The Notation of Harmonics for Bowed String Instruments
Gerald Warfield · Perspectives of New Music · 1973
The persistence of ambiguities and inconsistencies in contemporary musical scores with respect to string harmonic notation indicates not only the failure of various notational methods to receive general acceptance, but also a widespread lack of understanding concerning the instrumental characteristics pertinent to the production of harmonics. Such a situation is probably the result of the relatively infrequent use of harmonics and the characteristic awkwardness of their fingerings (particularly the fingerings for artificial harmonics). The following suggestions are presented in the hopes of providing a system that is unambiguous and that will readily adapt to projected notational changes. Further, it is hoped that adequate information is given concerning characteristics of the instruments to enable the composer to use the suggested notation knowledgeably. It should be mentioned at this point that although parts of the following proposal will be familiar (and are already employed with varying degrees of consistency) the second section may appear to be somewhat backwards. That part, briefly, suggests that the tablature (stop and node indicators) be placed within parentheses and that the sounding pitch be specified as a normal note. The advantages and disadvantages of this procedure are detailed later in the paper.