| The modern style guitar that we think of today, with its | | | | creating the difference in sound we hear today |
| classical look, style and appearance, with six strings | | | | between eastern and western stringed music. |
| and a sound that is instantly recognizable, is thought o | | | | The Spanish guitar was a six stringed instrument, as |
| have most likely descended from Spanish guitars, | | | | are the guitars popular today, and one of the oldest |
| called either vihuela, or viola da mano. These | | | | examples of such a six string guitar style instrument is |
| instruments were popular during the 15th and 16 | | | | the mandolin, which was developed by a family of |
| centuries, and had a distinct appearance that, whilst | | | | luthiers known as the Vinaccia family, and it is to these |
| similar in many respects to a modern day guitar, owed | | | | people that the mandolin heritage can be traced. |
| more of its heritage to the lute, with its bulbous, curved | | | | Elsewhere in Europe, a six string guitar found in Naples |
| body and backplate. However, the modern guitar | | | | has a label on it with the signature of the man who |
| owes much to these Spanish ancestors, and also to | | | | designed and built the instrument. It is this label dated |
| the guitar style instruments popular throughout the | | | | 1779 which allows the history of six string guitars to be |
| renaissance period. | | | | traced back at least this far in Italy, showing a rapid |
| The Spanish vihuela, whilst very popular, began to | | | | progression across Europe of this style of instrument. |
| quickly fade from regular use as the more modern | | | | Because of the popularity of these old guitars, and |
| day style of guitar was being developed, and became | | | | their importance in history, a vast number of false |
| more popular, and indeed by about the year 1576 the | | | | labels have been discovered, and museums and |
| vihuela was all but a memory, with the guitar being the | | | | collectors have to be especially careful not to be |
| instrument of choice for those musicians who were in | | | | fooled with fraudulent labels suggesting guitars are |
| keeping with the modern climate and traditions. The | | | | older than they really are. It certainly is true that the |
| Spanish guitar still owed much of its appearance and | | | | instrument has a long and easily traced history, but it is |
| design to the lute instruments, although it is unclear | | | | the guitar from Naples which has been confirmed as |
| whether it was also influenced by another guitar type | | | | the oldest genuine surviving instrument of its type. |
| instrument known as the oud, which was an Arabic | | | | The style and shape of the guitar we see today were |
| instrument also being formed from a hollow body, a | | | | developed during the mid 19th century by a man |
| long neck, and strings, although these were generally | | | | named Antonio Torres Jurado, who was working as |
| plucked rather than strummed, creating quite a | | | | an instrument maker in Seville. For those who are |
| different sound - and one that is still very much | | | | familiar with the intricate design of a modern guitar, it |
| traditional to eastern musical tradition. | | | | was Torres, in conjunction with another instrument |
| The shape of the traditional Spanish guitar started to | | | | designer named Panormo from London, who |
| move away from the old style lutes and even the | | | | demonstrated and established the fact that the |
| ouds, and became visually much more the style we | | | | strutting of fans led to far superior sound quality than |
| see today, and it was this instrument which found a | | | | the traditionally adopted transverse table bracing, and |
| firm footing across the whole of Europe, with eastern | | | | so the design of the modern guitar was born. |
| countries sticking more to the oud, and thereby | | | | |