Creating Fingerstyle Guitar from Four Regional Thai Folk Tunes in Duet

Abstract

Guitars, including steel-string acoustic guitars, nylon-string acoustic guitars, and electric guitars, have long been central to entertainment and have maintained widespread popularity across Thai society. Among these, steel-string acoustic guitars—commonly referred to as folk guitars—have developed a distinctive style, particularly through the use of fingerstyle techniques. In contemporary times, the significance of the fingerstyle guitar has grown, as renowned guitarists such as Micheal Hedges, Thomas Leeb, or Ralph Towner all have composed pieces in this style, leading to its commonplace performance and admiration among acoustic guitar enthusiasts.

Fingerstyle guitar is recognized for producing a highly resonant sound, primarily through the utilization of harmonics, tapping on the guitar's body or frets with both the left and right hands. This approach results in a polyphonic texture that enhances the musical performance. The practice frequently involves the use of special tunings, which facilitate harmonic resonance and allow the guitarist to generate rich overtones, thereby serving both practical and artistic purposes. The arrangement of fingerstyle guitar pieces entrusts the process of compositon and improvisation in equal measure, structured around three fundamental components: melody, harmony, and bassline. These elements may occur simultaneously or in succession, depending on the arranger's artistic choices. Notably, the arrangement method for fingerstyle guitar tends to emphasize repetitive rhythmic patterns, with relatively less focus on melodic renditions.

This article is part of the research project Album Guitar Duet: Four Regional Folk Music Repertories for Classical, Fingerstyle, and Electric Guitars, which is funded by the National Research Council of Thailand (NRCT) for the fiscal year 2023. Specifically, the article examines the conceptual framework and arrangement of guitar duets with a focus on the fingerstyle guitar. The research process was divided into three stages: first, data collection through interviews with experts in guitar arrangement; second, the selection of melodies from the four regions of Thailand, primarily sourced from Youtube; and third, the arrangement for guitar duets.

Fieldwork was conducted through interviews with experts in guitar arrangement: Boonchob Tanomwongtana (17 September 2023), Khong Mongkon (24 September 2023), Pijak Weerathai (1 October 2023), and Grid Banthaisong (8 October 2023). Structured interview questions were developed to address key themes in line with the research objectives, while allowing for spontaneous follow-up questions to capture additional insights. The interviews were transcribed verbatim using VB-CABLE Virtual Audio Device software, which facilitated the conversion of spoken content into text within Microsoft Word. The researcher then reviewed the transcripts, paying particular attention to musical terminology and ensuring clarity in the representation of the interviewees’ responses. These transcriptions proved invaluable for the development of fingerstyle guitar duets based on folk melodies from Thailand's four regions. This article discusses the arrangements of these duets though the analysis of four selected pieces from a complete set of sixteen: Longmaeping, Pojohpisung, Pleangyeiy, and Noksaibin-khamthung.

The arrangement of Longmaeping involved a straightforward harmonisation of the fingerstyle guitar, with the second guitar complementing the melody in the lower register. In Section B, the fingerstyle guitar shifted to chordal playing, incorporating harmonics and string tapping with the right hand to create distinctive sonic textures. The second guitar harmonised with the melody, enriching the overall duet. For the southern folk song Pojohpisung, the arrangement utilised the boom-chick technique to highlight a key element in the creation of harmonic structure. Chromatic chord movements were employed to add colour and depth to the piece, while the electric guitar played a melodic counterpoint to support the fingerstyle guitar.

The arrangement of Pleangyeiy was influenced by Impressionistic musical techniques, particularly in the treatment of rhythm. The guitar duet was designed to emulate the sound of traditional central Thai folk drums, incorporating harmonics and tapping on the guitar body to evoke the percussive elements of drumming. The melody itself was crafted to evoke a sense of memoirs, aligning with the atmospheric qualities derived from Impressionist harmony. Noksaibin-khamthung, an Isan folk song with a lively rhythmic character, was arranged to emphasise fingerstyle techniques that create vibrant sonic textures through tapping and slurring. The fingerstyle guitar was used to imitate the rhythm of drums by tapping on the edges and top of the guitar, demonstrating the adaptability of arrangement techniques for diverse cultural styles.

In conclusion, the findings of this study provide a foundation for further development in the creation and arrangement of guitar music, particularly within the context of folk melodies from Thailand’s four regions. The techniques explored in this study contribute to the broader discourse on the intersection of traditional folk music and contemporary guitar arrangements.