Acoustic guitars are descendants of stringed instruments that were found in a variety of cultures thousands and thousands of years ago. As civilizations merged and the world became smaller, the guitar began taking on a unified shape and style. Since then, there has been a lineal evolution of several hundreds of years of instruments that can be directly compared to today’s acoustic guitars.

The Medieval Period

During the Medieval Period of European history, there were several different forms of guitars. These guitars had between three and five strings and were much smaller than the guitars we know today. There were variations of these instruments which had pairs of strings, known as courses. The popular guitars of this period were commonly separated into two groupings. The first, the Guitarra Latina was likely developed from Spain, while the Guitarra Morisca was brought to Spain by the Moorish culture.

The Renaissance and Beyond

While in the Middle Ages, the guitar instruments were not terribly popular, being overshadowed by other contemporary instruments, in the Renaissance the guitar began to take a real hold. It was in Italy in 1779 that the first six string guitar was created. Gaetano Vinaccia created this instrument in Naples. Following that, the man known as the “Father of Modern Guitar” made his permanent mark on the course of the guitar and how it would be designed and played.

Antonio de Torres Jurado made many key changes that in essence from the creation of what is known today as the modern classical guitar. Among these changes were the design elements that are recognizable as an acoustic or classical guitar today. The body was made larger and wider to help make sound travel farther and be louder, while the construction was also sturdier, more complete and more technically savvy.

The Acoustic Guitar

The instrument that Antonio de Torres created and made popular was the Classical guitar. The acoustic guitar is commonly misinterpreted as being the same as the Classical guitar. This is not true, there are many key differences in the design of these two separate guitars. The most important of which is that the acoustic guitar has steel strings, while the Classical guitar is strung with nylon strings.

The body was also made larger and sturdier still. The acoustic guitar was much better for performing in larger areas as it was increasingly louder than the Classical guitar; the two guitars also produce different ranges and textures of sounds which various styles of music correspond to.

The acoustic guitar was actually developed in America from European immigrants. The last major development of the acoustic guitar is the electrical-acoustic guitar. These acoustic guitars can be plugged into an amplifier for increased volume or can be left unplugged and played as is.

So next time you pick up an acoustic guitar, remember the history you hold in your hands.

A huge element of choosing an electric guitar when you are in the market for a brand new guitar will depend on your talent range. Gibson guitars are high-end guitars, however, very costly. More expensive than a beginner guitarist might want to spend. One fact you may not know is that Gibson have quite a few completely different brand names underneath its belt, including an awesome beginning electric guitar brand, Epiphone guitars.

Epiphone Guitars look, sound, and feel like their more expensive Gibson brothers. Why do they cost much less? First, Epiphones are made overseas where labor prices are low, while Gibson guitars are crafted in Nashville, TN. Next, Epiphone Les Pauls are made from general mahogany varieties; Gibson guitars use unusual Honduran mahogany. Gibson also employs an intensive finish procedure; Epiphone uses a cheaper catalyzed finish.

Just because Epiphones are crafted overseas, does not essentially mean theyre low quality. For instance, Les Paul pickups are made to Epiphones exacting specs. They are double- dipped in wax and quality- by Epiphone engineers at each stage of development. It’s this attention-to-detail which sets Epiphone apart. And it’s these precise details that bestow the incredibly rich, creamy tone that proves this axe a favourite of rock, jazz, and blues guitarists. Epiphones dedication to music is reflected by a limited lifetime guarantee on all of its models, no matter price.

Here are my personal suggestions for the best Epiphone guitars for beginners.

Epiphone Les Paul Special II
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One of the most reasonably priced Gibson guitars, the Epiphone Les Paul Special II is great for beginners for a lot of factors. For one, it is cheap. You can get the Les Paul Special II for under $199 with no trouble, which is inexpensive. Not only is this axe reasonably priced, it is super versatile also. Whether you are aspire to be a metal player or simply wish to rock with some buddies, this guitar will work for you. Including a mahogany neck and a rosewood fretboard, this guitar not only sounds good, but is beautiful too.

Epiphone Les Paul 100
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The Epiphone Les Paul 100 is the axe you’ll want, if you are beginning to get serious about your music. The mahogany body with maple top delivers classic solid, heavy tone whereas the bolt-on mahogany neck and rosewood fretboard are simple to perform. Features 700T/650R open-coil humbucker pickups and chrome hardware. The Epiphone Les Paul 100 electric guitar features classic Les Paul design and sound. This sincerely is a superb axe for all ranges of guitar playing. It might be a bit costlier than the other guitars in this article ($300). However it’s worth it because you can use it right through your guitar playing profession.

Epiphone G-310 SG
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The G-310 is a bit more expensive than the previous 2 electric guitars, however not by much. Between $199 and $249, this guitar is still groovy for novices but doesn’t sacrifice as much in features. What the G-310 does superior over the previous 2 electric guitars is that it handles both warm and harsh distortion nicely. Like the earlier guitars, the G-310 has a mahogany wood neck and rosewood fretboard, so you’re certainly getting a top quality Gibson guitar with any of the 3 choices.

Epiphone SG Special
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Another electric guitar under $199, Gibsons Epiphone SG-Special guitar is a perfect starter guitar. This electric guitar is a replica of the original Gibson classic SG, so it is a classic guitar. The SG-Special is a standard rock electric guitar, so there are not any special bells and whistles, but it does swagger 2 open-coil humbucking pickups, a rosewood fretboard like the Les Paul Special II, and a ravishing sound for such an reasonably priced guitar. An incredible aspect of the Epiphone SG-Special is that it is available in various different colours, so whatever your persona there is a axe for you.

I would be comfortable with recommend any of these Epiphone guitars to a beginner, though I’d recommend spending a couple of extra dollars to get the G-310 SG or Epiphone Les Paul 100. Starting out you may not notice the difference, however you will quickly grow out of the first two guitars and wish you had the versatility of the Les Paul 100 or G-310.

Sammy Hagar, Latin superstar Luis Fonsi, and Nickelback’s Chad Kroeger show us their App-itude

Nashville, TN (Vocus) March 3, 2010

Gibson Guitar, the world’s premiere musical instrument manufacturer and leader in music technology, is proud to announce the highly anticipated launch of the Gibson Guitar App. This free to download App will be available exclusively for all Apple iPhone and iPod Touch users directly from the Apple App Store 25th February 2010. This is one App every guitarist and fan of Gibson Guitar must own. Over the past two years over 3 Billion Apps have been downloaded around the world, the Gibson Guitar App cements Gibson’s reputation as the industry’s leader in innovation and music technology.

The Gibson Guitar App includes a number of special features, such as a traditional chromatic tuner which starts in “All Notes” mode that tracks whatever is played. Owners of the App can choose a tuning on the “Mode” page so the tuner will only track notes for that particular tuning. Also included is a standard chromatic tuner, a simple tuner which allows less advanced users to tune to Standard tuning Open G, Open D etc by touching the key. For iPhone users, the Gibson headstock inlay will automatically change color indicating if the string is sharp, flat or in tune. For iPod Touch users they can turn the “Play Notes” option on so they can hear the appropriate tuning since they do not have a microphone facility.

The Gibson app also features a standard metronome that allows users to choose a specific BPM or tap the screen three times to automatically set the tempo. Other key features of the app include over 30 chord charts with finger markings to help the user with mastering the chord. For those who prefer to learn new guitar riffs, licks or chord sequences via video tuition can now have that option from their Gibson App. The app will be updated frequently with new video content so users of all guitar ability can improve their technique from the comfort of their home.

For those who want to keep up with everything Gibson Guitar related including the announcement of new products, artist activity, news stories, interesting and factual features, exclusive contests and special events to name a few can now do this via the Gibson.com option. By popular demand the Gibson Guitar App is a multi-purpose and fully interactive guitar application which can be used at home, on the road or in the Studio. It’s a must have for guitarists and music enthusiasts of all ability and style, and best of all its free. Get yours today.

Hi-res images of app graphics available for media upon request.

About Gibson Guitar

Gibson is known worldwide for producing classic models in every major style of fretted instrument, including acoustic and electric guitars, mandolins, and banjos. The Gibson Les Paul guitar is the best selling guitar of all time and bears the name of the late, great Les Paul. Gibson’s HD.6X-PRO Digital Guitar, the Gibson Robot Guitar, Gibson’s Dark Fire and the new Gibson Dusk Tiger represent the biggest advances in electric guitar design in over 70 years. The Gibson Foundation is the philanthropic arm of the Gibson Guitar Corp., and dedicates its time and services to making the place a better world for children through its support of music, education, health and human services. Founded in 1894 in Kalamazo, Michigan , and headquartered in Nashville since 1984, Gibson Guitar Corp.’s family of brands now includes Epiphone, Dobro, Kramer, Steinberger, Tobias, Echoplex, Electar, Flatiron, Slingerland, Valley Arts, Maestro, Oberheim, Baldwin, Sunshine Piano, Take Anywhere Technology, J&C Fischer, Chickering, Hamilton, and Wurlitzer. Visit Gibson’s website at www.gibson.com .

About Learn & Master Guitar

Learn & Master Guitar is produced by Legacy Learning Systems, Inc., the world leader in video instruction for music and the arts. Its renowned Learn & Masterseries provides the most comprehensive multi-media courses available anywhere for learning guitar, drums, piano, ballroom dance and painting, each containing between 17 and 25 instructional DVDs and CDs for up to two year’s worth of instructional content per course. For additional information on the innovative company that has made truly comprehensive music and arts training available in the home for the first time, visit www.LearnAndMaster.com .

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While this can be a challenge, taking the time to find a good program will benefit you a lot more than taking in-store guitar lessons.Gibson Electric Guitars You just have to know what to look for and that’s what I’m going to help you with in this article.

One of the first things you need to decide before you start looking for online guitar courses, is what type of lessons you want and what kind of guitar/style you want to play. Do you want to learn acoustic guitar or electric? Do you want to play rock, country, blues, metal, jazz, bluegrass, pop etc? Maybe you want to develop your acoustic fingerpicking style or maybe you want to play shred solos on electric guitar. These are some things you should think about before you even consider signing up for online guitar lessons.

The majority of people start out learning guitar on an acoustic, so lets just say, for this articles purposes that you are looking for acoustic guitar lessons online. Here are some tips for finding an acoustic guitar course online that will serve your needs:

1. Make sure that the person teaching the lessons or the course is qualified. Usually the company will make a point of pointing out the qualifications of their instructors on their site, but if not, make sure you email them before you sign up and ask. Do their instructors have degrees in music? How many have experience actually playing in bands and how long have they played guitar for? Do any of them teach music in high schools or colleges? experience is essential and you definitely do not want to be taking acoustic guitar lessons from an inadequate instructor.

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2. Make a note of how they teach their lessons. The quality programs will use a combination of audio, video, text, pictures and guitar tab. This way they have all their bases covered and will appeal to a wide range of learners, whether your a visual learner or a theoretical learner. If you’re a learner that needs to see it written down you don’t want to be stuck learning with just audio and video. Making sure that the course has the right learning materials for you will let you get the most out of your acoustic guitar lessons.

3. Make sure the acoustic guitar lessons that you sign up for has a “Money Back Guarantee”. The last thing you want is to purchase a course, not be satisfied with the quality and then be out or . Most of the top quality online guitar courses will have a 60 day money back guarantee so there is no risk for you.

So in conclusion, if you take acoustic guitar lessons online, you will need to be diligent and find a program that suits you.

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