Instrument Petting Zoo – Guitar

Cutie Pie received a guitar this past winter. He loves it, but we think Sweet Pea loves it more as he’s the one always playing it.

Although the guitar is not found in an orchestra, it is still a stringed instrument and very popular, I mean we’ve all heard one, right? But did you know there are a few different kinds of guitars? Electric guitars are most often heard on the radio, classical guitars are most often heard in recital halls, and there are also double-neck guitars, twelve string guitars, ukuleles, and steel guitars to name a few.

Basically, a guitar is a box with a neck and strings. The strings can be either nylon or steel. An acoustic guitar can be played with either a plectrum or with the fingers alone, but often has nylon strings. A steel string guitar can be found played more horizontal (think table-top) with a bar over the strings on the neck. This produces an altogether different sound than the acoustic guitar. The box portion of the guitar is usually hollow and makes the music resonate. If you have ever played a guitar you will no doubt have felt the vibration as the instrument was played.

Of course, the bass guitar is something that has been in our house for a long time since Hubby is a string bass player and the two generally go hand in hand. The bass guitar usually has a solid body as it is an amplified instrument (plugged into a speaker). The strings on a bass guitar are thicker, making the sound lower and harder to hear, which is one reason this instrument is generally amplified. We also have a slide guitar, but it is in need of repair, so we haven’t let the kiddos see it yet.

I encourage you and your kiddos to go to a music store and explore. Many workers in a music store will allow you to try instruments and ask questions.

Tomorrow I’ll share how to make a simple guitar and a couple of links to more complex guitars to make!