|
 Seven-stringer
Lenny Breau.
The
Seventh String
Q I’ve wondered
about seven-string guitars for a long time. What is the seventh
string for? Is it a drone?
Chuck Grennell
Arnold, California
A In most cases,
the seventh string is used to extend the bass register of the guitar.
George Van Eps, who had a custom Epiphone built in the late 1930s,
was probably the first jazz player to experiment with the concept.
Van Eps kept the guitar in standard tuning with an added low A,
and most contemporary seven-string jazz players do the same, although
some choose to tune the string to B. The added low note allows the
player to incorporate very convincing bass lines, making the seven-string
particularly interesting for solo performers.
Some players add a high string instead. Lenny Breau, for example,
used a high A string on both his solid-body electric and his nylon-string
guitar. Another option is to use the seven-string in a variety of
alternate tunings, thus allowing it to extend the guitar’s range
in either direction. Finally, some players do use the extra string
for a drone effect, as you suggested.
––Teja Gerken
Return to Top
Resonator
Specs
Q What
thickness and type of sheet metal is used to make a steel-bodied
resonator? Are the bodies of commercially made guitars pressed out
of a single sheet of metal or soldered together?
John Lawson
Glen Innes, NSW, Australia
A National
brand resonator guitar bodies are presently made from sheet steel
or brass. Designer Don Young tells me that the stock currently in
use is .032 inches thick; prewar guitars were lighter at .028 inches.
The top and back of the instruments are flanged around the perimeter
and joined to the sides with silver solder, after which they are
plated or polychromed. By the way, a National resonator for a single-cone
guitar is made of .010-inch spun aluminum. Tricone resonators are
lighter. For more information, or to order parts (I assume you’re
contemplating building a reso), go to www.nationalguitars.com.
––Steve James
Return to Top
Classical
Blast
Q How do classical guitarists
play loud enough to be heard in performance?
Scott Keller
Westville, Indiana
A
Classical guitar players are constantly battling to be heard,
particularly when playing with orchestras. They pay careful attention
to their technique and produce a louder sound by attacking the string
with downward pressure from their right-hand fingers—toward
the soundboard rather than sideways. They also experiment to find
the best shape for their fingernails, and some players resort to
acrylic nails or other artificial enhancers to give their nails
more thickness and create more tone. But the key to producing volume
lies in purchasing a good concert-quality guitar that was designed
to be loud. Many contemporary luthiers succeed in creating increasingly
loud guitars using design elements such as lattice bracing and carbon-fiber
reinforcements. With or without a great guitar, more and more performers
use amplification to boost their volume when playing in large venues
or with other instrumentalists.
––Pauline Leland
Return to Top
String
Cleaning
Q I’ve begun using coated
strings on my guitars and wonder what I should use to clean these
types of strings.
Clayton Adams
Jacksonville, Florida
A
Check the ingredients of any string cleaner you’re considering
before using it on your guitar’s strings. If the product contains
silicone, don’t use it on any instrument that might need touch-up
finish work or a complete refinish in the future. Silicone contamination
makes refinish work difficult and thus more expensive. I would treat
coated strings like ordinary strings. Wipe them down with a soft
cloth after playing and make sure to slip the cloth under the strings
for a good wipe as well. It’s amazing how much grunge can build
up on the "dark side" of the strings. This funky buildup will throw
off tuning and harmonic purity pretty quickly and deaden even pre-deadened,
coated strings.
––Rick Turner
Send Questions, tips, or observations to Acoustic
Guitar’s online discussion forums at www.acousticguitar.com
or write to Dear A.G., Acoustic Guitar, PO Box 767, San Anselmo,
CA 94979-0767.
Excerpted
from
Acoustic
Guitar
magazine, November 2001, No. 107.
|
