ostinato
3 tracksA pattern repeated persistently, often for a whole section, while other parts change above it. Minimal techno and much film music build tension from ostinatos.
Performance
fingerstyle guitar
1 track.
What it is
Playing the guitar by plucking the strings with the fingertips or nails instead of strumming with a pick. One player can then carry a bass line, chords and melody at once, and tapping or slapping the strings and body can add percussion.
Read more on WikipediaRelated concepts
riff
14 tracksA short, repeated melodic or rhythmic figure, usually played by an instrument, that anchors a song. Rock riffs are often guitar figures; in electronic music the same role falls to a synth or bass line.
Hear it in these tracks
Mélissa Laveaux
Needle in the Hay
Mélissa Laveaux, a Montreal-born singer-songwriter of Haitian descent, recasts Elliott Smith's bleak 1995 song for percussive finger-style guitar, double bass, claps and drums on her 2008 album Camphor & Copper.