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102-410: For a right-handed player, the traditional classical guitar has 12 frets clear of the body and is properly held up by the left leg, so that the hand that plucks or strums the strings does so near the back of the sound hole (this is called the classical position). However, the right-hand may move closer to the fretboard to achieve different tonal qualities. The player typically holds the left leg higher by

204-484: A Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 1986. Segovia's first wife was Adelaida Portillo (marriage in 1918). Segovia's second wife (marriage in 1935) was the pianist Paquita Madriguera , who also made some piano roll recordings. From 1944, he maintained a romantic relationship with Brazilian singer and guitarist Olga Praguer Coelho , which was to last for over a decade. In 1962 Segovia married Emilia Magdalena Corral Sancho. They had one son, Carlos Andrés Segovia ,

306-433: A Herman Li signature, which includes four scalloped frets (21st to 24th). Karl Sanders of the death metal band Nile also uses several guitars with scalloped fingerboards, including several Deans , and KxK Guitars. In the 1970s, English guitarist John McLaughlin played with Shakti , along with Indian violinist L. Shankar , using an acoustic guitar with a fully scalloped fretboard. He also used an electric guitar with

408-400: A fretboard on fretted instruments) is an important component of most stringed instruments . It is a thin, long strip of material, usually wood, that is laminated to the front of the neck of an instrument. The strings run over the fingerboard, between the nut and bridge . To play the instrument, a musician presses strings down to the fingerboard to change the vibrating length, changing

510-454: A Gentleman ) to Segovia. Segovia won the 1958 Grammy Award for Best Classical Performance, Instrumentalist for his recording Segovia Golden Jubilee . John W. Duarte dedicated his English Suite Op. 31 to Segovia and his wife, Emilia Magdalena del Corral Sancho, on the occasion of their marriage in 1962. Segovia told the composer "You will be astonished at the success it will have". In recognition of his contributions to music and

612-400: A broadened body, increased waist curve, thinned belly, and improved internal bracing. The modern classical guitar replaced an older form for the accompaniment of song and dance called flamenco , and a modified version, known as the flamenco guitar , was created. The fingerstyle is used fervently on the modern classical guitar. The thumb traditionally plucks the bass – or root note – whereas

714-400: A deeply scalloped electric guitar for Vietnamese microtonal playing techniques. Some types of scalloping are: Note that filing away wood to scallop a fingerboard also affects inlays —so intricately inlaid fingerboards are not usually good candidates for scalloping. Simple dot or block inlays survive the procedure moderately well. The "scooped out" nature of scalloped fingerboards creates

816-412: A different bracing (fan-bracing) from that used in earlier guitars (they had ladder-bracing); and a different voicing was used by the luthier. There is a historical parallel between musical styles (baroque, classical, romantic, flamenco, jazz) and the style of "sound aesthetic" of the musical instruments used, for example: Robert de Visée played a baroque guitar with a very different sound aesthetic from

918-451: A double-course guitar. The authenticity of guitars allegedly produced before the 1790s is often in question. This also corresponds to when Moretti's 6-string method appeared, in 1792. The modern classical guitar was developed in the 19th century by Antonio de Torres Jurado , Ignacio Fleta , Hermann Hauser Sr. , and Robert Bouchet. The Spanish luthier and player Antonio de Torres gave the modern classical guitar its definitive form, with

1020-499: A four-course instrument illustrated on its title page – was published in partnership with Michel Fedenzat, and among other music, they published six books of tablature by lutenist Albert de Rippe (who was very likely Guillaume's teacher). The written history of the classical guitar can be traced back to the early 16th century with the development of the vihuela in Spain. While the lute was then becoming popular in other parts of Europe,

1122-514: A heart attack at the age of 94. He is buried at Casa Museo Andrés Segovia in Linares. The right hand is responsible for the guitar's musical sound and so in examining the technique, the way the right hand is placed in relation to the strings is most important. For several years, it was thought among the guitar community that Segovia plucked the strings with a combination of fingertip and nail, as stated by Christopher Parkening , but Segovia plucked

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1224-533: A high sound and is rather large to hold. Few have survived and most of what is known today come from diagrams and paintings. The earliest extant six-string guitar is believed to have been built in 1779 by Gaetano Vinaccia (1759 – after 1831) in Naples , Italy ; however, the date on the label is a little ambiguous. The Vinaccia family of luthiers is known for developing the mandolin . This guitar has been examined and does not show tell-tale signs of modifications from

1326-489: A large body of edited works and transcriptions for classical guitar, including several transcriptions of Bach, particularly an extraordinarily-demanding classical guitar transcription of the Chaconne from the 2nd Partita for Violin (BWV 1004) . During his lifetime, guitarists were eager to claim association with Segovia, who suggested that he had not actually taught as many students as has been claimed. He once said, "All over

1428-559: A large concert hall. After World War II, Segovia became among the first to endorse nylon strings , instead of catgut strings. That advancement allowed for greater tonal stability and was the final ingredient in the standardization of the instrument. Segovia's repertoire consisted of three principal pillars: first, contemporary works, including concertos and sonatas, usually specifically written for Segovia himself by composers with whom he forged working relationships, notably Federico Moreno Torroba , Federico Mompou , and Joaquín Rodrigo ,

1530-399: A number of changes in the way the guitar plays. Most obvious is that the fingertip only contacts the string, not the fingerboard itself, creating less friction for bends and vibratos , which results in more overall control while playing. It also results in more weight-relief and less "neck-dive". However, one of the main disadvantages is that many players, especially new players, may find

1632-691: A number of guitar works for Segovia, among them Cavatina, which won a prize at the Siena International Composition contest in 1952. In 1921, he also met Agustín Barrios in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Segovia was impressed by Barrios' Bach-inspired and arguably magnum opus La Catedral . At Granada in 1922, he became associated with the Concurso de Cante Jondo , promoted by the Spanish composer Manuel de Falla . The aim of

1734-401: A scalloped fingerboard too different, and difficult to play easily, especially if the strings are of a lighter gauge or the player tends to press too hard. It takes practice to play in tune on a scalloped fingerboard. The player must first become accustomed to not actually touching the fingerboard. Playing a scalloped fingerboard requires a careful application of pressure: Too much pressure raises

1836-489: A scalloped fretboard in studio and live performances from 1978 to 1979. McLaughlin explained that this feature increased the ease and range of string bends by eliminating friction between the finger and fretboard. The scalloped fretboard also facilitates the rapid, microtonal variation that is important in Indian music, as exemplified by classical Indian Sitar music. Without scallops, the guitarist must play microtones by sliding

1938-402: A smooth fingerboard; unfrettable strings run inside the frets, while frettable ones run outside. The fret arches are sufficiently high that the exterior strings can be fretted without the finger making contact with the interior strings. Frets may be marked by inlays to make navigating the fingerboard easier. On six-string guitars and bass guitars , markers are typically single smallish dots on

2040-452: A time when the guitar's fortunes as a concert instrument were being revived, largely through the efforts of Miguel Llobet . It was in that changing milieu that Segovia, thanks to his strength of personality and artistry, coupled with developments in recording and broadcasting, succeeded in making the guitar more popular again. In 1921 in Paris, Segovia met Alexandre Tansman , who later wrote

2142-544: A variety of databases documenting modern guitar works such as Sheer Pluck and others. The evolution of the classical guitar and its repertoire spans more than four centuries. It has a history that was shaped by contributions from earlier instruments, such as the lute, the vihuela, and the baroque guitar. The last guitarist to follow in Segovia's footsteps was Julian Bream and Julian Bream will be 73 years old on July 15th 2006. Miguel Llobet, Andrés Segovia and Julian Bream are

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2244-471: A variety of tones, but this finger-picking style also makes the instrument harder to learn than a standard acoustic guitar's strumming technique. In guitar scores the five fingers of the right-hand (which pluck the strings) are designated by the first letter of their Spanish names namely p = thumb ( pulgar ), i = index finger ( índice ), m = middle finger ( mayor ), a = ring finger ( anular ), c = little finger or pinky ( meñique/chiquito ) The four fingers of

2346-421: Is impossible to play a historically informed de Visee or Corbetta (baroque guitarist-composers) on a modern classical guitar. The reason is that the baroque guitar used courses, which are two strings close together (in unison), that are plucked together. This gives baroque guitars an unmistakable sound characteristic and tonal texture that is an integral part of an interpretation. Additionally, the sound aesthetic of

2448-399: Is my constant companion in all my travels". He also said, on another occasion: "I do not like this instrument, but regard it simply as a way of helping me to think." The guitarist and composer Francisco Tárrega (November 21, 1852 – December 15, 1909) was one of the great guitar virtuosos and teachers and is considered the father of modern classical guitar playing. As a professor of guitar at

2550-411: Is notable for specifying the thumb to fret bass notes on the sixth string, notated with an up arrowhead (⌃). Scores (contrary to tablatures ) do not systematically indicate the string to pluck (though the choice is usually obvious). When indicating the string is useful, the score uses the numbers 1 to 6 inside circles (highest-pitch sting to lowest). Fretboard The fingerboard (also known as

2652-520: Is remembered for his expressive performances: his wide palette of tone, and his distinctive musical personality, phrasing and style. Segovia was born on 21 February 1893 in Linares, Jaén . He was sent at a very young age to live with his uncle Eduardo and aunt María. Eduardo arranged for Segovia's first music lessons with a violin teacher after he had recognised that Segovia had an aptitude for music. That proved to be an unhappy introduction to music for

2754-614: Is today mainly associated with the modern classical guitar design, there is an increasing interest in early guitars; and understanding the link between historical repertoire and the particular period guitar that was originally used to perform this repertoire. The musicologist and author Graham Wade writes: Nowadays it is customary to play this repertoire on reproductions of instruments authentically modelled on concepts of musicological research with appropriate adjustments to techniques and overall interpretation. Thus over recent decades we have become accustomed to specialist artists with expertise in

2856-700: The Contraguitar ). This was localized in Germany and Austria and became unfashionable again. On the other hand, Segovia was playing concerts around the world, popularizing modern classical guitar—and, in the 1920s, Spanish romantic-modern style with guitar works by Moreno Torroba, de Falla, etc. The 19th-century classical guitarist Francisco Tárrega first popularized the Torres design as a classical solo instrument. However, some maintain that Segovia's influence led to its domination over other designs. Factories around

2958-874: The Viennese violinist who privately played the guitar, persuaded Francis Charles Coppicus from the Metropolitan Musical Bureau to present the guitarist in New York. After Segovia's debut tour in the US in 1928 the Brazilian composer Heitor Villa-Lobos composed his now well-known Twelve Études (Portuguese: Doze estudos ; French: Douze études ; German: Zwölf Studien ) and later dedicated them to Segovia. Their relationship proved to be lasting, and Villa-Lobos continued to write for Segovia. He also transcribed numerous classical pieces himself and revived

3060-514: The elliptical shape of the vibrating strings.) On bowed string instruments, (such as violin , viola , cello , and double bass ), the fingerboard is usually made of ebony , rosewood or other hardwood . On some guitars , a maple neck and fingerboard are made from one piece of wood. A few modern luthiers have used lightweight, non-wood materials such as carbon-fiber in their fingerboards. Various impregnated wood materials are being used for fingerboards in fretted instruments. Typically,

3162-437: The pitch . This is called stopping the strings. Depending on the instrument and the style of music, the musician may pluck, strum or bow one or more strings with the hand that is not fretting the notes. On some instruments, notes can be sounded by the fretting hand alone, such as with hammer ons , an electric guitar technique. The word "fingerboard" in other languages sometimes occurs in musical directions. In particular,

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3264-502: The strings only, and do not touch the fingerboard. The process of "scalloping" a fingerboard well, if done by hand, is tedious work, usually done by careful filing of wood between the frets, and requires a large investment of time. Consequently, it is relatively expensive to have done. Generally, luthiers scallop fingerboards with a special milling machine that has 22 or 24 (according to neck dimensions and number of frets) wood cutting tools. This equipment saves time and adds precision to

3366-461: The tanbur and setar are distantly related to the European guitar, as they all derive ultimately from the same ancient origins, but by very different historical routes and influences. Gitterns called "guitars" were already in use since the 13th century, but their construction and tuning were different from modern guitars. The time where the most changes were made to the guitar was in the 1500s to

3468-453: The "classicising" Concurso was to preserve flamenco in its purity from being distorted by modern popular music. Segovia had already developed as a fine tocador of flamenco guitar , yet his direction was now classical. Invited to open the Concurso held at the Alhambra , he played Homenaje a Debussy by Falla. In 1923, Segovia visited Mexico for the first time. There Manuel Ponce

3570-498: The 1800s. Alonso de Mudarra 's book Tres Libros de Música , published in Spain in 1546, contains the earliest known written pieces for a four-course guitarra. This four-course "guitar" was popular in France, Spain, and Italy. In France this instrument gained popularity among aristocrats. A considerable volume of music was published in Paris from the 1550s to the 1570s: Simon Gorlier 's Le Troysième Livre... mis en tablature de Guiterne

3672-426: The G string, and between 0.5 mm and zero scoop under the E, which is usually a solid steel core on modern instruments. On guitars, specifically steel-string and electric guitars, the relief (or "dip") is adjustable by altering the tension on the steel truss rod inside the neck. Relaxing the truss rod allows the pull of the strings to increase the dip, and vice versa. Classical guitars do not need truss rods due to

3774-650: The Mexican composer Manuel Ponce , the Italian composer Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco , and the great Brazilian composer Heitor Villa-Lobos ; second, transcriptions, usually made by Segovia himself, of classical works originally written for other instruments (e.g., lute, harpsichord, piano, violin, cello) by Johann Sebastian Bach , Isaac Albéniz , Enrique Granados , and many other prominent composers; third, traditional classical guitar works by composers such as Fernando Sor and Francisco Tárrega . Segovia's influence enlarged

3876-516: The Spaniards did not take to it well because of its association with the Moors. Instead, the lute-like vihuela appeared with two more strings that gave it more range and complexity. In its most developed form, the vihuela was a guitar-like instrument with six double strings made of gut, tuned like a modern classical guitar with the exception of the third string, which was tuned half a step lower. It has

3978-478: The United States and in other concerts up to 1933. Segovia ordered a further guitar from Hauser and after receiving it passed on the 1928 model to his American representative and close friend Sophocles Papas , who in his turn gave it to his student, the famous jazz and classical guitarist Charlie Byrd , who used it on several records. Segovia's first American tour was arranged in 1928 when Fritz Kreisler ,

4080-490: The acoustically lower (d-A-E in standard tuning) strings. A guitar family tree may be identified. The flamenco guitar derives from the modern classical, but has differences in material, construction and sound. The classical guitar has a long history and one is able to distinguish various: Both instrument and repertoire can be viewed from a combination of various perspectives: Historical (chronological period of time) Geographical Cultural While "classical guitar"

4182-496: The art of vihuela (a 16th-century type of guitar popular in Spain), lute, Baroque guitar, 19th-century guitar, etc. Different types of guitars have different sound aesthetics, e.g. different colour-spectrum characteristics (the way the sound energy is spread in the fundamental frequency and the overtones ), different response, etc. These differences are due to differences in construction; for example, modern classical guitars usually use

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4284-451: The arts, Segovia was ennobled on 24 June 1981 by King Juan Carlos I , who gave Segovia the hereditary title of Marqués de Salobreña (English: Marquis of Salobreña) in the nobility of Spain . Segovia continued performing into his old age, and lived in semi-retirement during his seventies and eighties on the Costa del Sol . Two films were made of his life and work, one when he was 75 and

4386-435: The baroque guitar (with its strong overtone presence) is very different from modern classical type guitars, as is shown below. Today's use of Torres and post-Torres type guitars for repertoire of all periods is sometimes critically viewed: Torres and post-Torres style modern guitars (with their fan-bracing and design) have a thick and strong tone, very suitable for modern-era repertoire. However, they are considered to emphasize

4488-425: The beginning of the 20th century, the older forms eventually fell away. Some attribute this to the popularity of Segovia , considering him "the catalyst for change toward the Spanish design and the so-called 'modern' school in the 1920s and beyond." The styles of music performed on ladder-braced guitars were becoming unfashionable—and, e.g., in Germany, more musicians were turning towards folk music (Schrammel-music and

4590-409: The centre of the board. Usually the scoop is slightly greater on the bass side, less on the treble side of the fingerboard. Different string materials or different styles of playing may call for differing amounts of scoop. Nylon or gut strings require the most, and solid steel-core strings the least. A typical full-size (4/4) violin with synthetic-core G, D, and A strings shows 0.75 mm of scoop under

4692-403: The classical guitar, John Williams , has said that Segovia bullied students into playing only his style and stifled the development of their own styles. Williams has also said that Segovia was dismissive of music that did not have what Segovia considered the correct classical origins, such as South American music with popular roots. He was also critical of Williams' work with the group Sky for

4794-408: The conservatories of Madrid and Barcelona, he defined many elements of the modern classical technique and elevated the importance of the guitar in the classical music tradition. At the beginning of the 1920s, Andrés Segovia popularized the guitar with tours and early phonograph recordings. Segovia collaborated with the composers Federico Moreno Torroba and Joaquín Turina with the aim of extending

4896-432: The density of the material. Not having frets carefully and properly aligned with the fingerboard can cause severe intonation issues and constant detuning. The ultimate way of determining the source of a buzz and detuning problem is to measure the levelness of the frets. A straightedge positioned on the neck in the "lie" of one of the strings should show nearly level frets. (There should be a slight relief to compensate for

4998-407: The direction sul tasto (Ital., also sulla tastiera , Fr. sur la touche , G. am Griffbrett ) for bowed string instruments to play with the bow above the fingerboard. This reduces the prominence of upper harmonics , giving a more ethereal tone. A fingerboard may be fretted , having raised strips of hard material perpendicular to the strings, which the player presses the strings against to stop

5100-596: The discouragement of his family, who wanted him to become a lawyer, and criticism by some of Tárrega's pupils for his idiosyncratic technique, he continued to pursue his studies of the guitar diligently. He played again in Madrid in 1912, at the Paris Conservatory in 1915 and in Barcelona in 1916 and made a successful tour of South America in 1919. Segovia's arrival on the international stage coincided with

5202-411: The edge of the fingerboard for easy viewing. Over time, strings wear frets down, which can cause buzzing and deaden the sound. Fixing this occasionally requires replacing the frets—but more often they just need "dressing". In fret dressing, a luthier levels and polishes the frets, and crowns (carefully rounds and shapes) the ends and edges. Stainless steel guitar frets may never need dressing, because of

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5304-402: The finger is of little consequence because of the sustained stimulation of the strings by the bow. Unfretted fingerboards allow a musician more control over subtle changes in pitch than fretted boards, but are generally considered harder to master. Fingerboards may also be, though uncommon, a hybrid of these two. Such a construction is seen on the sitar , where arched frets attach at the edges of

5406-479: The fingerboard and on its side that indicate the 3rd, 5th, 7th and 9th frets—and the octaves of those positions higher up the neck. A double dot or some other variation marks the 12th fret and 24th frets. Variations on the standard dot shape can make a guitar more distinctive. Position markers are sometimes made luminescent (through using paint, or illuminated with light emitting diodes ) to make them more visible on stage. Position markers are also sometimes repeated on

5508-523: The fingerboard has a smaller radius to ease in forming chords. The bridge end of the fingerboard has a larger radius to make soloing more comfortable and prevent "noting out" ("fretting out"), in which a string comes in contact with a higher fret during bends . A Brief History Of Discovering The Conical Fingerboard in 1978 by luthier Denny Rauen can be found in American Lutherie #8/Winter 1986 and String Instrument Craftsman May/June 1988 under

5610-405: The fingerboard is a long plank with a rectangular profile. On a guitar, mandolin, ukulele, or similar plucked instrument, the fingerboard appears flat and wide but may be slightly curved to form a cylindrical or conical surface of relatively large radius compared to the fingerboard width. The radius quoted in the specification of a string instrument is the radius of curvature of the fingerboard at

5712-400: The fingers ring the melody and its accompanying parts. Often classical guitar technique involves the use of the nails of the right hand to pluck the notes. Noted players were: Francisco Tárrega , Emilio Pujol , Andrés Segovia , Julian Bream , Agustín Barrios , and John Williams (guitarist) . The modern classical guitar is usually played in a seated position, with the instrument resting on

5814-433: The fingertip but also with the outer, fingernail side. This was also used in a technique of the vihuela called dedillo which has recently begun to be introduced on the classical guitar. Some modern guitarists, such as Štěpán Rak and Kazuhito Yamashita , use the little finger independently, compensating for the little finger's shortness by maintaining an extremely long fingernail. Rak and Yamashita have also generalized

5916-592: The following four categories: Notes: Classical guitars, some 12-string guitars, banjos, dobros, pedal steel, and a few steel-stringed acoustic guitars have flat fingerboards. Almost all other guitars have at least some curvature. However, some recent five and six string electric basses have flat fingerboards. For guitars, some players feel that smaller radii (7.25–10") are more comfortable for chord and rhythm playing, while larger radii (12"-16" and up to flat) are better for fast soloing. Conical and compound radius fingerboards try to merge both these features. The nut end of

6018-545: The fundamental too heavily (at the expense of overtone partials) for earlier repertoire (Classical/Romantic: Carulli, Sor, Giuliani, Mertz, ...; Baroque: de Visee, ...; etc.). "Andrés Segovia presented the Spanish guitar as a versatile model for all playing styles" to the extent, that still today, "many guitarists have tunnel-vision of the world of the guitar, coming from the modern Segovia tradition". While fan-braced modern classical Torres and post-Torres style instruments coexisted with traditional ladder-braced guitars at

6120-625: The guitar and gave master classes throughout his career. His most famous master classes took place at Música en Compostela , in the Spanish city of Santiago de Compostela . Segovia also taught at the Accademia Musicale Chigiana in Siena for numerous years, where he was aided by Alirio Díaz . His teaching style is a source of controversy among some of his former students, who considered it to be dogmatically authoritarian. One of Segovia's most celebrated former students of

6222-413: The guitar had numerous composers and performers including: Hector Berlioz studied the guitar as a teenager; Franz Schubert owned at least two and wrote for the instrument; and Ludwig van Beethoven , after hearing Giuliani play, commented the instrument was "a miniature orchestra in itself". Niccolò Paganini was also a guitar virtuoso and composer. He once wrote: "I love the guitar for its harmony; it

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6324-683: The guitar merely as a limited if sonorous parlour instrument. In Linares , the Segovia Museum "Fundación Andrés Segovia" was established in May 1995, and Linares (Segovia's birthplace) also has a bronze statue in his honour, created by Julio López Hernández and unveiled on 25 May 1984. Segovia influenced a generation of classical guitarists who built on his technique and musical sensibility, including Christopher Parkening , Julian Bream , John Williams and Oscar Ghiglia , all of whom have acknowledged their debt to him. Further, Segovia left behind

6426-431: The guitar repertoire with new music. Segovia's tour of South America revitalized public interest in the guitar and helped the guitar music of Manuel Ponce and Heitor Villa-Lobos reach a wider audience. The composers Alexandre Tansman and Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco were commissioned by Segovia to write new pieces for the guitar. Luiz Bonfá popularized Brazilian musical styles such as the newly created Bossa Nova, which

6528-641: The guitar works of Federico Moreno Torroba (1891–1982), such as the Sonatina , which was first performed by Segovia in Paris in 1925. Segovia was selective and performed only works with which he identified personally. He was known to reject atonal works or those that he considered too radical even if they were dedicated to him; he rejected Frank Martin 's Quatre pièces brèves , Darius Milhaud 's Segoviana , etc. Even though rejected by Segovia, all of those works are today published and available. Segovia viewed teaching as vital to his mission of propagating

6630-437: The guitars used by Mauro Giuliani and Luigi Legnani – they used 19th-century guitars. These guitars in turn sound different from the Torres models used by Segovia that are suited for interpretations of romantic-modern works such as Moreno Torroba . When considering the guitar from a historical perspective, the musical instrument used is as important as the musical language and style of the particular period. As an example: It

6732-434: The head nut. Most bowed string instruments use a visibly curved fingerboard, nut and bridge to provide bow clearance for each individual string . The length, width, thickness and density of a fingerboard can affect timbre . Most fingerboards can be fully described by these parameters: Depending on values of radius r and their transition over the length of the fingerboard, all fingerboards usually fit into one of

6834-431: The left hand (which fret the strings) are designated 1 = index, 2 = major, 3 = ring finger, 4 = little finger. 0 designates an open string—a string not stopped by a finger and whose full length thus vibrates when plucked. It is rare to use the left hand thumb in performance, the neck of a classical guitar being too wide for comfort, and normal technique keeps the thumb behind the neck. However Johann Kaspar Mertz, for example,

6936-412: The left lap – and the left foot placed on a footstool. Alternatively – if a footstool is not used – a guitar support can be placed between the guitar and the left lap (the support usually attaches to the instrument's side with suction cups ). (There are of course exceptions, with some performers choosing to hold the instrument another way.) Right-handed players use the fingers of the right hand to pluck

7038-470: The little finger semi-independently in the Flamenco four-finger rasgueado , that rapid strumming of the string by the fingers in reverse order employing the back of the fingernail—a familiar characteristic of Flamenco. Flamenco technique, in the performance of the rasgueado also uses the upstroke of the four fingers and the downstroke of the thumb: the string is hit not only with the inner, fleshy side of

7140-497: The low strings (E, A and D) of the guitar when they were plucked. Segovia created a strong bass sound with his right thumb in spite of his technique, largely because of the flexibility that he had in his thumb, which helped to create a very strong and voluminous sound in the bass notes. Another innovation that separated Segovia from the Tárrega school was the search for the tension in the strings by placing his right hand further to

7242-501: The lower tension of nylon strings but should still exhibit some degree of dip. Andr%C3%A9s Segovia Andrés Segovia Torres, 1st Marquis of Salobreña (21 February 1893 – 2 June 1987) was a Spanish virtuoso classical guitarist. Many professional classical guitarists were either students of Segovia or students of Segovia's students. Segovia's contribution to the modern-romantic repertoire included not only commissions but also his own transcriptions of classical or baroque works. He

7344-484: The original manuscripts or newer publications based on the original manuscripts to compare them with Segovia's published versions to accept or reject Segovia's editorial decisions. Segovia was one of those to whom homage was paid in the 1978 song by Ian Dury and The Blockheads "There Ain't Half Been Some Clever Bastards." Influential rock entertainer Johnny Thunders included a guitar instrumental titled "Illegitimate Son of Segovia" in his album Hurt me . Segovia

7446-607: The other when he was 84. They are available on DVD under the titles Andrés Segovia—in Portrait . His final RCA LP (ARL1-1602), Reveries , was recorded in Madrid in June 1977. In 1984, Segovia was the subject of a 13-part series broadcast on National Public Radio , Segovia! The series was recorded on location in Spain, France and the United States. Hosted by Oscar Brand, the series was produced by Jim Anderson, Robert Malesky and Larry Snitzler. Segovia died on 2 June 1987 in Madrid of

7548-400: The pictorial arts) is a very individual and personal matter. The origins of the modern guitar are not known with certainty. Some believe it is indigenous to Europe, while others think it is an imported instrument. Guitar-like instruments appear in ancient carvings and statues recovered from Egyptian, Sumerian, and Babylonian civilizations. This means that contemporary Iranian instruments such as

7650-508: The pieces transcribed by predecessors like Tárrega. In 1932, Segovia met and befriended the composer Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco in Venice. Since Castelnuovo-Tedesco did not play the guitar, Segovia provided him with guitar compositions (Ponce's Folias variations and Sor's Mozart Variations ), which he could study. Castelnuovo-Tedesco composed a large number of works for the guitar, many of them dedicated to Segovia. The Concerto Op. 99 of 1939

7752-400: The pitch of the fretted note to a sharp note, as during a bend , and too little pressure causes fret buzz . As a result, most guitar players use a traditional fingerboard on their instruments. Fretless bowed-string fingerboards are usually scooped lengthwise in a smooth curve, so that if a straight edge is held next to the board parallel to a string, some daylight shows between them, towards

7854-440: The player to bow single strings. Those of the modern violin family and the double bass are strongly curved, however those of some archaic bowed instruments are flat. Examples of some instruments' fingerboard radius parameters: A fretted fingerboard can be scalloped by "scooping out" the wood between each of the frets to create a shallow "U" shape. The result is a playing surface wherein the players' fingers come into contact with

7956-494: The preface to that work, disparaged Sor as "not among the vigorous talents") as well as compositions written for him, including by Heitor Villa-Lobos, Federico Mompou, and Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco. Many of the latter had been edited by Segovia, working in collaboration with the composer, before they were first published. Because of Segovia's predilection for altering the musical content of his editions to reflect his interpretive preferences, many of today's guitarists prefer to examine

8058-460: The process of scalloping the wood in the neck's radius the same in all fret spaces. Scalloped fingerboards are most commonly used by shred guitarists , most notably Ritchie Blackmore and Yngwie Malmsteen , who have signature models developed with Fender that include scalloped fingerboards. Ibanez JEM series guitars, designed and played by Steve Vai , come standard with the last 4 frets scalloped. In 2008 Ibanez made available their E-Gen model,

8160-564: The repertoire, mainly as a commissioner or dedicatee of new works, as a transcriber, and as a composer with such works as his Estudio sin luz . Segovia's main musical aesthetic preferences were music of the early 20th century (and turn of the century) especially in the Spanish romantic-modern and nationalist style. That is perhaps best typified by Segovia's own work Estudio sin Luz . Many works of that and similar styles were written especially for him and formed part of his core repertoire: particularly

8262-402: The right side. That way, he could obtain colour variation but also an especially strong, round and voluminous sound, which was very helpful for giving concerts in big halls (the technique was later used by Narciso Yepes ). Before Segovia, guitarists from the Tárrega school played the guitar with the hand right over the soundhole and thus created a mellow sound but could not fill the whole space of

8364-451: The same reasons. Segovia can be considered a catalytic figure in granting respectability to the guitar as a serious concert instrument capable of evocativeness and depth of interpretation. Federico Moreno Torroba said, "The musical interpreter who fascinates me the most is Andrés Segovia." He can be credited to have dignified the classical guitar as a legitimate concert instrument before the discerning music public, which had hitherto viewed

8466-569: The self-taught Segovia some lessons but died before they could meet, and Segovia states that his early musical education involved the "double function of professor and pupil in the same body". Segovia's first public performance was in Granada at the age of 16 in 1909. A few years later he played his first professional concert in Madrid , which included works by Francisco Tárrega and his own guitar transcriptions of Johann Sebastian Bach . Despite

8568-523: The six-string early romantic guitar ( c.  1790 – 1880), and the earlier baroque guitars with five courses . The materials and the methods of classical guitar construction may vary, but the typical shape is either modern classical guitar or that historic classical guitar similar to the early romantic guitars of Spain, France and Italy. Classical guitar strings once made of gut are now made of materials such as nylon or fluoropolymers , typically with silver-plated copper fine wire wound about

8670-452: The sound. This has important consequences: Different tone/ timbre (of a single note) can be produced by plucking the string in different manners ( apoyando or tirando ) and in different positions (such as closer and further away from the guitar bridge). For example, plucking an open string will sound brighter than playing the same note(s) on a fretted position (which would have a warmer tone). The instrument's versatility means it can create

8772-639: The string sideways on the fret. Experimental luthier Yuri Landman made an electric guitar for John Schmersal of Enon called the Twister with a partial scalloped neck for only the thin strings (similar to small playground slides ). Some examples of lutes with scalloped fretboards include the South Indian veena and Vietnamized guitar (called đàn ghi-ta , lục huyền cầm , or ghi-ta phím lõm ). The Japanese multi-instrumentalist and experimental musical instrument builder Yuichi Onoue has also made

8874-444: The strings only with the nails. When asked which technique he used, he replied that it was "the only one there is: nails. Because they bring timbre differences and colour variation and give sonorous volume to the guitar." His right hand was placed so that the nails were perpendicular to the strings. That way, the nail alone would press the string. At the same time, it was thought that was the only way to avoid unpleasant noise coming from

8976-471: The strings, with the thumb plucking from the top of a string downwards (downstroke) and the other fingers plucking from the bottom of the string upwards (upstroke). The little finger in classical technique as it evolved in the 20th century is used only to ride along with the ring finger without striking the strings and to thus physiologically facilitate the ring finger's motion. In contrast, Flamenco technique, and classical compositions evoking Flamenco, employ

9078-485: The strings. On modern guitars, frets are typically made of metal. Frets let the player stop the string consistently in the same place, which enables the musician to play notes with the correct intonation . As well, frets do not dampen string vibrations as much as fingers alone on an unfretted fingerboard. Frets may be fixed, as on a guitar or mandolin , or movable, as on a lute . Fingerboards may also be unfretted, as they usually are on bowed instruments, where damping by

9180-421: The three performer personalities of the 20th century. Do not understand me wrong, we have many guitarists today that are very excellent performers, but none with such a distinct personality in their tone and style as Llobet, Segovia and Bream. In all instrumental areas, not just the guitar, there is a lack of individualism with a strong tendency to conformity. This I find very unfortunate since art (music, theatre or

9282-407: The title "Multi-Radius Fingerboards". This special radiusing is a standard on many of Denny's custom-built guitars and refret work beginning in 1978. Denny Rauen's articles on the "Multi Radius Fingerboard" are the first published documents on using a conical fingerboard to improve string bending while retaining comfortable chording. Bowed string instruments usually have curved fingerboards, to allow

9384-543: The use of a foot rest . The modern steel string guitar, on the other hand, usually has 14 frets clear of the body (see Dreadnought ) and is commonly held with a strap around the neck and shoulder. The phrase "classical guitar" may refer to either of two concepts other than the instrument itself: The term modern classical guitar sometimes distinguishes the classical guitar from older forms of guitar, which are in their broadest sense also called classical , or more specifically, early guitars . Examples of early guitars include

9486-494: The use of the upstroke of the four fingers and the downstroke of the thumb (the same technique as in the rasgueado of the Flamenco : as explained above the string is hit not only with the inner, fleshy side of the fingertip but also with the outer, fingernail side) both as a free stroke and as a rest stroke. As with other plucked instruments (such as the lute), the musician directly touches the strings (usually plucking) to produce

9588-405: The world I have 'pupils' I have never met." His editions of works originally written for guitar include newly-fingered and occasionally-revised versions of works from the standard repertoire (most famously, his edition of a selection of twenty estudios by Fernando Sor , the "cornerstone" of every serious student's technique since its publication in 1945 although somewhat ironically, Segovia, in

9690-605: The world began producing them in large numbers. Composers of the Renaissance period who wrote for four-course guitar include Alonso Mudarra , Miguel de Fuenllana , Adrian Le Roy , Grégoire Brayssing  [ fr ] , Guillaume de Morlaye , and Simon Gorlier  [ fr ] . Four-course guitar Some well known composers of the Baroque guitar were Gaspar Sanz , Robert de Visée , Francesco Corbetta and Santiago de Murcia . From approximately 1780 to 1850,

9792-496: The young Segovia because of the teacher's strict methods, and Eduardo stopped the lessons. His uncle decided to move to Granada to allow Segovia to obtain a better education. After arriving in Granada, Segovia recommenced his musical studies. Segovia was aware of flamenco during his formative years as a musician but stated that he "did not have a taste" for the form and chose instead the works of Fernando Sor , Francisco Tárrega , and other classical composers. Tárrega agreed to give

9894-565: Was awarded many prizes and honours, including doctorates honoris causa , from ten universities. On 24 June 1981, he was ennobled by King Juan Carlos I , who gave Segovia the hereditary title of Marqués de Salobreña (English: Marquis of Salobreña) in the nobility of Spain in recognition of his contributions to music and the arts. He received the Danish Sonning Award in 1974, the Ernst von Siemens Music Prize in 1985, and

9996-531: Was published in 1551. In 1551 Adrian Le Roy also published his Premier Livre de Tablature de Guiterne, and in the same year he also published Briefve et facile instruction pour apprendre la tablature a bien accorder, conduire, et disposer la main sur la Guiterne. Robert Ballard, Grégoire Brayssing from Augsburg, and Guillaume Morlaye ( c.  1510 – c.  1558 ) significantly contributed to its repertoire. Morlaye's Le Premier Livre de Chansons, Gaillardes, Pavannes, Bransles, Almandes, Fantasies – which has

10098-572: Was so impressed with the concert that he wrote a review in El Universal . Later Ponce went on to write many works for Segovia, including numerous sonatas. In 1924, Segovia, visited the German luthier Hermann Hauser Sr. after Segovia heard some of Hauser's instruments played in a concert in Munich. In 1928, Hauser provided Segovia with one of the guitars, which Segovia used during his tour of

10200-628: Was still performing), John Schneider , Reinbert Evers , Maria Kämmerling , Siegfried Behrend , David Starobin , Mats Scheidegger , Magnus Andersson , etc. This type of repertoire is usually performed by guitarists who have particularly chosen to focus on the avant-garde in their performances. Within the contemporary music scene itself, there are also works which are generally regarded as extreme. These include works such as Brian Ferneyhough 's Kurze Schatten II , Sven-David Sandström 's away from and Rolf Riehm 's Toccata Orpheus etc. which are notorious for their extreme difficulty. There are also

10302-816: Was the first guitar concerto of the 20th century and Castelnuovo-Tedesco's last work in Italy, before he emigrated to the United States. It was premiered by Segovia in Uruguay in 1939. In 1935, he gave his first public performance of Bach's Chaconne , a difficult piece for any instrument. He moved to Montevideo and performed many concerts in South America in the 1930s and the early 1940s. After World War II , Segovia began to record more frequently and performed regular tours of Europe and America and would maintain that schedule for 30 years. In 1954, Joaquín Rodrigo dedicated Fantasía para un gentilhombre ( Fantasy for

10404-696: Was well received by audiences in the USA. The classical guitar repertoire also includes modern contemporary works – sometimes termed "New Music" – such as Elliott Carter 's Changes , Cristóbal Halffter 's Codex I , Luciano Berio 's Sequenza XI , Maurizio Pisati 's Sette Studi , Maurice Ohana 's Si Le Jour Paraît , Sylvano Bussotti 's Rara (eco sierologico) , Ernst Krenek 's Suite für Guitarre allein, Op. 164 , Franco Donatoni 's Algo: Due pezzi per chitarra , Paolo Coggiola's Variazioni Notturne , etc. Performers who are known for including modern repertoire include Jürgen Ruck, Elena Càsoli, Leo Brouwer (when he

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