Western Guitars

Western guitar - a timeless instrument

A western guitar is a singer/songwriter's best friend and companion. A Western guitar gives you a deliciously crisp sound with its wooden body and metal strings. With or without a built-in microphone, a western guitar is perfect for the teenage bedroom or the stage. From Bob Dylan to Oasis, the western guitar has laid the foundation for many iconic songs by many famous singers.

Western The guitar is used in a variety of musical genres, including rock, folk and pop. The guitar is distinguished from a classical guitar in that it is strung with steel strings. These can include bronze, brass, silk and steel.

4 categories for Western guitars

Although there are a myriad of Western guitars, they are typically divided into fire main groups:

Grand Concert / Parlor Guitars
These are the smallest of the fire body types, and they also have the thinnest soundhole. Because of their size, they are extremely comfortable to play, especially for younger players and beginners. They are also the quietest guitars and are great for smaller venues.

Grand Auditorium Guitars

These guitars are similar in shape to the Grand Concert models, but are larger and sometimes shaped with a convex back to provide a larger sound hole to increase the overall body size unnecessarily. They offer an increased dynamic range while maintaining comfort and ease of use.

Dreadnought Guitars
By far the most common body style. These models have a slightly larger body than the above (especially in the lower half), and they produce a rich and deep sound that has made them popular all over the world.

Jumbo Guitars
With their larger sound hole than the other models, Jumbo Guitars have a very rich tone. However, the larger size required for this feature can make them difficult to play for some guitarists.

Western Guitars for beginners

For most people, the size of a guitar has a big impact on how easy or difficult it is to play. As a rule, smaller guitars are easier to play. They are easier to handle and on larger models the neck can be too wide for unpracticed fingers. This can make it difficult to learn chords and hold onto the guitar strings. Therefore, the smallest western guitar is recommended for beginners.

Western Guitars for advanced players

Once you've mastered your guitar playing, you can try your hand at a 12-string western guitar. Developed in the early 20th century, a 12-string guitar uses a double-string configuration to give it an incredibly rich tone. The lower fire strings are tuned in octaves, while the two highest strings are tuned in harmony. One of the most famous uses of these guitars is the arrangement for the Eagles song "Hotel California", both the studio and live versions.

Well-known brands include: Martin, Gibson, Yamaha, Fender and Ibanez.