Gliding fingers after an open string

[nukunuku]

I noticed that players sometimes glide fretting fingers lightly up the string (toward the bridge) after playing an open string? Why do they do that and what sound change are they trying to create? Is it a quick but gradual mute? Thanks.

[Brad Bordessa]

Do you have an example video you could share?

[VegasGeorge]

This is very curious. I don't get it.

[Kenn2018]

May be a slide?

[ripock]

Yeah, I assume the OP is referring to a glissando. I do it all the time. Why? Because it is cool. Sometimes there is a reason like moving an octave (for example moving from the E on the 7th fret to the E on the 19th fret), but more often than not it is more of a transition. It is kind of like a wipe in cinema where there's one scene then a black wipe and then another scene.

[VegasGeorge]

Technically, I don't think you can glissando on an open string. You could hammer it down, then glissando off that fretted note. I have heard a player sort of glissando an open string by quickly turning the tuning knob. But that isn't the question. I've seen players move their left hand quickly up the string and pull off a harmonic tone. Maybe that's what's being heard here.

[Ukecaster]

I've seen some players do that, usually very good fingerstyle players, and feel it may be just a stylistic flourish, perhaps for rhythmic purposes?