For the acronym FRET in molecular biology, see Fluorescence resonance energy transfer. Molecular biology is the study of Biology at a molecular level Förster resonance energy transfer (abbreviated FRET) also known as Fluoresence resonance energy transfer or resonance energy transfer ( RET

The neck of a guitar showing the nut and first four frets. The nut of a String instrument is a small piece of hard material which supports the strings at the end closest to the Headstock or scroll.

A fret is a raised portion on the neck of a stringed instrument, that extends generally across the full width of the neck. The neck is the part of certain String instruments that projects from the main body and is the base of the Fingerboard, where the fingers are placed to stop the strings A string instrument (or stringed instrument) is a Musical instrument that produces Sound by means of Vibrating strings In the Hornbostel-Sachs On most modern western instruments, frets are metal strips inserted into the fingerboard. Western culture (sometimes equated with Western Civilization) are terms which are used to refer to Cultures of European origin The M acro E xpansion T emplate A ttribute L anguage complements TAL, providing macros which allow the reuse of code across The fingerboard (also known as a fretboard on fretted instruments is a part of most Stringed instruments It is a thin long strip of Wood that is On historical instruments and some non-European instruments, pieces of string tied around the neck serve as frets.

Frets divide the neck into fixed segments at intervals related to a musical framework. Music is an Art form in which the medium is Sound organized in Time. On instruments such as guitars, each fret represents one semitone in the standard western system where one octave is divided into twelve semitones. The guitar is a Musical instrument with ancient roots that is used in a wide variety of musical styles A semitone, also called a half step or a half tone, is the smallest Musical interval commonly used in Western tonal music and it is considered the In Music, an octave ( is the the use of which is "common in most musical systems

"To fret" is often used as a verb, meaning simply "to press down the string behind a fret. "

Explanation

Pressing the string against the fret reduces the vibrating length of the string to that between the damped if the string were stopped with the soft fingertip on a fretless fingerboard. Oscillation is the repetitive variation typically in Time, of some measure about a central value (often a point of Equilibrium) or between two or more different states A fretless guitar is a Guitar without Frets It operates in the same manner as most other Stringed instruments and traditional Guitars but does

An advantage of frets is that they make it much easier to achieve an acceptable standard of intonation since the positions for the correct notes are given by the frets. Intonation, in Music, is a musician's realization of pitch accuracy or the pitch accuracy of a musical instrument Furthermore, playing chords are much easier on a fretted fingerboard. This article describes musical chords in traditional Western styles

A disadvantage of using frets is that the player is restricted by the temperament given by the position of the frets. In Music, there are two common meanings for tuning: Tuning practice, the act of tuning an instrument or voice Some influence on the intonation is still possible, however. Intonation, in Music, is a musician's realization of pitch accuracy or the pitch accuracy of a musical instrument The string can be pulled to the side to increase the string tension and the pitch. This technique (commonly called 'bending') is often used by electric guitarists of all genres and is a very important part of sitar playing. Finger vibrato is Vibrato produced on a String instrument by cyclic hand movements A guitarist is a Musician who plays the Guitar. Guitarists may perform solo pieces or play with ensembles and bands of a wide variety of genres The sitar ( Hindi: सितार Urdu: ستار Persian: سی تار) is a Plucked stringed instrument. On instruments with thicker frets, the string tension and pitch will vary with the pressure of the finger behind the fret. Sometimes it is also possible to pull the string toward the bridge or nut, thus lowering or raising the string tension and pitch, respectively. The nut of a String instrument is a small piece of hard material which supports the strings at the end closest to the Headstock or scroll. However, with the exception of instruments like the sitar, where extensive pulling of the string is possible, much less influence on the intonation is possible than on unfretted instruments.

Since the intonation of most modern western fretted instruments is equal tempered, the ratio of the distances of two consecutive frets to the bridge is , or approximately 1. Equal temperament is a Musical temperament, or a system of tuning in which every pair of adjacent notes has an identical Frequency ratio. A ratio is an expression which compares quantities relative to each other 059463. Theoretically, the twelfth fret should divide the string in two exact halves. To compensate for the increase in string tension when the string is pressed against the frets, the bridge position can be adjusted slightly so that the 12th fret plays exactly in tune.

Frets tied on to the neck of a saz; note microtonal frets between semitones. The saz (from Persian:) is a family of Plucked string instruments popular in Iran, Turkey, Azerbaijan, Armenia and the Microtonal music is Music using microtones — intervals of less than an equally spaced Semitone.

Many instruments' frets are not spaced according to the semitones of equal temperament, including the Appalachian dulcimer (with frets in a diatonic scale), the Turkish Saz (with frets spaced according to the Makam system of Turkish folk music), the Arabic Buzuq (with frets spaced according to the Arabic Maqam system), and the Persian setar and tar (with frets spaced according to the Persian Dastgah system), and the Turkish tanbur (with as many as 5 frets per semitone, to cover all of the commas of the Turkish Makam system). A semitone, also called a half step or a half tone, is the smallest Musical interval commonly used in Western tonal music and it is considered the Equal temperament is a Musical temperament, or a system of tuning in which every pair of adjacent notes has an identical Frequency ratio. The Appalachian dulcimer is a Fretted String instrument of the Zither family typically with three or four strings In Music theory, a diatonic scale (from the Greek διατονικος, meaning " through tones" also known as the heptatonia prima and The saz (from Persian:) is a family of Plucked string instruments popular in Iran, Turkey, Azerbaijan, Armenia and the See also List of Makams, Maqam In Turkish classical music, Mevlevi music and some Mosque music a system of Melody types called makam Turkish folk music ( Türk Halk Müziği) has combined the distinct cultural values of all those civilisations which have lived in Anatolia and the Ottoman The buzuq ( Arabic: بزق; also transliterated bozuq, bouzouk, etc Maqam is a modal structure that characterizes the art of music of countries in North Africa, the Middle East and Central Asia. Setar ( Persian: سه ‌تار, from seh, meaning "three" and tār, meaning "string" is a Persian musical instrument For other uses of this term including another kind of musical instrument see Tar (disambiguation. Dastgāh ( Persian:دستگاه is a musical mode in the traditional Persian art music which consists of twelve principal musical modes or dastgāhs; in Tanbur (spelled Tambur in keeping with TDK conventions is a fretted string instrument of Turkey and the former lands of the Ottoman Empire In Music theory, a comma is a small or very small interval between two Enharmonic notes tuned in different ways See also List of Makams, Maqam In Turkish classical music, Mevlevi music and some Mosque music a system of Melody types called makam

Variations

Slanted frets: Most frets are perpendicular to the instrument's neck. In Geometry, two lines or planes (or a line and a plane are considered perpendicular (or orthogonal) to each other if they form congruent Though slanted frets might be more ergonomic, few luthiers offer slanted or fanned frets; Rickenbacher offered them in the late 60's, and Novax Guitars offers such guitars today. Ergonomics is the Scientific discipline concerned with Designing according to the human needs and the profession that applies theory principles data and methods Rickenbacher may refer to Adolph Rickenbacher Karl Anton Rickenbacher See also Novax Guitars is a Guitar manufacturing company founded by Ralph Novak The appearance of angled frets on these modern instruments belies the antiquity of this technique. Fanned frets first appeared on the 16th century Orpharion, a variant of the lute. The orpharion is a plucked instrument from the Renaissance. It is part of the Cittern family Lute can refer generally to any plucked string instrument with a neck (either Fretted or unfretted and a deep round back or more specifically to an instrument from

Scalloped Fretboard: Another variant is called "scalloping" and involves the wood between some or all of the frets being scooped out. The fingerboard (also known as a fretboard on fretted instruments is a part of most Stringed instruments It is a thin long strip of Wood that is This allows a lighter touch for faster playing and also opens up new options for altering the pitch by bending the strings with the fretting hand. It had some popularity with musicians playing heavy metal music, although the idea can also be seen in more ancient instruments such as the sitar. The sitar ( Hindi: सितार Urdu: ستار Persian: سی تار) is a Plucked stringed instrument.

Semi-fretted instruments

It is also possible to find semi-fretted instruments; examples include the Malagasy kabosy and the Afghan Rubab. Madagascar is an island off the east coast of Mozambique in the Indian Ocean. Rubab or Robab ( Rūbāb, Hindi: रुबाब is a Lute -like musical instrument from Afghanistan. Semi-fretted versions of guitars and other fretted string instruments, however, are usually one-off, custom adaptations made for players who want to combine elements of both types of sound. One arrangement is for the frets to extend only part of the way along the neck so that the higher notes can be played with the smooth expression possible with a fretless fingerboard. Another approach is the use of frets that extend only partway across the fretboard so that some courses of strings are fretted and others fretless, for example Ryszard Latecki's Latar.

Fret intonation

Instruments with straight frets like guitars require a special compensation on the saddle and nut. The guitar is a Musical instrument with ancient roots that is used in a wide variety of musical styles Every time a string is fretted it is also stretched, and as it stretches the string rises in pitch, making all fretted tones sound sharp. Pitch represents the perceived Fundamental frequency of a sound When the saddle is positioned properly, however, the fretted tones all sound sharp to the same degree as long as the distances between the frets are correct. With the right nut compensation, the pitch of the unfretted string can be raised by the same amount. As a result, when the tension of the strings is lowered, the pitches of all notes, both fretted and unfretted, becomes correct.

External links

• Konrad Schwingenstein: Intonation of stringed instruments with straight frets , http://www.pepithesecond.com
• Calculating Fret Positions – An article on calculating fret positions for any equal tempered instrument on the Liutaio Mottola Lutherie Information Website.
• How to replace frets – Photo story
• Installing the Frets in a Fretted Stringed Musical Instrument An article on fret installation for a new instrument on the Liutaio Mottola Lutherie Information Website.