Slide Guitar
Open tunings, slide technique, intonation
Slide Basics
Slide guitar uses a glass, metal, or ceramic tube worn on a finger (usually ring or pinky) that glides along the strings instead of fretting. This produces a smooth, vocal, singing tone with continuous pitch glides.
The slide sits directly above the fret wire, not behind it like normal fretting. Intonation (playing in tune) requires placing the slide precisely over the fret for the desired note. Light touch is essential — the slide should barely contact the strings, not press them down to the fretboard.
Muting is critical: your fingers behind the slide should lightly touch the strings to dampen unwanted noise. Your picking hand also helps mute strings you're not playing.
Open Tunings
Slide guitar often uses open tunings where the open strings form a chord:
Open D: D-A-D-F#-A-D (open strings = D major chord)
Open G: D-G-D-G-B-D (open strings = G major chord)
Open E: E-B-E-G#-B-E (open strings = E major chord)
With an open tuning, placing the slide straight across any fret gives you a major chord at that pitch. Fret 5 in open G = C major. Fret 7 = D major. This makes slide playing more intuitive.
Tab Examples
Slide melody in open D tuning
e(D)--0----5----7----12----7----5----0---- B(A)-------------------------------------- G(F#)------------------------------------- D(D)-------------------------------------- A(A)-------------------------------------- E(D)--------------------------------------
Tips
- Slide sits directly OVER the fret wire, not behind it
- Light touch — don't press the slide into the fretboard
- Muting behind the slide is essential for clean sound
- Open tunings make slide playing much more intuitive
Practice Exercises
- Try standard tuning slide on one string — practice placing the slide directly over frets
- Focus on intonation: play a fretted note, then match it with the slide
- Experiment with open D or open G tuning
- Practice muting: only the string being played should ring