Buying the Right Guitar
I just wanted to make a quick post about buying a guitar. Actually, it's about buying the right guitar.
This post was triggered by an email, actually what turned out to be several emails, back and forth between a new guitarist, and myself.
In his first email, the guy told me that he wanted to start taking classical guitar lessons, after hearing some tracks online of Segovia, and a few other of the great classical guitarists. I thought great, I know a few things about classical playing, having taken lessons for a while. I knew at least enough to offer a few suggestions anyway.
As we talked, I found out that he had just bought a guitar online, via eBay. Obviously, you can get some great deals buying at auction, that's part of the reason I set this store up in the first place. Well, the guy had gotten what appeared to be an excellent price, on what is definitely a fantastic guitar. He was quite proud of himself, as well he should have been. He now owns a beautiful Taylor acoustic instrument. I wish I would have had it as my first guitar. Actually, I wish I had it now!!
Anyway, in case you haven't picked up on the problem here, he bought a guitar first, and then decided what style of music that he wanted to play. Classical guitars have nylon, formerly cat gut strings. They're made to be played (plucked) specifically with the fingernails. A good classical performance is obviously about performing the piece of music correct technically, but it's also, as are other types of music, but even more so, about tone.
Regardless of how well you play technically, you'll never get the beautiful round tone by playing a steel string guitar with your fingernails, as can be achieved on a nylon stringed classical guitar. You can play a steel string guitar with your fingernails, but you will eventually destroy the nails in the process.
I really felt bad for the guy because it seemed that he had really fallen in love with the classical style of playing, and knew that's what he wanted to play. I just wish he had emailed me first, or talked to someone else that was knowledgeable in that style of playing.
He loves the guitar that he bought, and I have no doubt that he could get his money back, and maybe even make a small profit if he chooses to sell the Taylor, so I guess it really isn't all that bad of a thing. I think however, that he's already become afflicted with an all to familiar condition that many lovers of the guitar get, the dreaded...GAS (Guitar Acquisition Syndrome).
It didn't seem like the first deal had hurt him financially, and he asked for a few recommendations from me on what I thought may be a good classical guitar for him. Also, before he ended the email, he asked, 'Do you like Stratocasters or Telecasters better ?'
Now, I'm not a medical doctor, but I think this guy could be diagnosed as being, at least, in the early stages of GAS. I see a lot of guitars in his future. Lucky guy.
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Tags: classical guitar, ebay, gas, guitar acquisition syndrome, stratocaster, telecaster
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