I agree with Greg, this is not a fretless. Having played a fretless Stick, albeit on the bass side, the initial sound produced on a fretlass tap and the waiver of the note is very obvious. I don't hear this in Dave's playing. Also you can see his frets in the video and his fingerings, although not always directly on those fret lines are always in tune, therefore more evidence of fret presence.
As a side comment, the half-fretless Stick I use most of the time, has just an incredible sound. Warm, articulate and expressive. Big thanks to Emmett for building a great instrument that works best for my style of playing

Ok, not a fretless. Thank you for chiming in to sort that out!


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As I think about this again, chordophones come in four basic varieties.

1. Plucked (like guitars etc.)
2. Bowed (viols etc.)
3. Hammered (like piano or hammer dulcimer)
4. Tapped (like Chapman Stick, Harpejji, Duo-Lectar, etc.)

A fifth category could exist but does not as far as I know. Electro-Magnetic/Mechanical-This would be an instrument designed to have sound initiated by electronic (magnetic or mechanical). Imagine a chordophone with a permanent E-Bow like device for every string.

Perhaps it is obvious but it seems all chordophones can be used in ways in which they were not intended. Tapping a guitar, plucking a violin, plucking a piano, bowing a Stick (like instrument).

[and there it is again, the Stick trade name slips right into being a generic name for tapping chordophones- ---"what kind of Coke do you want?" "I'll take a Sprite." ]

That fifth category shows up in a broader form in some taxonomy charts simply as "electronic instruments," but I honestly haven't much cared for any such category I've seen thus far, as they seem to lump everything that happens to have an electronic pickup together, irregardless of how it's played.

I'm still sitting on the fence. I still think "tapping chordophone" is quite accurate from a taxonomical standpoint, but it doesn't pass Dan's test for brevity (as I agree it should, to be used in normal parlance). Emmett himself mentioned "tapper" at one point, which I can see myself using even for the NS...

...except, on the NS, I use so many different techniques, "tapper" turns out to be not quite so accurate. In another forum it would be classified as an ERB (Extended Range Bass), which works for me, because I consider myself first and foremost a bassist--unless I'm comping guitar chords or playing lead lines, in which case "Guitar/Bass" (as it's officially subtitled) becomes more accurate.

But what kind of slippery slope do we set foot upon when we try to define an instrument by playing technique? ...Especially where, as Jeff points out, such techniques could be quite varied (really the point of my example in the previous paragraph--see I *was* going somewhere with that! )

OMG ,blah ,blah, It's the instrument we play.
"Somebody's had too much to think" Don Van Vliet.

Just saying.

"[and there it is again, the Stick trade name slips right into being a generic name for tapping chordophones- ---"what kind of Coke do you want?" "I'll take a Sprite."]

Let's not overload the subject with loaded language. Who calls soft drinks "Cokes"? And how do you get a generic name from "Stick"? It's a trademark for a particular stringed instrument I make. Also, why are we harping on "chordophones"? Sounds like intellectual puffery. As a teen, I had a hard enough time with "accordion" as the name for my chordophone. Academic types have no monopoly on the English language and not much claim to it either.

Back to basics, Emmett.

Sorry Emmett - no "puffery" intended, but the OP asked about musical classification, which, when part of your audience is "academic types," you're bound to end up having these long protracted debates that makes Rob (and some others, not without justification) roll their eyes. Hey, some of us are just that geeky, what can I say? Some of just like order and being able to put things neatly in boxes. Just don't look at my sock drawer!

But, you're last comment will be the most important. In the end, even if somebody agrees with "tapping chordophone" or similarly scientific/academic/high-and-mighty sounding moniker, what the general public uses and accepts in general parlance will be...what the name will be.

you mean like.....drumming

Ben Dare

It might be a regional thing, but over, people do that all the time.

Lemme have one of those orange cokes right now. No, I'll just have a green one.