PaulAdams
Music
with David Hoffman
| I am standing in front of a solid body guitar made of Koa Wood on the left, and my electric sitar on the right. |
THIS CHRISTMAS An acoustic guitar holiday album by Paul Adams ""Adams'
instrumental interpretations of traditional Christmas fare are simple,
peaceful, and evocative.. serene meditative acoustic melodies that
avoid the usual holiday vices" Gary Panetta Peoria Journal Star |
|
National
Public Radio called and is featuring cut from
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HOW TO BUY YOUR FIRST GUITAR (And maybe even your second).
Buying a guitar can be a bit of a mystery for beginners. I thought I would place a little beginner guitar "primer" as an aid for those looking to buy their first guitar, or for those looking to buy a student guitar. I'll also have a few tips for those musicians out there who would like to learn a bit more about the mysteries of stringed musical instrument maintenance.
First of all I wish I could make it easy for you and say, "yep, you need to buy the Takamine Model X". There she is, all taken care of. Done deal. Well, the fact is, there are a ton of great guitars available.
Well, OKaaaaaaaay, here are some names of lower to medium priced guitars that generally have a reputation for being well made: Johnson, Rogue, Washburn, Dean, Epiphone, Yamaha, Takamine, Fender, Peavy, Ovation (Applause) etc etc. AND, if you search Ebay and local papers, you can even find nice old Gibson Guitars. You have to be VERY lucky to find a "stealers deal" on a Martin, Taylor, Larrivee and others. I'm sure I left some names of decent starter guitars out of the picture, but I don't know everything :). Read on and I hope you'll be better prepared to make your own choice
So, this page is like a beginner guitar helper, or perhaps guitar for dummies. I was a musical instrument maker (Luthier) for many years before I turned to composing music and focusing on my albums. I'll throw up a few photos in these pages of some of the instruments I have made to give you an idea about my experience. You may click here to see more of the instruments. My guitars were usually on what is considered to be the "high end". BUT, even though they were "Pricey", I always had a great respect for those able to manufacture instruments on an industrial scale and believed that there were great choices for amateur musicians available.
I should also say that although I use the term guitar, much of what I write can also be used for those looking for other stringed instruments (All stringed instruments that have an extension arm or neck that is attached to a resonating body, are called "Lutes". So, in this nomenclature, Guitars, Banjo's, Mandolins, Dobro's etc are all classified in the Lute family. The structural physiology of many of these instruments are somewhat similar.). I hope to eliminate some of the fear that always comes when covering uncharted territory.
BUYING YOUR FIRST GUITAR:
One of the biggest concerns I hear from parents and potential buyers is how to choose:
A.) An Instrument that will last
B.) An instrument that is right for ones particular needs.
This is an acoustic steel string I made many years ago and still have. It was constructed of mahogany and Sitka Spruce I hope to take some of the mystery away from buying your first guitar as it's my belief that finding a beginners guitar is fairly easy. Finding that second guitar, OR, the guitar you are going to play with on a professional basis is a bit more difficult. It's then you really have to learn about the subtle nuances of tone, projection, and feel. These are very subjective elements and it is helpful to have had the experience of playing other instruments to come up with a choice that is right for you.
