FRETS.COM Illustrated Glossary
It's "the" thing for playing classical music
Classical Guitar
© Frank Ford, 9/1/99; Photos by FF
Classical guitars are almost always of medium size, with twelve frets clear of the
body:
Classical guitar players always play with fingernails only, never with picks.
Classical guitars always have nylon rather than steel strings, and a slotted headstock:
The backs and sides of most concert grade classical guitars are made of rosewood:
Rosewood gives the most bass response and overall tonal power. Many players of classical
guitars enjoy playing other kinds of music using classical technique. Nylon strung
classical guitars have remarkable (and "mellow") tonal balance from string
to string, and lack the "bright," "bell-like" or "steely"
tones of steel string guitars.
Back to Glossary
Back to Index Page