The first thing you think of when you think about acoustic instruments is likely the acoustic guitar. What most people do not know is that “acoustic guitar” is a retronym. Until electric guitars were invented, they were simply called guitars. The differentiation was necessary upon the invention and adoption of the electric guitar. Something else people probably don’t know is that there are actually quite a few distinctly different types of acoustic guitars. The four main types are nylon or gut stringed guitars, steel stringed guitars, bass guitars, and Russian guitars. Under nylon/gut and steel types are numerous sub-types.

There are five nylon/gut types, as follows:

- Renaissance guitar
- Baroque guitar
- Romantic guitar
- Classical guitar
- Flamenco guitar

There are seven steel string types, as follows:

- Steel stringed acoustic guitar (which is also called the folk, country, or western)
- Twelve string guitar
- Resonator guitar
- Archtop guitar
- Battente guitar
- Lap steel guitar
- Lyre guitar

What all of these guitars have in common is the way in which they create sound. The strings are strung from the face of the guitar, over the bridge, over the body and down the strings, to the head of the guitar where the tuning pegs are. When you pluck a string, it vibrates. This also vibrates the bridge, which is in contact with the face of the body, also known as the sounding board. This creates resonance in the body of the guitar which eventually escapes through the sounding hole.

How a guitar will sound is dependent on a few different things:

- The size of the body
- The shape of the body
- The wood or woods used to make the guitar
- The type of strings used
- The size of the strings

There are 3 main body sizes. Smallest to largest, they are: classic, dreadnought, and jumbo. The body shapes are all very similar, but different brands and makes and sizes will vary, of course. Perhaps the biggest difference you might note in a body is whether or not it has a cutaway for access to the higher frets or not. The types of wood used for guitars matters a lot. Cheaper guitars will use softer woods which are more susceptible to warping and damage, and generally will not sound as rich or full. More expensive guitars will use harder woods such as Mahogany, Rosewood, Maple, or any other number of exotic and semi-exotic hardwoods. These will be more durable, less prone to warping, and generally sound a lot better. The type of strings used is more of a personal taste, but is also linked to the type of guitar being used, as is the size of the strings. Larger strings vibrate slower, and so produce lower notes. Smaller strings vibrate faster, producing higher notes. What they are made of and how they are made can also influence this somewhat.
Lastly, how tight the strings are wound will affect their sound, as a string wound tighter will produce a higher pitch than one wound looser.

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Originally posted 2009-02-16 05:20:13. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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Acoustic Musical Instruments, For Beginners, Guitars, Instrument History

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acoustic guitars, acoustic instruments, baroque guitar, bass guitars, body shapes, classical guitar, cutaway, dreadnought, electric guitars, lap steel guitar, renaissance guitar, retronym, romantic guitar, sounding board, steel string, steel types, string guitar, string types, tuning pegs, twelve string