Describes a stringed musical instrument which normally would have frets but is without them. [fret|Frets] are the little bars, usually made of metal, that run [perpendicular] to the strings on the [neck] of the instrument.

The term almost always describes an [electric bass]. The [doublebass], while certainly a fretless instrument, is a member of thie violin family and has no frets by its definition. The earliest [banjo]s made in the 18th century had no frets. The fretless banjo is still produced today in limited numbers and is used in some traditional American music.

The [fretless bass], or any fretless instrument, has a much different sound than its [fretted] counterpart. The sonic differences are mostly in the [ADSR] envelope: after the initial [attack] the note can grow slightly louder and more intense before beginning to get softer. The lack of frets gives the player much more control over the [tone] and [timbre] of the note being created, and the ability to generate [vibrato] is greatly enhanced. It gives the electric bass more of a bwwwwwaaaaaaa sound than its normal booooohhhhhmmmmmmm sort of sound.

If one is accustomed to playing a fretted instrument, it can be difficult to play a fretless instrument as there is no visual indication as to where one should press down to make a certain note. The player must stop the string at exactly the correct spot or the [pitch] of the note will be incorrect. Playing the notes with correct [pitch] is referred to as playing with proper [intonation]. Some instruments have fret lines where the frets should be (or where they used to be), and most instruments have dots on the side of the neck indicating where some of the frets would lie. Also, a normal [vibrato] technique on a fretted instrument bends the string back and forth, while one must use a violin vibrato technique, only applying motion parallel to the string.

The fretless electric bass was brought to fame by [Jaco Pastorius]. Some other fretless players of note include: [Victor Wooten], [Alain Caron], [Les Claypool] and [Michael Manring], all terrifyingly skilled players and talented musicians.

Also describes a (less than prolific, but very kind-hearted) E2 noder.

Fretless (thing)