The Evolution and Design of the Electric Guitar

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The Evolution and Design of the Electric Guitar
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Outline

• An abridged history of the acoustic guitar
• The quest for volume
• The electric Spanish guitar
• The solid-body guitar

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Early History

• Prehistoric guitars were ornamental bow and
  arrows. twang sound.
• Kithara (Greek), Guitar (Roman)
• Wooden sound box with double strings.
• 8-12 century across Europe necks were introduced.
• Frets were introduced during the 10th century.
• Often double-stringed (courses).
• Humble plebeian instrument.
• Lost double stringing..

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Standardisation

• Competed with other stringed instruments
• Became the dominant stringed instrument in Spain.
• En vogue in 16th Century France, replacing the
  lute.
• Antonio de Torres Juardo developed vastly
  superior guitars.
• 1860-66 birth of the modern guitar (Torres).
• Did not catch on quickly.

Torres (1817-92)
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The Quest for Volume

• Big bands, dance halls, accompaniment.
• Different acoustic designs.
• Arch-top
• less vibration
• less strutting
• more volume in body for amplification
• Developed with steel guitars (short-sustain, high
  volume).
• Gibson annoyed by the inadequacies of guitars and
  mandolins.

Gibson (1856-1918)
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Archtop
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The Quest for Volume (Cont.)

• Mid 1920s saw a guitar with an amplifying horn
  (megaphone)
• 1920s Beauchamp and Dopyera developed resonator
  guitars.
• 192024. Whilst working for Gibson, Lloyd Loar
  developed 1st form of pick-up.

Lloyd Loar (1886-1943)
Resonator Mandolin
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Volume - Pickups

• 1925 Beauchamp starts experimenting with magnets
  and a guitar string using phonograph needles
  strings on 2 by 4 piece of wood.
• Late 1920s Beauchamp and Barth 2 horseshoe
  magnets and 6 pole pieces (one for each string).
• Once convinced it worked built maple Frying
  Pan in a few hours, on their kitchen table.
• Showed Rickenbacher (later Rickenbacker) who
  was making Resonators at National.
• 1931 Mass production of Hawaiian style frying
  pan limited appeal but successful in its niche.

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Pickup patent and Frying Pan
Frying Pan
Pickup Patent (similar to current design)
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Volume Development

• Loar formed Vivi-tone (a division of Gibson)
  1933. Designed to develop the guitar.
• 1934 Vivi-tone went bust misjudged the market.
  Gibson CO still interested in concept.
• Gibson developed the ES-150 (Electric-Spanish
  150).
• Mass produced in 1936.
• Took off largely due to playing of jazz
  musician Charlie Christian.
• Still had drawbacks.

Charlie Christian (1916 - 1942)
ES-150
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Volume - solid body

• Les Paul believed that the guitar top vibrations
  interfered with the pick-ups
• 1941 Les Paul log,
• Leo Fender (Owned a radio shop) built an oak,
  solid-body prototype(1943).
• Rented it to musicians to gain feedback, believed
  there was a market.
• 1949 Mass production of the Esquire.
• Did not take off with the jazz artists of the
  time. However, ideal for blues and country (and
  later rock n roll).
• Association with teenage rebellion and its
  affordability contributed to its popularity.

Leo Fender (1909-1991)
Les Paul (1915 - )
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Les Paul Log Fender Telecaster
The Log
Telecaster
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Solid body - subsequent developments

• 1952 Gibson woke-up and produced the Gibson Les
  Paul Model
• 1954 First Double-necked guitars (Joe Maphis).
• 1958 The double humbucking pick-up was
  produced.
• 1958 Explorer and Flying V!
• 1961 also introduced the semi-hollow body which
  was made popular by BB King and Chuck Berry.

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Development of Solid Bodies
Les Paul Classic
The Flying V
Explorer
Double Necked
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Acceptance and Adaptation

• Amplification created new problems (distortion
  and feedback).
• Acoustic guitar v Electric guitar.
• Electronic modelling Wah, Phaser Flange etc.
• Present day Computational modelling allows for
  guitar to become some sort of synthesiser e.g.
  Pod allows for the emulation of an almost
  infinite no of sounds and effects.

Jimi Hendrix