Who Invented the Guitar?

Of all the musical instruments in existence, the guitar is the most heavily used. It is not, by any means, the most sophisticated or difficult instrument to learn, but the range of sounds it is capable of creating makes it ideal for the popular music of today. The inventor of the guitar could never have dreamed that his contrivance would endure for so long.

Time Frame

The guitar was invented, in its earliest stage, in 1779 by a Neapolitan named Gaetano Vinaccia. It was a derivative of the mandolin, which the Vinaccia family was renowned for making.

History

The guitar continued to evolve into its modern prototype when Antonio Torres Jurado of Seville, Spain began to make his own amendments to the instrument in the 1850s. As a result, the guitar is frequently associated with the music of Spain.

Features

A common guitar possesses six strings and a fretted neck. An acoustic guitar has a body that is hollow and large in girth. Some electric guitars have a hollowed out bodies, in which case they are called archtops.

Later Modifications

Jurado established the current dimensions seen on the majority of guitars today. In the twentieth century, the world of guitars was forever changed by George Beauchamp, who patented the electric guitar in 1936.

Significance

The invention of the guitar has made some of the greatest music possible. Without Gaetano Vinaccia's original, mandolinesque prototype, the melodies of some of the most influential songs might never have existed---the acoustic simplicity of The Beatles' "Blackbird" or the forceful, electric riffs of Jimi Hendrix's "Purple Haze".

Resources

• An Abridged History of the Guitar