Hot weather harmonics

Roger Fletcher · From: United Kingdom

We are having a heatwave here in the UK, with the temperature rising from about 20 degrees Celsius to the mid thirties almost overnight.

I am finding that palm harmonics which normally ring out are dead, which seems down to the stickiness of my palm. Clearly a hot and humid climate doesn't bother the Hawaiian players, and it may be that the suddenness of the change here has not given my body time to acclimatize.

I wonder if anyone else has experienced this problem, and any suggestions would be welcome.

Gene Tani · From: Pac NW

Could try doing the light muting w/first knuckle of ring or pinky fingers.
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Francisco Castillo · From: Easter Island, Chile

Hi.

Here in Easter Island we sometimes have 100% humidity and almost 30Â° Celsius, similiar as what you are describing. I haven't noticed any difference in playing, ringing, sustain or harmonics, in lap steel or electric guitar.
Could it be any other reason for dead harmonics?
old strings? full moon?
I do have dead spots in my instruments, fretted or fretless, but they don't change nor move.

Have you tried new strings? to rule out the single most influential variable IMHO?

good luck !!

Roger Fletcher · From: United Kingdom

Gene, yes I've tried that and it does help, but of course the timbre is different.

Francisco, so it's not the climate, at least not directly. I suspect that the sudden difference in the feel of the contact with the strings caused an inadvertent change in my technique. I think the contact was not light enough and the pull-off not clean enough.

Anyway, I have something to work on, and I thank you both for your helpful comments.

Fred Treece · From: California, USA

Might seem weird, but try dusting the base of your palm with baby powder or corn starch to close up the pores and keep sweat from building up. Also, wipe down your strings often, especially going on or coming back from a break.

Right, the heat and humidity won’t bother players in the tropics because they are acclimated. Mid 30’s°C in the UK is a special weather event and the body will react.

Roger Fletcher · From: United Kingdom

Nothing too weird about that. I've tried both suggestions, and the powder works better than the corn starch. That is hardly surprising, as that's what it's designed for. So many thanks for that.

I think a secondary issue is that confidence is such an important factor in harmonics. So any factor that dramatically changes the feel is likely to have an adverse effect, for me anyway.

Bob Stone · From: Gainesville, FL, USA

We deal with those temperatures and humidity from June through half of October in Florida.

First recommendation: seek out air conditioning!

If AC is not available, get a column fan and stand it on a stool or folding chair so it blows on your hands and upper body. Unlike a propeller fan, a column fan will not cause a warbling sound. I understand squirrel cage fans are also good, but have never tried one.

Here's a shot from the Florida Folk Festival in late May. There were also four propeller fans in front of us.

Roger Fletcher · From: United Kingdom

If the hot spells here continue to increase in frequency and duration, I'm sure AC will become more common. There was an old joke that a British summer consisted of 3 hot days and a thunderstorm, but that does seem to be changing. I wonder why ...

Bob Stone · From: Gainesville, FL, USA

My joke: In Florida, Dog Days of August are preceded by Dog Days of June and July and followed by Dog Days of September and most of October. I've had my left hand stick to the strings so badly at outdoor gigs I really couldn't play.

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