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The concert guitar or: classical guitar is an acoustic guitar and dates back to a shape that developed from the Lute and the Vihuela in Spain in the 17th century. The strings used to consist of silk wound with fine wire for the bass strings (E A D) and sheep's intestine for the treble strings (G B E). Since gut strings react very sensitively to changes in humidity and strongly influence the playing characteristics of a concert guitar, nylon strings or carbon strings are used today for treble strings. Nylon strings are also much more resistant and durable than the original gut strings. Compared to Western guitars, classical guitars are quieter because of the nylon strings and have a distinctly different sound character. If you play a Western guitar because of its brilliant overtone-rich guitar sound, the quality of the individual tone with an almost lyrical sound character is in the foreground of a concert guitar.
The choice of wood, especially for the top, the craftsmanship of the manufacturer and the type of varnish are decisive for the sound characteristics and the quality of a concert guitar. For high-quality instruments, spruce is mainly used for the top with fine, evenly spaced and narrow annual rings. Other types of wood are also used, depending on the sound. Cedar delivers a somewhat warmer timbre with complex overtones. Mahogany sounds warmer and slightly less overtoned than spruce. The choice of the top wood is therefore a question of special tonal preferences. The top of concert guitar beginners' instruments is made of cross-bonded plywood, which is insensitive to moisture and produces a sound rich in overtones with a lot of sustain. Mahogany, rosewood, cedar or maple are used for the sides, top and back. Usually the neck is made of mahogany or another frame wood. The preferred wood for the fingerboard is rosewood, rarely ebony. Recently, the compressed wood plastic Richlite has been used for the fingerboard, which, due to its homogeneous density, evenly transmits the sustain on all registers. Walnut, Indian Laurel and Micarta are also increasingly used in fingerboards. Not least because rosewood has been included in the CITES Appendix two for species-protected wood since February 2017.
About 30 % of the total resonance volume is determined by the choice of sides and backs for concert guitars. Usually mahogany, rosewood and maple are used, rosewood with a very high wood density in combination with a spruce top provides a very balanced sound, while the same model with sides and back made of mahogany has a much warmer sound in the bass and mids, but less brilliance in the trebles. Maple sides and back provide very clear sound with direct response.
A classical guitar is the perfect introduction to guitar playing, since the much softer nylon strings are much easier to grip for beginners than the thin and stiff steel strings of a Western guitar or an electric guitar. Classical guitars are also available in 1/4, 1/2, 3/4, 4/4 and 7/8 sizes, which enable even the youngest players to find a comfortable and ergonomically suitable instrument. The scale varies from approx. 40 cm for 1/4 models to approx. 60 cm for the larger 7/8 concert guitars. Many models are also offered as concert guitar sets, with accessories such as bag, tuner, stand and footrest, to give the young guitarist a perfect start.
You can also find more unusual instruments in our guitar shop. Like Yamaha's silent guitar models. Without a body, with pickup and cutaway, you can practice in silence, while the instrument delivers a convincing concert guitar sound via the pickup. Or how about a fretless guitar? With the Multiac Nylon Fretless, Godin offers an unusual instrument with a high-quality pickup/equalizer system and a special look without a sound hole. The MUSIC STORE also offers left-handed concert guitar models in all price ranges.
Whoever wants to buy a Concert guitar or a Western guitar with a pickup should have the clear intention of conquering the stage. The installation of a pickup causes additional costs in production, which are also reflected in the sales price. In the entry-level segment and in the mid-range of concert guitars there are rather simple piezo pickups that work wonderfully on stage because they are relatively feedback-resistant. However, the body resonance of the body is barely taken along, since a piezo pickup is mounted under the bridge and thus only transmits the direct string vibration. The top pickups and condenser microphones in the body are much warmer, more natural and more dynamic. These pickups are more likely to be found in the premium segment of concert guitars and are also ideal for direct recording in a recording studio. However, the aforementioned technology is also much more susceptible to feedback, since both the condenser microphone and the top pickup also transmit the body resonance. The problem is often counteracted with so-called built-in emergency filters, phase switches or compressors. Most modern pickups are connected to an active preamp, which raises the pickup's rather weak output signal and is often equipped with a built-in tuner and equalizer for individual sound control.
A cutaway is a cutout on the lower part of the body of a classical or western guitar and allows for relaxed playing in the higher registers. Since the cutaway cuts out a small part of the sound body, the acoustic resonance suffers a slight loss compared to a body without cutaway. Basically there are two different model forms of the cutaway. The pointed cutaway is called the Florentine cutaway, while the rounded cutaway is called the Venetian cutaway. Both forms of cutaways can be found in steel string guitars as well as in concert guitars.
Classical guitars are divided into two types of top wood, each of which produces a different tone from the ground up. Here the widespread spruce top is lighter in colour than the clearly darker sounding cedar top and the same applies to the acoustics. With guitars or classical guitars, the solid spruce top sounds brighter and more brilliant in the higher frequencies and needs significantly more playing time to develop a fuller overtone spectrum. The cedar, on the other hand, already has a very direct and overtone-rich tone response at the beginning. It resonates significantly more voluminously and warmer than the spruce, but will not develop this clear brilliance in the high frequencies even after long playing.
Whether one prefers the tone of the brilliant, solid spruce top or the warmer and voluminous sound of the solid cedar top is a matter of taste. In the premium guitar segment you will find fully solid concert guitars. So not only the top, but also the sides and the bottom are made of solid wood. Compared to the models with only a solid top, solid guitars resonate even louder and produce about 30% more overtone spectrum. The finest wood selection of the top has on average narrower and relatively parallel annual rings. Due to the higher wood density, the well selected solid wood top is considerably fuller and more balanced than a simple solid wood top.
Alhambra, Godin, Ovation, Fame, Sigma Guitars, Taylor, Hopf, Ortega, Hanika, Höfner, Martin Guitars, Takamine, J&D, Ibanez, Yamaha
