Fender’s Technique of the week (opens in a new tab) is great for getting guitar playing tips.

This time, the British singer-songwriter James Bay offers some pointers on using open strings in riffs for greater resonance and power.

Using his top 10 singles of 2014 Hold Back the River as an example, the Deluxe Telecaster-handling the maestro shows how the song’s memorable finger-style riff uses open strings to add, like Bay puts it, “a constant atonal throughout which is a very moving melody.”

Reminding Jimmy Page’s Acoustic Technique (opens in a new tab)Hold Back the River’s open strings fill out the slippery melody, adding harmony as Bay moves up and down the fretboard.

“I wanted to create as much dynamic scale as possible,” he explains.

Moving on to her 2015 hit Let It Go, Bay breaks down the song’s intertwined guitar parts, highlighting how the use of an open G string creates a sense of tension.

“In this case, it’s much more dissonant,” he points out. “It kind of creates friction against the notes – the melody of the notes in the main part.”

By dissecting the chord progression of Let It Go, Bay shows how open strings can elevate the simplest ideas.

“It adds to the emotion of the song,” he says. “There’s something about that resonating G string. It just adds a bit more complexity and richness to the riff and the part.

“It just expands the scope and scale of what I can get off stage for the audience. Especially when I’m up there [playing] solo.”

Watch the video here to learn more…

Explore the James Bay catalog here (opens in a new tab).