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Instrument: Guitar Electric |
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 In North America and western Europe, the guitar is arguably the single most recognized instrument in popular culture. From the innovations of Les Paul to the electric riffs of Jimi Hendrix, from bluesmaster B.B. King's "Lucille" to acoustic models, these portable, durable instruments have become an icon of folk, blues, jazz, country, mariachi, tejano, rock and a myriad of other contemporary genres. Not surprisingly, their history is complex.
Guitars are classified as members of the generic lute family, distinguished from European lutes because they have a flat (rather than vaulted) back and "incurved" sides. They existed in Europe since the 13th century; similar instruments with guitar-like names such as 'cittern' or 'gittern' are illuminated in medieval manuscripts. By the 15th century, the Spanish vihuela was described in contemporary texts, and during the mid 16th century, the 'guitarre' had been introduced to France from Spain. These instruments traveled with Spanish and Portuguese sailors |
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to Africa and central America during that era.
"B.B. King", from the collection of B.B. King, by artists Greg Patterson and Marion Barnes. Courtesy of The Electric Gallery
Relatives of the contemporary six-stringed guitar are legion, as are their shapes, sizes performance contexts and playing techniques. The guitar was the companion of the Spanish as they colonized the Caribbean, and many unique, regional variants were created. From Cuba comes the tres, a small 3-double course instrument, and from Puerto Rico, the cuatro, a mainstay of Puerto Rican traditional music and a cultural emblem which resembles a cross between a small guitar and a violin.
Each of these instruments was originally associated with a regional, rural but sophisticated musical style with roots in Spanish, indigenous and African traditions. Now they are used in other contexts, particularly in Salsa music. Other offshoots: the Portuguese "rajao" or Spanish "cavaco" whose body is carved into the shape of a fish; the South American charango, sometimes made from the shell of a hairy armadillo; the Mexican guitarron, a large bass guitar with a heavily vaulted (or arched) sound box, which functions as the lowest voice in mariachi music; the widespread vihuela, whose strings are rapidly strummed to create a percussive articulation of rhythmic dance patterns
More about the cuatro, an icon of Puerto Rican identity: this is an instrument of the jibaro , rural farmers, and also the name of the music they played on cuatros and guitars and guiros. It is also used to accompany aguinaldos, the Puerto Rican Christmas songs, performed by musicians traveling from house to house. The instrument is roughly violin shaped, although the the bridge is a typical of most guitars. The strings are made from steel, and are tuned from low to high B E A D G, with the B and E in octaves. It is played with a flat pick and it sounds like a cross between a 12-string guitar and a mandolin. In many ways, the cuatro is described as a 'national cultural icon' of Puerto Rico, as musically and symbolically important to these communities as is the bagpipe for Scotland.
Why are guitars so popular? Partly because they are accessible - you can begin creating "music" almost immediately without extensive study. Partly because they are relatively inexpensive and portable - and most likely because they are so versatile. Guitars function as both melody instruments and percussive, rhythmic forces in a wide range of styles.
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