Popular music making has never been just about electric, acoustic, bass and electro acoustic guitars. It is interesting that in the 21st Century with pop music no longer considered a teenager fad, that some people still do not realise that there is a history of instruments that have shaped the way guitars now look and play. For the benefit of those who want to learn about the different types of guitar and therefore different types of music, I have put together a very brief summary of these so that you can learn more :
Acoustic Guitar: The most common hollow bodied guitar on the planet. The hollow body acts as a sound box so there is no electronic amplification required. This instrument is used in all musical genres.
Electric Acoustic Guitar: Essentially an acoustic guitar but with pickups to increase amplification and add effects as appropriate. It would be difficult to distinguish between the acoustic and electric acoustic by simply looking at them. They can also be played without amplification.
12 String Guitars: Obviously, has twelve strings which are arranged in pairs. Typically, the G, B and e string pairs (thinner strings) are tuned in unison and the E, A and D pairs (fatter strings) are tuned in octaves. The guitars can be either electric or acoustic and are generally used as a rhythm accompaniment. For some great examples have a listen to The Byrds and folk music.
Solid Body Electric: Basically has a body of either a single or multiple pieces of solid wood that uses electromagnetic pickups to induce a signal. Famous names include the Fender Stratocaster, Fender Telecaster and Gibson Les Paul.
Chambered Body Electric: This guitar is also known as the electro or semi acoustic guitar. Like the solid body it uses electromagnetic pickups to induce a signal with the body being made of single or multiple pieces of solid wood with hollow chambers. These will be seen as either arch top guitars or jazz guitars. Famous examples are the Epiphone Casino and Gibson ES335.
Steel: This guitar is played by laying steel bar or slide laid across the strings rather than using finger fretting. Lap steels come with 6 or 8 strings with the pedal steel coming with up to 13. Some versions, called pedal steel guitars have, unsurprisingly, pedals and knee levers to change the intonation and resonance of the strings. They tend to be picked not strummed.
Resonator: This type of guitar uses metal resonating cones instead of a soundboard to produce sound. A Dobro is a common term for a resonator guitar and is commonly played with a slide and picked as opposed to strummed. You are likely to have heard this on country or bluegrass tracks. George Harrison of The Beatles used one during the late 1960s and early 1970s. A common make of resonator guitar is a National.
Those are the most common, however there are some others that you may come across:
Weissenborn: This is a specific type of acoustic lap steel guitar, built with the body cavity extending under the fretboard. Less than 5,000 were ever produced.
Baritone: A guitar with a longer scale length so that it can be tuned lower. Baritone guitars can be tuned a third, a fourth, or even a fifth lower than standard tuning. These were commonly used by The Beach Boys and in other surf type music.
Harp Guitar: A guitar with extra low strings meant to be plucked as low-end harmony notes. The low notes tend to come without a fretboard. They have been around for over 200 years in various forms.
Tenor guitars: These are tuned in fifths, C G D A. They have four strings and are slightly smaller than the standard acoustic or electric guitar. Their configuration and sound makes them suitable for both rhythm and lead. Renowned manufacturers such as Martin and Gibson have made versions in the past.
Guitarron: It's a very large, deep bodied guitar, played in Mexican Mariachi bands. It is a fretless, nylon stringed guitar. Mostly used for doubling notes at the octave, hence it has the unusual tuning of A D G C E A. You will doubtless have seen one of these on film and it was used by Scottish band Fairground Attraction in the 1980's.
Russian Guitar: This is a seven string acoustic guitar and tends to be strummed or finger picked. It is usually tuned in thirds.
There are, of course variations of each of these guitars, but hopefully you will see that it is not just about acoustic, electric, bass or electro acoustic guitars. There is a whole spectrum of styles and sounds to explore and enjoy.
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