Music GCSE
Hammer-ons and pull-offs
What Hammer-ons and pull-offs means in Music GCSE, as defined for Pearson Edexcel.
Definition of Hammer-ons and pull-offs
Check what you remember
Read the wording for your board, then hide it and explain Hammer-ons and pull-offs in your own words. Rough notes are fine. This is a self-check, with no mark or grade.
Reference: Pearson Edexcel
Techniques where a finger on the fretboard strikes or releases a string to sound the next note, so notes are sounded by the fretting hand rather than by picking each one.
Topics that use Hammer-ons and pull-offs
- Appendix 3: Musical vocabulary - Dynamics and performance matters (Pearson Edexcel GCSE)
Related terms
- Chords and double stops
- Distinguishing doubling from harmony
- Doubling
- Emphasis and attack
- Harmony
- Identifying performers by timbre
- Melody
- Musical structure in performance
Using Hammer-ons and pull-offs in the exam
Check the command word and mark scheme for your exact question. After comparing your explanation with the reference, use the term in an answer on the linked topic. This practice does not predict an exam mark.
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