Geni Swing Guitars

Guitar Tailpiece

The Guitar - a Brief History

The guitar is an ancient instrument that can be traced back over 4000 years. The fact that there are many different theories as to its beginning only demonstrates the appeal and uniqueness of this instrument.

The earliest stringed instruments are believed to be the bowl harps and tanburs. Items like these are available for viewing at various museums around the world and highlight instruments from ancient Egypt and Babylon.

The name "guitar" comes from the ancient Sanskrit word for "string" - "tar".
By the beginning of the Renaissance the four-course guitar had become dominant in most of Europe but was replaced by the five-course Italian instrument known as the guitarra battente. The standard tuning, like our modern guitars, had already settled at A, D, G, B, E.

A sixth course of strings (12 strings) was added to the guitarra battente in the 17th century, but it eventually gave way to six single strings - resembling today's instrument. But it wasn't until the 19th century that the guitar of today started to emerge.

Spanish maker Antonio Torres developed an instrument that resembles the modern classical guitar by increasing the size of the body, changing its proportions, and introducing the fan-top bracing pattern. These changes improved the volume and tone of the instrument, and it became the accepted construction standard. 

On the heels of the Spanish influence came the appearance of the United States of America as the new purveyor of all things guitar! A group of German immigrants to America introduced guitars with X-braced tops. Then as the twentieth century dawned, so did the use of steel strings to enhance the sound of the instrument and take advantage of the German addition of the X-brace.

During this time the renown Orville Gibson was building archtop guitars and later merged with Lloyd Loar to refine the archtop "jazz" guitar into its now familiar form with f-holes, floating bridge and cello-type tailpiece.

The electric guitar did not come on the scene until the 1920's. At first it was simply Hawaiian guitars with added pickups and was of little importance. That all changed in 1936 when Gibson introduced the ES150 model later made famous by Charlie Christian.

Today we have virtually the same instrument with a few modifications that simply reflect personal tastes and thus appeal to a larger group of consumers.

About the Author

H.W. Ted is a musician, songwriter, guitar player and guitar teacher. He has been involved with music for many years having recorded songs and jingles for both personal pleasure and commercially.

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