Pre-bending

Bending, whether by pushing or pulling the string, raises the tension in the vibrating portion of the string, and thus always raises the pitch of the note. This means it is easier to slide up rather than down in pitch. To create the impression of




bending down, the guitarist uses a technique called pre-bending, that is, bending before the string is struck, then releasing the bend (either gradually or quickly, depending on the intended effect).