The History of Guitar

Name: The History of Guitar
Uploaded: 2020-07-25T13:01:45.000Z
Duration: 1 h 50 min 12 s

The History of the Guitar

In this video, Brandon Aker takes us through the history of the guitar and its evolution from ancient times to what we know and love today.

The Origins of the Guitar

The guitar is a member of the lute family, which dates back 5,000 years ago in Mesopotamia.

There are many instruments like liars and tombors that were played in ancient civilizations such as Central Asia, Egypt, and Mesopotamia.

The first instrument that can be called a guitar was invented around 1500.

The Arabic Oud

The Arabic Oud is considered to be the great grandparent of the modern-day guitar.

It has a teardrop shape with a big bold back with individual strips of ribs.

It has a short neck cool bent back peg box with violin-like friction series angle.

Each string is doubled, and there are 11 strings tuned to C F A D C.

Fretless Instrument

What makes this instrument unique is that it has no frets. This allows for playing scales called maqams used in Arabic music that have notes not found in Western music.

In Western music, an octave is split into 12 semitones while Eastern music uses half flats.

Conclusion

The history of the guitar dates back thousands of years ago to ancient civilizations where similar instruments were played. The Arabic Oud is considered to be the great grandparent of modern-day guitars due to its similarities in shape and sound. Its fretless design allows for playing scales unique to Arabic music.

Playing the Oud

In this section, the host and guest discuss the unique features of the oud and how it is played.

The Fretless Oud

The fretless nature of the oud makes it necessary for playing ornaments and sliding notes.

The instrument has a low C string that adds to its unique sound.

Playing melodies is easier on the oud than chords due to its lack of frets.

Playing Techniques

Sliding notes are a characteristic feature of oud music.

Plucking is done over an extra piece of wood that serves as a pick guard.

The double strings on the oud provide resonance and sympathetic resonation, adding to its unique sound.

History of the Oud

In this section, the host and guest discuss how the oud evolved over time and how it influenced other instruments.

Evolution of the Oud

The Moors brought the oud to Spain in 711 AD, where it was adopted by Spanish musicians who made their own version called "the lute."

Europeans added gut strings to fix pitches and tied them around double strings for resonance.

By 1500, medieval loots had four or five pairs of strings; by end of 15th century, they had six or seven pairs.

Influence on Other Instruments

Double strings create a chorus effect that adds depth to music.

Sympathetic resonation creates built-in reverb in instruments like sitars.

Renaissance Lute

In this section, the speaker talks about the renaissance lute and its history.

History of the Renaissance Lute

The earliest renaissance lutes did not have a seventh string.

The instrument's heyday was in the 16th century and it was played by kings, queens, and common people.

This era saw the birth of secular music which became popular with lute music troubadour songs.

Playing Techniques

Renaissance polyphony led to dropping the pick and using fingers to play several different voices at once.

Guitar-like chords can be played on the lute using familiar shapes but one string up.

Famous Piece for Renaissance Lute

John Dowland's "Lachrimae Pavan" is probably the most famous piece for renaissance lute.

Role of Lutenists

Lutenists had positions at court and were often spies.

The lute is a delicate instrument that never overpowers vocals making it perfect as an accompaniment instrument.

Improvisation on Lute

Elite players would improvise on pieces like "Lachrimae Pavan" adding divisions to make them more interesting.

Another good riff is the ending melody which can be improvised upon.

Patronage for Musicians

-[]( t = 16 : 22 ) Bach needed patronage to survive and the best position was at courts where they were paid well and taken care of.

The Basics of the Renaissance Flute

In this section, we learn about the basics of the Renaissance flute and its unique features.

Features of the Renaissance Flute

The Renaissance flute has a fretboard made of gut frets that can be moved to fine-tune notes.

It has friction pegs instead of geared tuners, which makes it difficult to micro-tune but works well for strumming.

The instrument is played in a horizontal position with the thumb used for downstrokes and index finger for upstrokes.

Movable frets allow for more precise tuning than fixed frets on guitars.

Comparison Between Renaissance Flute and Guitar

In this section, we compare the features of the Renaissance flute with those of a guitar.

Differences between Renaissance Flute and Guitar

Guitars are naturally out of tune due to their equal temperament, while movable frets on flutes allow for more precise tuning.

Tuning guitars differently while recording can make them work better for specific keys.

Trying Out Different Instruments

In this section, we see how different instruments sound and feel when played.

Playing Different Instruments

The renaissance flute sounds similar to a guitar but has double strings tuned differently.

The host tries playing different instruments such as lutes.

The Evolution of the Guitar

In this section, we learn about the origins of the guitar and how it evolved over time.

The Renaissance Guitar

The first guitar was created in the 1500s with a tuning of G-C-E-A.

The ukulele tuning comes from this instrument, which was brought to Hawaii by Portuguese sailors in 1550.

The number of strings on the guitar decreased over time to make it easier to form chords with one finger down.

Despite criticism that it was too simple for playing chords, the guitar became popular for strumming and self-accompaniment.

The Baroque Guitar

The baroque guitar was popular between 1600 and 1750 and had a fifth course added to it.

It was tuned two to four notes lower than the renaissance guitar but still had doubled strings and a single chanterelle.

A mustache bridge and decorative rose made of goat skin were added for aesthetic purposes.

Most baroque guitars had nine strings, including a doubled version of E used as a chanterelle.

The History and Construction of the Baroque Guitar

In this section, the speaker discusses the history and construction of the baroque guitar.

The Baroque Guitar

The baroque guitar was a popular instrument in Spain during the 16th and 17th centuries.

It has five pairs of strings, except for the top string which is single. The tuning of the bottom two strings depends on which region it was made in.

Gut frets were used instead of metal frets because they were more convenient to customize. Metal frets would have been prohibitively expensive at that time.

Gut strings were preferred over metal strings because they produced a better sound. Metal-wound gut strings were used to give more clarity to the sound.

Gallant Music

In reaction to complex music like Bach's, simpler music called gallant music emerged in Italy during the 18th century.

This led to a new instrument with six single strings tuned E A D G B around 1800.

There are no timestamps for some parts of the transcript where only music is playing or nothing significant is happening.

The Evolution of Guitar Strings

In this section, the speaker discusses the evolution of guitar strings from double strings to single strings and the introduction of wound metal strings in 1750.

From Double Strings to Single Strings

In the early 19th century, six single strings became the new trend as they were easier to tune and more convenient for playing slurs.

This guitar has 22 frets on the fretboard, which is a significant increase compared to other instruments that only had eight or so frets.

Introduction of Wound Metal Strings

Around 1750, Savaretze invented wound metal strings by winding metal around gut or silk. This resulted in a punchy loud bass sound.

Metal-wound strings chewed up all the gut frets, leading to experimentation with different materials such as wood. However, it was metal that was referred to as it could handle more tension and produce a louder sound.

With metal strings came more tension, requiring a way to ensure that the bridge doesn't rip off. They drilled holes in the top and held the string in place with pins.

Temperament and Truss Rod Mechanism

In this section, we learn about temperaments used for tuning guitars and how truss rod mechanisms were introduced.

Temperament for Tuning Guitars

Equal temperament was decided upon because you can play in every key and everything will sound pretty good.

Composers took out moments from operas and fit them on instruments so people could play them at home since they couldn't afford to pay for tickets every time.

Truss Rod Mechanism

This guitar has a mechanism that comes with a clock key, which can be used to change the angle and adjust the action mid-concert.

Gears were introduced around 1820, but this guitar still uses pegs since it's a replica of a guitar from a famous Viennese maker named Staufer.

The Sound of Metal Strings

In this section, we learn about the sound produced by metal strings and how they affected the design of guitars.

Sound Produced by Metal Strings

Metal-wound strings produce more volume and are more durable than gut strings.

We hear how this guitar sounds when played.

Design Changes Due to Metal Strings

With metal strings, you get more tension, requiring changes in bridge design such as using pin bridges instead of tie blocks.

The fretboard extends above the neck and is floating like a cello or violin.

The Birth of an Amateur Market

In this section, the speaker talks about how the guitar became popular and how people started playing it. He also discusses how people began to make music that was easy to play on the guitar and release sheet music for others to learn.

The Guitar's Popularity

The speaker talks about how the guitar became popular and how people started playing it.

If you were a musician at the time, one way to get your music out there was by making music that was easy to play on guitar and releasing sheet music for others to learn.

Variations on the Theme

The speaker talks about how someone fit a phonograph onto a guitar so you could play it at home.

He then makes a whole set of variations on the theme when anybody just shows off what you can do on the guitar.

You can hear operatic influence in his music but he doesn't only try to imitate opera; he makes the guitar do what it does best using its idioms.

Learning How Guitars Work

There is no learning curve with guitars; small differences exist, but they don't change much about how you play.

The fretboard is thinner than usual, shorter, and still has no dots. Dots were not standard until late 19th century or early 20th century.

Classical guitars don't have dots because players would use capos so often that dots would be confusing rather than helpful.

Classical Vibrato

In this section, the speaker demonstrates how to do a classical vibrato on the guitar.

Classical Vibrato

The speaker demonstrates how to do a classical vibrato on the guitar.

It works best on the 12th fret and is especially beautiful in the halfway point where the string is most loose.

New Developments in Guitar Making

In this section, the speaker talks about new developments in guitar making that occurred in the mid-19th century.

Fan Bracing

Torres introduced us to a 275,000 guitar with fan bracing.

Fan bracing added new dimensions to the instrument and codified a new style of guitar making for all classical guitars until now.

Codified Shape of Classical Guitars

Torres was responsible for codifying these dimensions; every classical guitar you see will look more or less exactly like this.

Finally, gears were invented which allowed fine tuning on such a small scale.

The Evolution of the Guitar

In this section, the speaker talks about the different types of guitars and their evolution over time.

Flamenco and Spanish Music

Flamenco music was popular in Spain and played on the guitar.

The guitar became the national instrument of Spain.

Francisco Targa was a famous composer who played an instrument similar to the classical guitar.

Classical Guitar

The classical guitar was not played with a pick because it cannot achieve certain parts with one.

Nails became popular for playing classical guitar, but some players still preferred not to use them.

There were other types of guitars before the classical guitar, such as the baroque and renaissance guitars.

Music Notation

Standard music notation became popular for writing music for 19th century and classical guitars.

Tablature was used before standard notation, even for hundreds of years.

Modern Guitars

Martin guitars were invented by Carl Friedrich Martin in Vienna in the early 19th century.

Banjos and mandolins were becoming more popular than guitars at that time because they were louder.

Martin invented an x-bracing system around 1850 which made his guitars more durable and able to handle steel strings.

Stouffer Guitar Features

In this section, the speaker talks about features of a specific type of modern guitar - Stouffer Guitar.

Stouffer Guitar Features

The Stouffer Guitar has a bridge which is a feature associated with modern guitars.

Stouffer was famous in Vienna and had an apprentice named CF Martin who went on to start one of America's biggest guitar industries.

Steel string acoustic guitars became popular by 1920.

Martin Guitars and the Evolution of Guitar Making

In this section, the speaker discusses how Martin guitars experimented with body shape and size to create different models. He also talks about the pinhole bridge system and truss rod that were invented by Martin.

Evolution of Body Shape and Size

Martin guitars experimented with body shape and size to create different models.

Dreadnought guitars have really big bodies compared to other models.

The pinhole bridge system and truss rod were invented by Martin to sustain all the tension on the top.

Influence of String Technology

Nylon strings were introduced in 1940, which influenced how guitars are made and built.

String technology has a significant impact on guitar making, from ancient plucked instruments in Mesopotamia to steel strings.

Versatility of Guitars

The versatility of guitars is one reason for their incredible popularity over time.

Guitars can be used for various genres such as blues, folk, rock, pop, classical.

Baroque Music: How Did It Sound?

In this section, the speaker talks about how we don't know exactly how baroque music sounded because there are no recordings from that time period. He also discusses how musical taste changes over time and influences instrument making.

Uncertainty About Baroque Music

We don't know exactly how baroque music sounded because there are no recordings from that time period.

Treatises and books provide some information about how baroque music sounded, but they didn't write down everything.

Changing Musical Taste

Musical taste changes over time and influences instrument making.

Instruments don't get better and better; they change with our changing aesthetic.

The Versatility of Guitars

In this section, the speaker talks about the versatility of guitars and how it has led to their incredible popularity. He also discusses solid body electric guitars and the Les Paul exhibit in a museum in Wisconsin.

Popularity of Guitars

The versatility of guitars is one reason for their incredible popularity over time.

Guitars can be used for various genres such as blues, folk, rock, pop, classical.

Solid Body Electric Guitars

Solid body electric guitars are close to the speaker's heart.

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Les Paul Exhibit

There is a Les Paul exhibit at a museum in Wisconsin.

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