History Of The Guitar

History of the Guitar

The popularity of the guitar in today music society and culture, many would consider that it is a relatively new instrument in the music spectrum only developing in the past two hundred years. However, research has shown that the guitar, or the guitars found fathers, have been in existence since Renaissance period. The vihuela was a generic term coined over the string instrument as far back as medieval times. There were three division over that way the instrument was play, therefore each had a specific name:

‘vihuela de arco (a bowed form), vihuela de peῆola (played with a plectrum) and vihuela de mano (plucked with the fingers)’ (Turnbull, H, 1991. pg 5)

This, in turn, highlights the different styles of playing that

With that being said there is still a very high demand for the style of classical playing, and is a major part of school curricula. The foundation of Classical guitar playing techniques are quite complex for the beginner. When you start to play classical guitar you must have or be beginning to understand the principals of notation as this is utilized throughout lessons and future playing. Hand position and posture are two of the fundamental principles employed when playing the classical guitar. The right hand position is interchangeable, it can either be close to the bridge or closer to the fret board, depending on the timbre required. However, the arm must rest upon the body of the guitar. The wrist should never be over strained, a neutral flat position is advised. The fingers are utilized when picking the strings, no plectrum used. The thumb is used to accompany melody on the strings while the index, second and third finger pick out the melody, which are polyphonic melodies. It is also responsible for the dynamic variations with a piece, rhythmic affect, tremolo, arpeggiation and strumming. The left hand is used for the pressing of the notes and articulation, such as vibrato, slurs, staccato and legato passages.. The left hand has a large area to work from, usually covering four frets at one time, utilizing the same wrist position as the right hand, however it is inverted. (Denyer, R., Guillory, I, and Crawford, A. M,