An n characteristic mode, for n > 1, will have nodes that are not vibrating. For example, the 3rd characteristic mode will have nodes at 1 3 L and 2 3 L, where L is the length of the string. In fact, each n characteristic mode, for n not a multiple of 3, will not have nodes at these points. These other characteristic modes will be vibrating at the positions 1 3 L and 2 3 L. If the player gently touches one of these positions, then these other characteristic modes will be suppressed. The tonal harmonics from these other characteristic modes will then also be suppressed. Consequently, the tonal harmonics from the n characteristic modes, where n is a multiple of 3, will be made relatively more prominent.