up the slack.

A lot of fingerstyle guitarists prefer an open tuning such as D A D G A D (low to high), and use as many open strings as possible. Steve Baughman has some online info about fingerstyle fiddle tunes at his website, including a nice article about using different voicings to get as many open ringing strings as possible. http://www.celticguitar.com/

You might try a few of the guitar forums for tips, free online lessons, etc.

Here's a link to some free lessons:
http://www.acousticguitar.com/levelt...picking-27.asp

(I believe those lessons are still free, but AG apparently now requires you to jump through a few hoops to access them. They are pretty good, though, with streaming audio example, tab, etc.)

Have fun.