Traditionally, electric guitarists have reversed the normal meanings of the terms vibrato and tremolo when referring to hardware devices and the effects they produce. 2.6 Fender two-point synchronized tremolo.Downing, Brian May, and many surf music bands have used the tremolo to great effect, and the effects they created using it have become a recognized part of many styles of electric guitar. Since the regular appearance of mechanical tremolo arms in the 1950s, artists such as Kirk Hammett, Richie Sambora, Jimi Hendrix, Kevin Shields, Jeff Beck, Tom Morello, Frank Zappa, Lonnie Mack, Ritchie Blackmore, Steve Lukather, Eddie Van Halen, Duane Eddy, Dimebag Darrell, David Gilmour, Hank Marvin, Jimmy Page, Randy Rhoads, Joe Satriani, Steve Vai, K.K. However, it has also made many sounds possible that could not be produced by the old technique. The tremolo arm began as a mechanical device for more easily producing the vibrato effects that blues and jazz guitarists had long produced on arch top guitars by manipulating the tailpiece with their picking hand.

The term vibrola is also used by some guitar makers to describe their particular tremolo arm designs. Instruments without this device are called hard-tail. A tremolo arm, tremolo bar, whammy bar or wang bar is a lever attached to the bridge and/or the tailpiece of an electric guitar or archtop guitar to enable the player to quickly vary the tension and sometimes the length of the strings temporarily, changing the pitch to create a vibrato, portamento or pitch bend effect.

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