Country Music Instruments Instruments used in Country Music

A Guitar

The Guitar Early guitars were first used in the 12th century in Europe, descendant from instruments in China and India The oldest representation of a guitar is a 3,000 year old carving Inspiration for the guitar could have come from a four stringed instrument called an oud brought to Europe by invading Moors in the 8th century, or the Scandinavian six stringed lute (800AD) Two types of guitars were common by 1200AD (Moorish and Latin)

Latin Guitars A picture of Latin medieval guitars

The Guitar The Spanish vihuela was created in the 15th century and was the main influence for our modern style of guitar It had a body much like a modern guitar, larger than its contemporaries, with six strings and a system for tuning In the late 15th century, some vihuelas were played with bows leading to the violin/viola. The vihuela died out by the end of the 16th century The five stringed Baroque guitar took over in popularity until modern guitars

Vihuela Painting depicting a viheula player from 1520

The Guitar There are many, many different types of guitar in use today. Types of guitars most commonly used today fall generally into three categories: Acoustic Electric Classical

Classical Guitar Also known as Spanish guitars Nylon strings played with fingers Wide, flat neck allows for ease of playing scales and arpeggios Comes in different sizes (Flamenco guitars, requinto, guitarron)

Classical guitar

Electric Guitar Invented in 1931, used first by jazz musicians Can have hollow, semi-hollow, or solid bodies Steel strings played with picks Produce very little sound without amplification Electromagnetic pickups transfer the vibrations of the strings into signals that are then fed through the amp via a cable Sound can be modified through other electronic means Usually have seven strings, though can have as few as one and as many as fourteen

Electric Guitar

Acoustic Guitar A group of guitars that create sound without amplification Uses an acoustic soundboard to project the sound Strings vibrate against the soundboard, the soundboard resonates at the same frequency, creates a different timbre without changing pitch Has a hollow body to increase resonance Sound travels from string to soundboard to body cavity to outside air

Acoustic Guitar

Videos Classical Guitar Acoustic Folk Electric Guitar

A Fiddle

The Fiddle The Fiddle and the violin are technically the same instrument Fiddle or fiddling refers to the style of playing, NOT the instrument itself Fiddling is done on stringed instruments that are played with bows Emerged in Europe in the 10th century Two different lira (stringed instruments) developed in this time- one played sitting up and one played while being held up

The Fiddle The instrument held sitting up was called the lira di gamba and was held by the legs. It died out in the Renaissance, due to its inferior sound The instrument held up by the arm was called the lira di braccio. It became the violin. Fiddling was normally done as solo work, because it was done in small dance settings where a group of instruments would be too loud By the 20th century, groups of instrumentalists were more common

The Fiddle Fiddlers could push their instruments harder than classical violinists Violin playing is generally smoother and more classical in nature Fiddling usually keeps a stronger beat, and is a harsher sound from pushing the bow harder onto the strings.

Video Fiddling Classical Violin

The Banjo

The Banjo A four, five or six stringed instrument with a piece of animal skin or plastic stretched over a circular frame  Simpler forms of the instrument were fashioned by Africans in Colonial America, adapted from several African instruments of similar design. Occupied a central place in African American traditional music, then became popular in the minstrel shows of the 19th century. Slaves influenced early development of country and bluegrass, through the introduction of the banjo

The Banjo Original African instruments did not have tuning or frets; those notions came from the Caribbean in the 17th century Instruments in many other countries throughout the 15th and 16th centuries were very similar to the banjo, but were derived from the lute In the 1830s, Joel Sweeney was the first white man to play the banjo on stage

The Banjo Banjos usually have a wooden rim with a tightened animal skin or synthetic head, like a drum Some banjos have resonator plates on the back, to give the instrument more volume Two techniques are used to play the Banjo- drones and rolls Drones play quick single melody notes Rolls play accompaniment chord patterns

Banjo Videos Banjo Asian Big Band