Lap Tapping Is An Unusual Style Of Acoustic Guitar Playing
Lap tapping is a unique guitar technique whereby the acoustic guitarist holds the instrument flat on his lap while tapping the guitar body and strings percussively while playing the melody.
A small number of technically gifted acoustic guitarists have helped develop this form of guitar playing over the years. Talented guitarists such as Ben Konstantinovic, Tony Haven and Ben Howard have very individual styles and can be seen in action on You Tube. Perhaps the best known of all is Canadian guitarist Erik Mongrain whose songs like Airtap! has enjoyed widespread coverage and racked up millions of views on You Tube. Erik Mongrain uses a unique two handed flat guitar technique which simultaneously combines percussive tapping of the guitar body and chords.
Another up and coming lap tapping guitarist is singer, songwriter Liam Iliffe from Bournemouth, UK. Liam is only 15 years old but has been playing guitar for over 8 years. Although his two handed technique is similar to Erik Mongrain, a key difference is that he tends to favour simpler melodies in his own songs given he also sings at the same time. Liam uses lap tapping primarily as a way to inject more raw emotion and drama into his acoustic compositions.