The acoustic guitar is an instrument which produces
sound via the vibration of the strings through the hollow body, sound
board and sound hole. String vibration can be achieved by using a
flatpick, usually made of plastic, or by simply strumming the strings
with the thumb. One can pick individual notes or strike a combination
of strings at once to produce a chord.
A more intricate method is
fingerpicking, a technique which uses the thumb and tips of the fingers
to strike individual strings. Fingertips, fingernails (which are
usually grown longer for this specific purpose), fingerpicks which are
attached to the thumb and fingers can all be used for fingerpick guitar
playing.
The acoustic guitar is a very portable instrument.
Lightweight and easily transportable it makes the perfect musical
companion. The lowest tone string, the string you would strike first in
a chord with a downward pick motion, is called the sixth string and
each subsequent string is the fifth, fourth, third, second and first,
respectively. Standard tuning is as follows:
Sixth string - low E
Fifth string - A
Fourth string - D
Third string - G
Second string - B
First string - E
The neck of an acoustic guitar is made up of
the fretboard, frets, tuners and headstock. The neck also contains a
truss rod which is a metal rod that runs through the inside of the
neck. This rod works to keep the neck from succumbing to the tremendous
tension created by the strings. The fretboard (fingerboard), with
spacing created by frets, is where a guitarist depresses strings to
create notes and chords.
The strings used on acoustic guitars are
made of steel, nickel or bronze alloys. One end is ball shaped. This
end is dropped into the appropriate hole at the bridge and generally a
bridge pin is pushed into the hole to keep the ball end in place. The
string is then run up the fretboard and attached to the appropriate
machine tuner. The machine tuner is turned to wind the string around
the tuner post until all slack is taken up and the proper tone
achieved. There's a neat little plastic winder tool you can buy which
makes turning the machine heads a lot quicker and easier.
The
tone from a new set of strings is beautifully bright. Depending on how
much you play and how much finger oil and sweat are transferred to the
strings oxidation will inevitably set in and the strings will lose that
brightness of tone. When that happens just put on a new set of strings.
Keep
in mind that when you first start playing an acoustic steel string
guitar your fingers will hurt. You must practice on a regular basis to
toughen up your fingertips. There's no shortcut unfortunately. So there
you have it, a little bit of information on the steel string acoustic
guitar.
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