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The Guitar: Tracing the Grain Back to the Tree
by Chris Gibson Andrew WarrenGuitars inspire cult-like devotion: an aficionado can tell you precisely when and where their favorite instrument was made, the wood it is made from, and that wood’s unique effect on the instrument’s sound. In The Guitar, Chris Gibson and Andrew Warren follow that fascination around the globe as they trace guitars all the way back to the tree. The authors take us to guitar factories, port cities, log booms, remote sawmills, Indigenous lands, and distant rainforests, on a quest for behind-the-scenes stories and insights into how guitars are made, where the much-cherished guitar timbers ultimately come from, and the people and skills that craft those timbers along the way. Gibson and Warren interview hundreds of people to give us a first-hand account of the ins and outs of production methods, timber milling, and forest custodianship in diverse corners of the world, including the Pacific Northwest, Madagascar, Spain, Brazil, Germany, Japan, China, Hawaii, and Australia. They unlock surprising insights into longer arcs of world history: on the human exploitation of nature, colonialism, industrial capitalism, cultural tensions, and seismic upheavals. But the authors also strike a hopeful note, offering a parable of wider resonance—of the incredible but underappreciated skill and care that goes into growing forests and felling trees, milling timber, and making enchanting musical instruments, set against the human tendency to reform our use (and abuse) of natural resources only when it may be too late. The Guitar promises to resonate with anyone who has ever fallen in love with a guitar.
Guitar (Eureka! The Biography of an Idea)
by Lori Haskins HouranTurn it up! The newest addition to the nonfiction Eureka! series is a &“biography&” of guitars, an essential invention that gets people rocking.With a timeline spanning from the first time someone strummed a string stretched across a hollow object to electric guitars that bring stadiums of people to their feet today, Guitar is a fun and informative look at the development of an invention that adds music to our lives. This STEAM nonfiction title is part of the Eureka! series, with each book focusing on one groundbreaking, world-changing discovery that millions of people use every single day.
Guitar: The World's Most Seductive Instrument
by David SchillerCelebrate the significance, the magic, and the mojo of the world’s most seductive instrument. An obsessive, full-color book presented in an irresistible slipcase, Guitar features 200 instruments in stunning detail. Here are icons, like Prince’s Yellow Cloud, Willie Nelson’s “Trigger,” Muddy Water’s Thunderbird, and “Rocky,” lovingly hand-painted by its owner, George Harrison. Historic instruments—Fender’s Broadcaster, Les Paul’s “Log,” the Gibson Nick Lucas Special, the very first artist model. Hand-carved archtops, pinnacles of the luthier’s art, from John D’Angelico to Ken Parker. Stunning acoustics from a new wave of women builders, like Rosie Heydenrych of England, who’s known to use 5,000-year-old wood retrieved from a peat bog. And quirky one-of-a-kind guitars, like Linda Manzer’s Pikasso II—four necks, 42 strings, and a thousand pounds of pressure. Marrying pure visual pleasure with layers of information, Guitar is a glorious gift for every guitar-lover
Guitar All-In-One For Dummies
by Jon Chappell Mark Phillips Hal Leonard Corporation Desi SernaMake your music come alive with this indispensable guitar guide There's no denying that guitar players have cachet. The guitar is an ever-present part of our collective musical heritage, and the sound can be sensual, aggressive, or a million things in between. Whether you're hoping to conquer Free Bird, Bourée, or Bolero Mallorquin, you need to learn to walk before you can run. Even once you can run, you need something to help you clear hurdles along the way. That's where Guitar All-In-One For Dummies, 2nd Edition, comes in. It's your complete compendium of guitar instruction, written in clear, concise For Dummies style. It covers everything from positioning and basic chords to guitar theory and playing styles, and even includes maintenance advice to keep your instrument sounding great. It's an amazing resource for newbies and veterans alike, and offers you the opportunity to stretch beyond your usual genre. Forge the sound of rock, blues, classical, and more Understand the music theory behind guitar mastery Express yourself through your own compositions Perform practice exercises for muscle memory and dexterity Guitar All-In-One For Dummies, 2nd Edition, includes access to audio tracks and instructional videos to guide you through the lessons and inspire you to play often, which is the number-one key to success. You get advice and instruction from some of the most respected guitar teachers in the business, plus online resources, for less than the cost of a single lesson. Guitar All-In-One For Dummies, 2nd Edition, is the key to bringing your music to life.
Guitar All-in-One For Dummies: Book + Online Video and Audio Instruction
by Hal Leonard Corporation Mark Phillips Jon Chappell Desi Serna7 Books in one! Go from the basics to the style you want to play Making beautiful music with your acoustic or electric guitar requires practice, patience, and perseverance. A little guidance helps get you on the path to imitating the sounds of your guitar heroes. This friendly guide shares how to get the most out of your time with your guitar. Discover the fundamentals of strumming and playing chords and get an understanding of guitar theory, then delve into the secrets of playing rock, blues, or even classical styles. 7 Books Inside… Learning the anatomy of your guitar Starting with guitar fundamentals Refining your sound and technique Getting to know guitar theory Cranking up your rock guitar style Wailing with the blues Building your classical skills
Guitar Amplifier Encyclopedia
by Brian Tarquin Michael MolendaThis book is for the fans of guitar amplifiers and the history that lies behind them. Starting with early amp models like the Gibson EH-150 that was first used with Gibson's EH-150 lap-steel guitar and later the Charlie Christian ES-150 guitar, it then delves into the development of Fender, Vox, and Orange amps, and goes right up to the modern boutique designers like Industrial, Dr. Z, Fargen and Fuchs. Also featured are such tube amp classics as the Seymour Duncan Convertible head, ahead of its time in offering tube-switching before THD Amps existed. Other amp designers profiled include: Carvin Danelectro/Silvertone Engel Epiphone Premier Roland Seymour Duncan And many, many more! Emmy Award-winning guitarist, composer, and producer Brian Tarquin takes on the unique subject matter of the electric guitar's sidekick and partner-in-crime to create this informative and enthralling reference guide. Interviews with various amp makers as well as players, and a foreword by Michael Molenda (Guitar Player magazine), will all bring the reader closer to those glowing tubes and tones. Guitar Amplifier Encyclopedia provides an expansive education on all the best amps' every nuance, and how they each changed the history of sound!Allworth Press, an imprint of Skyhorse Publishing, publishes a broad range of books on the visual and performing arts, with emphasis on the business of art. Our titles cover subjects such as graphic design, theater, branding, fine art, photography, interior design, writing, acting, film, how to start careers, business and legal forms, business practices, and more. While we don't aspire to publish a New York Times bestseller or a national bestseller, we are deeply committed to quality books that help creative professionals succeed and thrive. We often publish in areas overlooked by other publishers and welcome the author whose expertise can help our audience of readers.
Guitar Amps and Effects For Dummies
by Dave HunterLearn the secrets to achieving your ultimate sound Whether amateur or pro, guitarists live for the ultimate sound. Guitar Amps & Effects For Dummies provides the information and instruction you need to discover that sound and make it your own! Written in the characteristically easy-to-read Dummies style, this book is ideal for beginners and experienced musicians alike, and can help all players expand their skill set with effects. Guitarists tend to be gearheads when it comes to sound, and this book provides guidance on topics ranging from the guitar itself to amps, pedals, and other sound technology. Amps and effects are the unsung heroes of guitar music. While most people recognize the more psychedelic effects, many don't realize that effects are often responsible for the unique quality of tone that can become a musician's trademark. Certain effects work on the volume or signal level, others work on the environment, and still others work on the bass and treble content. Guitar Amps & Effects For Dummies covers them all, and shows how effects can not only add something extra, but also "fix" problematic areas. Topics include: Gain-based effects, like distortion, compression, volume pedals, and gates Tone-based effects, including graphic and parametric EQ, and the wah-wah pedal Modulation effects, like the flanger, phase shifter, and tremolo Ambience effects, including reverb and delay The journey to incredible guitar music never ends. No matter how experienced you are with a guitar, there is always room for improvement to your tone and sound. Whether you're looking for the sound of angels or thunder, Guitar Amps & Effects For Dummies will help you achieve the music you hear in your dreams.
A Guitar and a Pen: Stories by Country Music's Greatest Songwriters
by Robert HicksNothing tells a story better than the story-songs of country music. A Guitar and A Pen presents, for the first time, the literary work of some of the best storytellers in the world: the songwriters who cut and polish tales down to sparkling three-minute gems. A blend of humor and poignancy, these tales range from Kris Kristofferson's charming tale of how an explicit natural rock formation causes chaos in a small farming town, to the domestic drama of a Kentucky family with six daughters, to Charlie Daniels' character-driven fable of money and unhappiness, to Gary Nicholson's riveting tale of an albino African American singer/songwriter who inspired him to be a musician. A celebration of music and storytelling, other contributors include Hal Ketchum, Janis Ian, Mark D. Sanders, Tom T. Hall, Marshall Chapman, and Robert Hicks, among many other notable Nashville luminaries.
The Guitar and the New World: A Fugitive History (SUNY series in Italian/American Culture)
by Joe GioiaThe American guitar, that lightweight wooden box with a long neck, hourglass figure, and six metal strings, has evolved over five hundred years of social turmoil to become a nearly magical object—the most popular musical instrument in the world. In The Guitar and the New World, Joe Gioia offers a many-limbed social history that is as entertaining as it is informative. After uncovering the immigrant experience of his guitar-making Sicilian great uncle, Gioia's investigation stretches from the ancient world to the fateful events of the 1901 Buffalo Pan American Exposition, across Sioux Ghost Dancers and circus Indians, to the lives and works of such celebrated American musicians as Jimmy Rodgers, Charlie Patton, Eddie Lang, and the Carter Family.At the heart of the book's portrait of wanderings and legacies is the proposition that America's idiomatic harmonic forms—mountain music and the blues—share a single root, and that the source of the sad and lonesome sounds central to both is neither Celtic nor African, but truly indigenous—Native American. The case is presented through a wide examination of cultural histories, academic works, and government documents, as well as a close appreciation of recordings made by key rural musicians, black and white, in the 1920s and '30s.The guitar in its many forms has cheered humanity through centuries of upheaval, and The Guitar and the New World offers a new account of this old friend, as well as a transformative look at a hidden chapter of American history.
Guitar Boy
by Mj AuchWith an ailing mother at hospital, an un-supportive dad and being totally penniless, Travis Tacey at the age of 14, makes a living helping a guitar maker. Through his love for music and family, Travis starts to find his way in the world.
Guitar Chords for Beginners: A Beginners Guitar Chord Book with Open Chords and More
by Gareth Evans“It's a very comprehensive book containing chords from the beginning stages and beyond. Everything is very well explained with no stone left unturned. I'd highly recommend it to anyone who's starting out with the guitar.” Nigel Elliott, Guitarist & Tutor (N.Ireland)Guitar Chords for Beginners contains 65 different chords arranged in easy fingerings.- TechniqueFretting hand technique for playing guitar chords is looked at in detail with diagrams. Where necessary, some chords are taught incrementally because taking on only the harder aspects of a chord’s fingering first means our hand is freer to adjust. Other chords are shown with different fingerings for you to choose which you prefer. Playing guitar chords may seem like a contortion for the hands of the beginner so there is some basic guidance on stretching to keep the hands flexible.- Audio and MoreEach guitar chord has a downloadable audio example enabling you to hear if you have played it right, or to hear what you need to work towards. There is an introduction to moveable power chords and barre chords, in which barre chords are shown as easier cut-down versions of full barre chord shapes. At the back of Guitar Chords for Beginners there is a list of suggested songs that contain chords from within the book.Grab a copy today!"Looks fab. I particularly like the different ways of playing the A chord. The physical warm-up exercises for flexibility are also good. It is good that movable major and minor barre chords are shown as partial versions to make them initially easier, and beginners might find extra interest where near the back of the book easy open versions of other more exotic chords are shown, such as Dm(maj7), the "James Bond" chord." Campbell Murray, RGT & MU Registered Tutor (Scotland)
Guitar Chords For Dummies
by Antoine PolinChords, chords, and (almost) nothing but chords Guitar Chords For Dummies is full of, well, guitar chords. This indispensable reference is a must for guitarists of every ambition, skill level, and musical genre, providing a key to the simplest and most complex guitar chords—over 600 in all. Each chord is illustrated with a chord diagram and a photo with guitarist&’s tips sprinkled throughout the book. You&’ll also get a tiny bit of music theory, so you know what&’s going on with all those symbols, and voicings for each chord in each of the 12 keys. And it&’s even small enough to fit in your guitar case. Add sparkle and range to your musical repertoire. Learn the theory and techniques for playing guitar chords Reference over 600 chords spread over 12 keys Easily try out new chords, thanks to the portable, lay-flat format Go beyond the basics with sustained, augmented, diminished, and flatted chords Guitar Chords For Dummies is ideal for newbies just picking up the guitar and seasoned musicians ready to expand their sound.
Guitar Encyclopedia
by Brian TarquinFrom renowned guitarist and multi-Emmy-award winning composer, Brian Tarquin, comes a display-quality, full-color reference guide to guitars. The Guitar Encyclopedia begins with the history of guitars spanning back to the birth of Epiphone by a Greek immigrant and the great inventions of Les Paul, to the boom of the Rock-'n-Roll-shredder days with Ibanez guitars and the futuristic designs of the Gibson Moderne and the Randy Rhodes Polka Dot Flying V. The book also contains interviews from guitar designers such as Fender and Eastwood, as well as boutique companies such as Gander and Specimen.A far cry from other dry schematic encyclopedias, this book details the connections between different guitars and the monumental recordings that they produced. With introductions by Gary Hoey, Chris Poland (Megadeth), and Eric Shoaf (Vintage Guitar magazine), this book provides a rich and unique account of iconic guitars throughout history.
Guitar Exercises For Dummies
by Mark Phillips Jon ChappellBuild strength and consistency as you play Practice with warm-ups, scales, arpeggios, and chords Play full-length pieces and songs Sharpen your guitar-playing skills This practice-oriented playbook is packed with hands-on technique builders, from warm-up exercises with scales to arpeggios, chords, and more. Brush up on guitar notation, wake up your fingers, and develop strength, speed, and dexterity. With more than 300 exercises in various keys, drills to perfect your playing, tips to maximize your practice time, and performance pieces to test your expanding skills, you'll be strumming the strings like a pro in no time. Inside... A review of the fundamentals How to release tension and improve breathing Technique building exercises Scales, scale sequences, arpeggios, arpeggio sequences, and chords Ways to improve your musicianship
Guitar Exercises For Dummies
by Mark Phillips Jon ChappellBuild strength and consistency as you play Practice with warm-ups, scales, arpeggios, and chords Play full-length pieces and songs Sharpen your guitar-playing skills This practice-oriented playbook is packed with hands-on technique builders, from warm-up exercises with scales to arpeggios, chords, and more. Brush up on guitar notation, wake up your fingers, and develop strength, speed, and dexterity. With more than 300 exercises in various keys, drills to perfect your playing, tips to maximize your practice time, and performance pieces to test your expanding skills, you'll be strumming the strings like a pro in no time. Inside... A review of the fundamentals How to release tension and improve breathing Technique building exercises Scales, scale sequences, arpeggios, arpeggio sequences, and chords Ways to improve your musicianship
Guitar Exercises For Dummies®
by Mark Phillips Jon ChappellGuitar Exercises For Dummies includes over 300 exercises along with lots of technique-building practice opportunities. It starts off with warm-up exercises (on and off-instrument) and then logically transitions to scales, scale sequences, arpeggios, arpeggio sequences, and chords, with a focus on building strength and consistency as well as refining technique.
Guitar For Dummies
by Hal Leonard Corporation Mark Phillips Jon ChappellThe bestselling guide now updated with video demonstrations and audio tracks online The guitar is one of the most versatile instruments in the world, which is why it's so appealing to musicians. Guitar For Dummies, 4th Edition gives you everything a beginning or intermediate acoustic or electric guitarist needs: from buying a guitar to tuning it, playing it, and caring for it. Fully revised and updated, with online video and audio clips that help you learn and play along, you'll explore everything from simple chords and melodies to more challenging exercises that are designed to satisfy players of all levels. Additionally, new players can dive into the basics of guitar and accessory selection. Whether you prefer the cool sounds of the acoustic or the edgier tones of the electric, your guitar will get a lot of use as you play your way through the lessons presented in this integral book. But your journey doesn't stop at the last page! With an updated multimedia component, you have access to more than 80 online videos and 35 audio tracks that help build your talent. Play along with online videos and audio tracks to develop and reinforce your new skills Tune your guitar, change strings, and make simple repairs to keep your instrument in working order Choose the right guitar and equipment for your needs Explore numerous musical styles, including rock, blues, jazz, and country Guitar For Dummies, 4th Edition guides you in the development of your strumming talent-and who knows where that can take you!
Guitar For Dummies
by Mark Phillips Jon ChappellThe bestselling music guide - now updated and with a FREE DVD! Have you always wanted to learn to play guitar? Who wouldn't? Think of Jimi Hendrix wailing away on his Stratocaster. . . Chuck Berry duck-walking across the stage to "Johnny B. Goode". . .B.B. King making his "Lucille" cry the blues. No doubt about it--guitars are cool.Guitar For Dummies gives you everything a beginning or intermediate guitarist needs: from buying a guitar to tuning it, playing it, and caring for it, this book has it all--and you don't even need to know how to read music. Full of photo-illustrated exercises and songs you can play to practice the techniques discussed in each section, this step-by-step guitar guide will take you through the basics and beyond before you can say "Eric Clapton."Helps you choose the guitar and equipment that best fits your needs and budgetShows you how to build strength and dexterity while playingTeaches you to play in different styles, including rock, blues, folk, jazz, and classicalFully revised and updated, with an all-new interactive DVD packed with video and audio clips that help you learn, tune, and play along, Guitar For Dummies is the perfect introductory guide for any novice acoustic or electric guitar player.CD-ROM/DVD and other supplementary materials are not included as part of the e-book file, but are available for download after purchase.
Guitar For Dummies, 2nd Edition
by Mark Phillips Jon ChappellHave you always wanted to play guitar? Who wouldn't? Think of Jimi Hendrix wailing away on his Stratocaster. . . Chuck Berry duck-walking across the stage to "Johnny B. Goode". . . B. B. King making his "Lucille" cry the blues. No doubt about it-guitars are cool. Guitar For Dummies 2nd Edition tells you everything a beginning or intermediate guitarist needs to know: from buying a guitar to tuning it, playing it, and caring for it, this book has it all-and you don't even need to know how to read music. Full of photo-illustrated exercises and songs you can play to practice the techniques discussed in each section, this step-by-step guide will take you through the basics and beyond before you can say "Eric Clapton. " You'll learn how to: Match yourself with the guitar and equipment that fits your needs and budget Select the right accessories: amps, picks, pedals, capos, cases, and other goodies Pick and strum to produce a clean, clear, buzz-free tone Know whether you're really in tune Play melodies without reading music Perform basic guitar maintenance and repairs Build strength and dexterity while playing Play in different styles, including rock, blues, folk, jazz, and classical Make your guitar talk with bends and slides! Fully revised and updated, with an all new interactive CD that allows readers to listen, learn, tune, and play along, Guitar For Dummies 2nd Edition is the perfect introductory guide for any novice acoustic or electric guitar player. Note: CD-ROM/DVD and other supplementary materials are not included as part of eBook file.
Guitar for Kids: First Steps in Learning to Play Guitar with Audio & Video
by Gareth Evans“Gareth has written a really well thought out first book for teaching young children how to play. This one is definitely the one I'll be using.” Bob Lucas - Bob Lucas Guitar Studios (Missouri US)Guitar For Kids is a fun all-colour guide on the first steps of learning to play Guitar with over 70 photographic examples, purpose-made diagrams and cartoons. Starting with advice on buying your first guitar, how to hold the guitar and how to tune it, the music then begins with easy-to-play melodies using only open strings (open strings means only the plucking hand is used), before moving to simple pieces in which the fretting hand is also used. The book goes into detail for some basic techniques because you're better off getting it right from the start rather than develop bad habits.Tablature Based - Guitar for Kids uses mostly guitar tablature making this popular instrument more easily accessible for beginners (as do most adult guitar method books). The rhythmical aspect of Sight-reading is covered within the Chords section which eases-in the later Sight-reading section because the only new thing to learn will be reading different notes from the musical staff.Audio Tracks - Guitar for Kids comes with 47 downloadable audio tracks with musical pieces in styles such as Rock, Blues, Pop, Flamenco, Jazz and Reggae. Each piece has a full band demo track and accompanying backing track with guitar part removed for you to play over.What Else? - EZ chords are covered (easy chords with less notes) and are accompanied with diagrams of the full versions for later on, or if you feel like a challenge. There’s an introduction to Power chords with Rock pieces to play named after healthy greens “Broccolli Rockilly” and “Rocket Salad”. There's a Blues and Rock duet with backing band tracks to play with a friend, and at the end there is a Quiz, no cheating!Grab a copy today!Please Note: The eBook includes musical pieces so is not suitable for smaller screens.“I looked through Guitar for Kids thoroughly when I received it and I think its great. I will be recommending that my students buy one.” Chris Nastri, Bachelor of Education (B.Ed) Phoenix Arizona US"It looks like Gareth spent a lot of time writing Guitar for Kids. I think the illustrations are very helpful in keeping people's minds interested and engaged." Tim Woosley - Music Director, Lincoln School of Music (Nebraska)
Guitar Girl
by Sarra ManningSeventeen-year-old Molly Montgomery never planned on becoming famous. Molly's band, The Hormones, was just supposed to be about mucking around with her best mates, Jane and Tara, and having fun. But when the deliciously dangerous Dean and his friend T join the band, things start happening fast. Soon The Hormones are front-page news, and their debut album is rocketing up the charts. Molly is the force behind the band, but the hazards of fame, first love, screaming fans, and sleazy managers are forcing the newly crowned teen queen of grrl angst close to the edge. Fame never comes for free, and Molly's about to find out what it costs.
Guitar King: Michael Bloomfield's Life in the Blues
by David DannA Rolling Stone Best Music Book of 2019, this biography of blues-rock legend Mike Bloomfield &“draws you in the way a novel does&” (The Wall Street Journal). Named one of the world&’s great blues-rock guitarists by Rolling Stone, Mike Bloomfield remains beloved by fans forty years after his untimely death. Taking readers backstage, onstage, and into the recording studio with this legendary virtuoso, David Dann tells the riveting stories behind Bloomfield&’s work in the seminal Paul Butterfield Blues Band and the mesmerizing Electric Flag, as well as on the Super Session album with Al Kooper and Stephen Stills, Bob Dylan&’s Highway 61 Revisited, and soundtrack work with Peter Fonda and Jack Nicholson. Drawing from meticulous research, including more than seventy interviews with the musician&’s friends, relatives, and band members, music historian David Dann brings to life Bloomfield&’s worlds, from his struggles to fit in on Chicago&’s wealthy North Shore with his Jewish family to the gritty taverns and raucous nightclubs where this self-taught guitarist helped transform the sound of contemporary blues and rock music. With scenes that are as electrifying as Bloomfield&’s solos, this is the story of a life lived at full volume. &“Feels like one of the last great untold classic-rock tales, right up through Bloomfield&’s mysterious passing.&” ―Rolling Stone &“Reveals the depths of Bloomfield's musical passions, genius and personal despair . . . Guitar King establishes his pivotal role in American music history.&” ―Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Guitar King: Michael Bloomfield's Life in the Blues
by David DannA Rolling Stone Best Music Book of 2019, this biography of blues-rock legend Mike Bloomfield &“draws you in the way a novel does&” (The Wall Street Journal). Named one of the world&’s great blues-rock guitarists by Rolling Stone, Mike Bloomfield remains beloved by fans forty years after his untimely death. Taking readers backstage, onstage, and into the recording studio with this legendary virtuoso, David Dann tells the riveting stories behind Bloomfield&’s work in the seminal Paul Butterfield Blues Band and the mesmerizing Electric Flag, as well as on the Super Session album with Al Kooper and Stephen Stills, Bob Dylan&’s Highway 61 Revisited, and soundtrack work with Peter Fonda and Jack Nicholson. Drawing from meticulous research, including more than seventy interviews with the musician&’s friends, relatives, and band members, music historian David Dann brings to life Bloomfield&’s worlds, from his struggles to fit in on Chicago&’s wealthy North Shore with his Jewish family to the gritty taverns and raucous nightclubs where this self-taught guitarist helped transform the sound of contemporary blues and rock music. With scenes that are as electrifying as Bloomfield&’s solos, this is the story of a life lived at full volume. &“Feels like one of the last great untold classic-rock tales, right up through Bloomfield&’s mysterious passing.&” ―Rolling Stone &“Reveals the depths of Bloomfield's musical passions, genius and personal despair . . . Guitar King establishes his pivotal role in American music history.&” ―Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Guitar Makers: The Endurance of Artisanal Values in North America
by Kathryn Marie DudleyIt whispers, it sings, it rocks, and it howls. It expresses the voice of the folk—the open road, freedom, protest and rebellion, youth and love. It is the acoustic guitar. And over the last five decades it has become a quintessential American icon. Because this musical instrument is significant to so many—in ways that are emotional, cultural, and economic—guitar making has experienced a renaissance in North America, both as a popular hobby and, for some, a way of life. In Guitar Makers, Kathryn Marie Dudley introduces us to builders of artisanal guitars, their place in the art world, and the specialized knowledge they’ve developed. Drawing on in-depth interviews with members of the lutherie community, she finds that guitar making is a social movement with political implications. Guitars are not simply made—they are born. Artisans listen to their wood, respond to its liveliness, and strive to endow each instrument with an unforgettable tone. Although professional luthiers work within a market society, Dudley observes that their overriding sentiment is passion and love of the craft. Guitar makers are not aiming for quick turnover or the low-cost reproduction of commodities but the creation of singular instruments with unique qualities, and face-to-face transactions between makers, buyers, and dealers are commonplace. In an era when technological change has pushed skilled artisanship to the margins of the global economy, and in the midst of a capitalist system that places a premium on ever faster and more efficient modes of commerce, Dudley shows us how artisanal guitar makers have carved out a unique world that operates on alternative, more humane, and ecologically sustainable terms.
Guitar Notes
by Mary AmatoOn odd days, Tripp Broody uses a school practice room to let loose on a borrowed guitar. Eyes closed, strumming that beat-up instrument, Tripp escapes to a world where only the music matters. On even days, Lyla Marks uses the same practice room. To Tripp, she’s trying to become even more perfect—she’s already a straight-A student and an award-winning cellist. But when Lyla begins leaving notes for him in between the strings of the guitar, his life intersects with hers in a way he never expected. What starts as a series of snippy notes quickly blossoms into the sharing of interests and secrets and dreams, and the forging of a very unlikely friendship. Challenging each other to write songs, they begin to connect, even though circumstances threaten to tear them apart. From beloved author Mary Amato comes a YA novel of wit and wisdom, both heartfelt and heartbreaking, about the power of music and the unexpected chords that draw us together.