How many ways to play the guitar are there?

Today, because I watched a video on YouTube, I asked myself how many ways of playing the guitar we know. Ways like in how to keep the guitar, how to use it, not as in electric vs acoustic or musical styles. However, in some cases, particular techniques can be defined as an other way of playing the guitar, case when I will put a separate entry for them. Let’s see:

1) The normal way

I didn’t know how to call it in an other way than the normal way, because this is exactly what it is, in my opinion, the normal way of playing the guitar: you hold the guitar hung by your neck/shoulder and you pick/strum strings with one hand while pushing them with the other hand to get particular notes. Doh! Like this.

1b) Guitar tapping

Well, here there are many things to say. Guitar tapping is one of the favorite techniques of the 80’s, starting with Van Halen and remembering Michael Angelo Batio’s 2 hand playing/tapping. But I want to put here an other style of music, not hard/heavy rock , but Jazz. See Stanley Jordan’s version of Stair to heaven here:

2) Lap playing styleOK, this one is one of those moments when I am not sure how to categorize it since the position is different and at the same time the way of playing, usually with a metal or glass slide thus forcing me to refer to this as an other (4rd) style also. Used a lot for Hawaiian music(with specific guitars) but also for blues.
As Wikipedia says:

“The lap steel guitar is typically placed on the player’s lap, or on a stool in front of the player, who is seated.

The strings are not pressed to a fret when sounding a note, rather, the player holds a metal slide called a steel in the left hand, which is moved along the strings to change the instrument’s pitch while the right hand plucks or picks the strings.

This method of playing greatly restricts the number of chords available, so lap steel music often features a restricted set of harmonies (such as in blues). Alternatively, the lap steel guitar player can play the melody or another single part.“

Like this:

2b) Playing with a slide

I called this 4rd way of playing (since I consider it to be a different mode, not just a technique) 2b because it is somehow similar to the second because of the slide being used. We are speaking now mostly about blues music, the guitar being hold in “the normal way” while the the notes are obtained by sliding a piece of round glass or metal on guitar strings. Like this:

3) Andy McKee unique finger-style

OK, if you can or know better than me, find a better name for this cause I can’t. Composed of a series of techniques such as normal string picking,tapping, hitting and beating the poor guitar box, his style is truly unique. Here’s Andy McKee:

I would also put here Dominic Frasca with his way of playing, in the same category, in a way. More taping than Andy McKee. Also related to 1b)
Or Erik Mongrain with his lap style of playing the guitar combined with the 2 above. Of course, there is always THE FUNNY AND EXTREME WAY!!! where 2 guys share the same guitar

I ask also my fellow guitar bloggers to help me add more styles here, if they know more. Guys?!! (Jon, GuitarMX, JP, Dr. J,Cary , Ignacio and all of you blogging the guitar!)If you liked this, subscribe to RSS and please remember to Digg and Stumble this! Spread the word! Thank you!