Baritone guitar
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The baritone guitar is a variation on the standard guitar, with a longer scale length that allows it to be tuned to a lower range. The Danelectro Company was the first to introduce the baritone guitar in the late 1950s. Shortly after Fender release the Bass VI which is essentially a baritone guitar, despite being called a bass.[citation needed] The baritone guitar was not originally popular with players or listeners.[citation needed] However, the instrument began to appear in surf music, as well as background music for many movie soundtracks, especially spaghetti westerns. It also has the ability to be used as a bass guitar if strung correctly.
The baritone guitar was also used by country artists and can be heard on recordings by Merle Haggard, Johnny Cash, Dwight Yoakam, George Jones, and Willie Nelson, often doubling the acoustic bass part of the song.[citation needed] Folk-Pop singer Jimmie Rodgers also favored the baritone guitar, which can be heard in the opening bars of his recording of "Woman from Liberia". Ian Mackaye (Minor Threat, Fugazi, Dischord Records) plays a baritone guitar when playing with his band The Evens. More recently, the baritone guitar was used in some Barenaked Ladies and Stevie Ray Vaughan songs[citation needed], and was also used by Daron Malakian of System of a Down prior to the release of Mesmerize. Jazz guitarist Pat Metheny used baritone guitars made by Linda Manzer on his 2003 solo album One Quiet Night. Ani DiFranco often plays a baritone guitar, including those by David Berkowitz, Joe Veillette and Alvarez, frequently employing alternate tunings. Clifton Hyde has had his acoustic baritone guitar featured in the music of Sigur Ros, Gato Loco, and Pape Armond Boye. Dylan Carlson of drone metal band Earth played a baritone guitar on Earth's 2005 LP Hex (Or Printing in the Infernal Method). Nico Audy-Rowland of Trocadero (band) is also known for playing a Dan Electro Baritone Guitar during his work for the theme music of the machinima series Red vs. Blue.
Numerous fingerstyle guitarists use baritone guitars, including Andy McKee, Don Ross, Martin Simpson and Dave Amato. Don Ross plays a baritone by Canadian Luthier Mark Beneteau, and Simpson has played baritones made by English luthier Ralph Bown.
A standard guitar's standard tuning (from lowest string to highest) is E A D G B E. Baritone guitars are usually tuned a perfect fifth lower (A D G C E A), a perfect fourth lower (B E A D F♯ B), a major third lower (C F A♯ D♯ G C) or an octave lower. Gretsch, Fender, Jerry Jones, Burns London and many other companies have produced baritone guitars since the 1960s, although always in small numbers due to low popularity.[1]
Baritone guitars have larger bodies than standard guitars, especially in the case of acoustic instruments, and have longer scale lengths which allow the strings to be tuned lower while remaining close to or at normal tension. On a standard steel-string acoustic guitar, the scale length (the distance from the nut or string guide to the saddle on the bridge) is typically 24.9" to 25.7", and the strings range in diameter from .012" to .054". The scale lengths of various baritone designs range from 27" to 30.5", and the string gauges range from the normal .012-.054" set to sets as thick as .017-.095". Shorter-scale baritone guitars are more like long scale guitars, having more midrange volume, whereas the longer scale lengths and heavier string sets give more bass to the instrument's timbre. Shorter scale baritones tend to be tuned C-C or B-B whereas longer ones typically are tuned A-A.[1]
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[edit] Duane Eddy
The Danelectro baritone was used by million-selling guitarist Duane Eddy on some of his huge hits, such as "Bonnie Came Back", "Because They're Young" "Kommotion", (all 1960), "My Blue Heaven"(1961) , "Deep in the Heart of Texas" (1962), "The Son of Rebel Rouser" (1964). The instrument was used almost exclusively on his best-selling album "The Twang's The Thang" (Jamie Records, 1960) and pops up regularly on singles and albums throughout his career (for instance, "Twang Thang", The Duane Eddy Anthology, Rhino Records).
The "twangy" sound of his guitars (which include Duane Eddy custom-builts by Guild, Grestch and Gibson) augmented the even deeper twangy sound made by the Danelectro baritone. Duane used the familiar black model and an unsual grey "Longhorn" model.
[edit] Mike Mushok
Mike Mushok (born April 10, 1970) is the lead guitarist for the hard rock/post-grunge band Staind, who hails from Ludlow, Massachusetts. Mike usedhis signiatured Ibanez MMM1 from "Dysfunction" (1999) up until "Chapter V" (2005). The guitar now is discontinued by Ibanez. At the 2008 Winter NAMM show, PRS Guitars introduced the new Mike Mushok Signature Baritone SE. [2]
[edit] Tic-tac bass
"Tic-tac bass" is a method of playing baritone guitar or 6-string bass, in which a muted baritone guitar doubles the part played by the bass guitar or double bass. The term is commonly used in country music.[3][4]
[edit] Baritone guitar and 6-string bass
"Baritone guitar" is often used as a generic term to describe both baritone guitars and 6-string basses, and in many web articles, you will see a 6-string bass described as a "Baritone guitar."
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ a b Gerken, Teja. (June 2003). "Acoustic Longnecks". Acoustic Guitar: pp. 94-97.
- ^ NAMM 2008. Guitar Co.. Retrieved on 2008-05-25.
- ^ Pomeroy, Dave (2007-02). 1962 Supro Pocket Bass. Bass Player. Retrieved on 2008-01-07.
- ^ Neptune� Longhorn Bass6. Jerry Jones guitars. Retrieved on 2008-01-07.
