Learn to Play Classical Guitar - What Is a Classical Guitar?
Evidence suggests that similar instruments to the classical guitar date back as many as 5000 years.
The basic design which is a hollow body with strings that are fixed or anchored between two points is seen in other instruments such as sitar, harp, piano and believe it or not the violin.
All these instruments use the vibrations of the strings to resonate the body and thus produce sounds.
There is a difference in the guitar due to it being fretted.
Pitch perfect chords can be played using six strings and this is where it differs from instruments such as the violin.
The instrument we know today began to evolve in the period of the Renaissance and into the Baroque period.
In these times the guitar was used mainly for accompaniment.
Other related instruments are the lute, balalaika, mandolin and banjo.
The guitar stands supreme in that it is unique in the way it can be tuned due to having six strings and being fretted.
The classical guitar is made different to the normal guitar, there being six strings.
The bass strings are usually made of nylon wrapped in brass wire whereas the treble strings are of nylon.
The body is symmetrical in shape and there are definitely no electronics.
The classical guitar is normally played while seated as the shape allows it to be kept steady by being rested on the thigh.
If you are right-handed, you would handle the frets using the left hand while the right hand would be doing the work of plucking.
It can also be played using a plectrum strumming over all or maybe just some of the strings.
This method of playing would be used to produce a purely rhythmic sound.
Melodies can also be picked out using the plectrum.
The more expert players would use their fingers instead of a plectrum.
This latter method allows very complex tunes to be played with melodies and bass notes being produced at the same time.
The classical guitar in the hands of a real expert can be made to sound like more than one instrument being played at the same time.
The tone can be made to vary if you use the fingernails for plucking.
This will produce a sharp sound.
If you use the soft part of the finger the sound that is made is much softer.
So you see that the classical guitar is a much more complex instrument than the normal guitar.
Classical music composers such as Johann Sebastian Bach have produced music that is very suited to the classical guitar.
The great composers of today have written music especially for the classical guitar.
This proves that the instrument is regarded as one that professional players can be relied upon to reproduce the best music that is available.
If it is your desire to become an accomplished player of the classical guitar, you will have to learn different techniques to those you may have learned for the normal guitar, but you will have a whole new world open to you in your career.
You will need to learn to play the classical guitar as a separate venture.
The basic design which is a hollow body with strings that are fixed or anchored between two points is seen in other instruments such as sitar, harp, piano and believe it or not the violin.
All these instruments use the vibrations of the strings to resonate the body and thus produce sounds.
There is a difference in the guitar due to it being fretted.
Pitch perfect chords can be played using six strings and this is where it differs from instruments such as the violin.
The instrument we know today began to evolve in the period of the Renaissance and into the Baroque period.
In these times the guitar was used mainly for accompaniment.
Other related instruments are the lute, balalaika, mandolin and banjo.
The guitar stands supreme in that it is unique in the way it can be tuned due to having six strings and being fretted.
The classical guitar is made different to the normal guitar, there being six strings.
The bass strings are usually made of nylon wrapped in brass wire whereas the treble strings are of nylon.
The body is symmetrical in shape and there are definitely no electronics.
The classical guitar is normally played while seated as the shape allows it to be kept steady by being rested on the thigh.
If you are right-handed, you would handle the frets using the left hand while the right hand would be doing the work of plucking.
It can also be played using a plectrum strumming over all or maybe just some of the strings.
This method of playing would be used to produce a purely rhythmic sound.
Melodies can also be picked out using the plectrum.
The more expert players would use their fingers instead of a plectrum.
This latter method allows very complex tunes to be played with melodies and bass notes being produced at the same time.
The classical guitar in the hands of a real expert can be made to sound like more than one instrument being played at the same time.
The tone can be made to vary if you use the fingernails for plucking.
This will produce a sharp sound.
If you use the soft part of the finger the sound that is made is much softer.
So you see that the classical guitar is a much more complex instrument than the normal guitar.
Classical music composers such as Johann Sebastian Bach have produced music that is very suited to the classical guitar.
The great composers of today have written music especially for the classical guitar.
This proves that the instrument is regarded as one that professional players can be relied upon to reproduce the best music that is available.
If it is your desire to become an accomplished player of the classical guitar, you will have to learn different techniques to those you may have learned for the normal guitar, but you will have a whole new world open to you in your career.
You will need to learn to play the classical guitar as a separate venture.
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