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This is perhaps the most asked question we get
at this web site! First, there is no such thing as a standard Bluegrass
guitar design. There are traditions, however, and here are some of
them.
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Acoustic guitars are the type of guitars used in Bluegrass - not
electric. Since Bluegrass has its roots in traditional music, all
the instruments in a Bluegrass band are generally acoustic. |
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The six-string steel guitar is what you'll find in Bluegrass.
Most players use medium gauge strings, either in 80/20 brass
or phosphor bronze. |
| The flattop guitar is the type used in Bluegrass. Flattops
feature a round sound hole and a bridge glued directly to the top
of the instrument. This is in contrast to archtop guitars, where
there are f-holes, a carved top, and a tailpiece. |
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The most common body style seen in Bluegrass is the dreadnought
shape, as exemplified by the classic Martin D-28 and D-18 guitars.
Smaller-bodied guitars, such as the OM (Orchestra Model) style,
are also popular.
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Listen to a head-to-head
comparison of some great Bluegrass guitars
Check out Bryan
Kimsey's guitar comparison to hear sound clips of different guitars taking
turns playing the same tune. These include a 1941 Martin D-18, Martin
D-18 GE, Collings Clarence White, Collings D-1A and more. When you listen, you
won't know which guitar is playing, so this adds to the fun! Take some notes
on what you like and don't like and then e-mail Bryan to find
out the answers - you just might be surprised! |
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Tone woods are the woods that make up the back and sides of
a guitar. They are called tone woods because they help shape the
overall tone of the guitar. The two most common tone woods seen
in Bluegrass are rosewood and mahogany.
Rosewood, the tone wood used in D-28's, is very resonant and
has a deep bass response that many Bluegrassers prefer. This
tone is sometimes described as being "darker" than
mahogany. Most guitars today are made from East Indian rosewood.
The classic Martin D-28's built before mid-1969 were made from
Brazilian rosewood. Artists who play rosewood guitars include
Tony Rice, Dan Crary, Steve Kaufman and Jack Lawrence
Mahogany, the tone wood used in D-18s, is lighter than rosewood
and produces a sound with less bass response and overtones. Mahogany
produces a sound sometimes characterized as being "woody" or
warm with an emphasis on clear bright trebles. Artists who play
mahogany guitars include Doc Watson, Norman Blake, Kenny Smith
and Clarence White (who played a D-18 on the famous "Appalachian
Swing" album). |
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A guitar's top, or soundboard, influences the instrument's responsiveness,
sustain and the strength and quality of the fundamental tone. Spruce
is the most common top wood found in Bluegrass guitars.
There are several different varieties of spruce available, with
Sitka spruce being the most common. Sitka is quite stiff and
relatively light, and this produces a top that performs well
in transmitting sound.
Adirondack, or Red Spruce, which was used in the "Golden
Age" of 1930's-40's Martin guitars. Adirondack is known
for its stiffness, volume and tone that retains clarity at all
dynamic levels. It is short supply today, and is an expensive
option if available. |
How a guitar's top is braced on the inside also has a great
influence on how the instrument will sound and respond. The bracing
pattern found in most steel-string dreadnoughts is the "X" pattern,
originally developed by C.F. Martin in the 1850's. The position
of the "X" relative to the soundhole, whether the top
braces are scalloped or not, and the bracing wood type and thickness
all influence how the top will respond.
The "Golden Era" Martins had forward-shifted, scalloped
bracing that produced a louder, more responsive top. Many players
at that time used heavy gauge strings to get more volume out
of their guitars, but that was too much force for these tops
to handle. As a result, Martin moved the position of the "X" closer
to the bridge in 1939 to give the tops more structural integrity.
The top braces went from being scalloped (to maximize top vibration)
to non-scalloped in 1944 for the same reason.
Many new guitars are made with the forward-shifted, scalloped
bracing like in the "Golden Era" instruments, and this
is often a feature that Bluegrassers look for. |
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The most common brand you'll see and hear about in Bluegrass is
Martin. From the 1930's through the 1960's, Martin was THE
brand to have. In those days, there were really only a couple of
manufacturers around: Martin and Gibson.
In the last 20 years, there has been an enormous increase in the
number of manufacturers producing fine acoustic guitars. Many of
these, like Collings, Bourgeois, Nashville Guitars and Merrill, are
small volume shops that focus on quality rather than quantity. You
can find a list these makers on our Guitar
Makers page. |
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