Seven-string guitar. How is a six-string guitar different from a seven-string guitar? Professional performance on 6 and 7-string guitars

The seven-string guitar appeared empirically about two hundred years ago. The first half of the 9th century was marked by numerous experiments in guitar construction.

Parisian master Rene Lecomte created a model of a guitar with seven strings, and he also came up with the idea of \u200b\u200bfixing the strings in the tuning mechanism. Apparently, this guitar in Europe was not betrayed.

This is probably why the popularity seven string guitar associated with the Russian musician Sikhra Andrei Osipovich, who met her in Russia, appreciated her merits and devoted his talent to this guitar as a performer and author of a huge number of musical works.

Some people write that this guitar was invented by Sikhra. But this is not the case. It's just that he devoted all his work to this guitar. There is a legend that Sikhra established the tuning of the seven-string guitar, which still exists today. The seven-string guitar was and is played only in Russia. Hence the name: russian seven-string guitar.

Yet the seven-string guitar has not gained the same popularity as the six-string guitar, which is considered comfortable and versatile. Basically all the music we know belongs to the six-string guitar. Yes, and performing professionals on stage will not find a seven-string guitar in their hands.

The seven-string guitar is used mainly for the performance of Russian romances and variations on the themes of Russian folk songs.

In terms of its structure, a seven-string guitar is no different from a six-string guitar, except for the size, shape and number of strings.

There are three types of guitars: quarts? guitar, tertz? guitar and big guitar. They differ from each other by the distance from the nut to the saddle, called the scales.

The big guitar has a scale of 65 cm, tertz? guitar? 62 cm quart? guitar? 58 cm. In accordance with the value of this distance, the size of the body, the width of the neck also change, and the distance between the strings is almost the same for all types of these guitars.

Besides single-neck guitars, there are two-neck guitars. The additional fretboard has no frets, and only open strings are used, which are not pressed against the fretboard.

Difference between six-string and seven-string guitar

As I said, the main difference between guitars is the number of strings, hence all the ensuing consequences. The tuning of these two types of guitars is different.

Tuning a six-string guitar:

• 1 string? Mi - second octave
• 2 strings? B - the first octave
• 4 string D - the first octave
• 5 string A - small octave
• 6 string E - small octave

Seven-string guitar tuning:

• 1 string? D - second octave
• 2 strings? B - the first octave
• 3 strings? Salt - first octave
• 4 strings? Re - the first octave
• 5 string? B - small octave
• 6 string? Salt - small octave
• 7 string? Re - small octave

Six and seven-string guitars sound an octave lower than they are written. That is, if you play the guitar text on the piano, then you need to play one octave lower.

Basically, anything written for a seven-string guitar can be played on a six-string guitar. To do this, tune the sixth string to a tone below "D". And then the range of a six-string guitar will become wider than that of a seven-string.

Of course, there is an exception - pieces that can only be played on a seven-string guitar, or vice versa, only on a six-stringed guitar.

Our Twitter: @instrumen_music

Free distribution of the article with preservation of the authorship and links to the site is encouraged:

Not very common, but taking place on the stage, a modification of six-string acoustics is a seven-string or Russian guitar. Unlike a seven-string electric guitar, where the 7th string is an additional one, in the Russian guitar the seventh string is completely independent, which changes the usual tuning. Chords and playing techniques learned on a six-string guitar cannot be transferred to a seven-string guitar, also known as gypsy.

Seven-string guitar for the beginner

The 7-string guitar has never been versatile, even during its peak years. Now such instruments are used to perform romances, mostly Russian, and bard songs. It makes sense to start learning the seven-string only if you are strictly sure that these particular genres of music will accompany you throughout your creative career. It is difficult and unpleasant to retrain from seven-string to ordinary acoustics. Summing up, we can say that the seven-string guitar is far from the best choice for a beginner performer.

Who is it for?

Buy a seven-string guitar can be recommended to guitarists who have already mastered the six-string model quite well. With its help, you can accompany yourself on stage, adjusting to the peculiarities of your voice. This is exactly what such famous Russian bards as Yuri Vizbor, Vladimir Vysotsky, Bulat Okudzhava did. Among the international instrumentalists, the seven-string guitar skills include people such as James Shaffer and Brian Welch (both from Korn), Stephen Carpenter (Deftones), Dino Cazares (Fear Factory) and others. You can use seven-string acoustics in completely different directions of music, but for this, in addition to inspiration, you need to have remarkable talent and experience.

As ironic as it may sound, Russian guitars in post-Soviet Russia are doing very badly. The emphasis is increasingly being placed on cheaper instruments, which loses originality and sound quality. The best seven-string instruments are made in America and Europe (BC Rich, Fernandes, Gibson, Ibanez, Jackson, ESP). Mid-range instruments are most often produced in Asia under the license of famous brands. These include Cort, Dean, Epiphone, ESP, Invasion, Squier, Washburn, and Yamaha. Well, the cheapest models are made in the same China or Korea, but the quality of work lies entirely on the conscience of the craftsmen and engineers of the manufacturers. Quite good models can be found by Martinez, Flight, Aria Pro II, LTD by ESP, J&D, PRS and others. Tools are brought from far away and tend to be damaged during transportation. When receiving an order, be sure to check for mechanical damage and defects, check the neck and body for deformation due to temperature changes or high humidity. Check the sound quality of your 7-string guitar with the help of a tuner or an experienced musician friend. The strings should not cling to the neck or adjacent strings, and they should not rattle or slide due to poor tuning pegs. The seven-string guitar is an excellent addition to the musician's collection and a chance to reveal a new facet of his talent.

Russian seven-string, or, as the people called her "Gypsy" guitar, began to gain its popularity around the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries.

The most important difference this guitar from the usual six-string is a special tuning and the presence seven strings. But, for example, the body of these two instruments is almost the same.

Until 1917, this guitar was the most popular, which was played by the majority of the people, but closer to the beginning of the twentieth century, its popularity almost disappeared.

Often six string guitar is put in contrast to the gypsy with seven strings. Often gypsy guitar used as an accompaniment - it was especially often used during the performance of romantic and folk songs, but sometimes as the main instrument in solo performances of composers. Often, this guitar could be seen among gypsy performers, due to which the definition was attached to it "Gypsy".

An interesting fact: for such a guitar, the notes are written one octave higher for more comfortable reading.

Due to the peculiarities of the sound of a seven-string guitar, some musicians strive to improve their six-string guitar - for this they try to tune it so that it sounds approximately like a seven-string guitar.

Types of seven-string guitar

There are three types of guitar in total: quart guitar, tertz guitar and big guitar.

• Quart guitar it is distinguished by the fact that the size of its scale is 550 millimeters and it is built a whole quart higher. In comparison with the others, it has the most compact size.
• Tertz guitar has a scale of 585 millimeters and its tuning is a small third higher than in a classic seven-string guitar.
• Big guitar is a full-size classic seven-string guitar with a scale of 650 millimeters. Is an classic kind of a seven-string guitar. This model was used as an accompaniment: Vizbor, Vysotsky, Galich and others.

Earlier I already wrote about the connection between sound, color, chakras and the seven human shells (auras), as well as their connection with vibration frequencies - the Quantum Transition - how will it happen?

There is also a good excerpt from the cartoon "Avatar: The Legend of Aaang", which simply and clearly explains how to work with chakras How to open all your seven chakras - a guide for children

Theoretical basis

Sound

As you know, music deals with sounds. Sound is created by vibrations of a body, such as a string. Sound has the following properties:

Height is the frequency of vibration.

Timbre - the presence of overtones (overtones), depends on the sound source.

Duration - duration of the sound.

Loudness is the amplitude of the oscillation.

Musical sounds form a musical system. The sounds used in music are called tones. The most important property of sound in music is pitch: the more often it vibrates, the higher the sound. The pitch (pitch) is measured in hertz (Hz) and determines the key.

For example, the A (A) note of the first octave has a frequency of 440 Hz. Thus, any sound in a music system has its own pitch. Sometimes the vibrations are so fast that we may not hear the sound being produced, such as a very high-pitched sound of a dog's whistle. But not all sounds are used in music.

Our hearing is able to distinguish between musical and noise sounds. Noise sounds do not have an exact pitch, such as creaking, thunder, rustling, train wheels, etc., so they are not used in music. (Already used in the modern - for example, the ambient direction).

Music system. Scale. Steps and their names.

The musical system is a series of sounds located among themselves at a certain pitch. On a guitar, the musical system is represented as the sum of all sounds located on the fretboard.

Sounds located between themselves in height in an ascending or descending order form a scale, and each sound is a step of the scale. Moving in ascending (descending) order, we sort of

we go up (go down) the steps of the stairs, therefore the sounds are called steps, each step of the scale is numbered and has its own name.

The complete scale of the musical system includes 88 different sounds, but we do not invent our own name for each sound, but use seven names of notes included in one octave.

These names are: C (do), D (pe), E (mi), F (fa), G (sol), A (la), B (si). On a piano, these sounds correspond to white keys. The degrees have syllabic designations, they correspond to the names of notes (do, re, mi, fa, sol, la, si), and numerical (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7).

1.C (Before)

2.D (D)

3. E (Mi)

4. F (Fa)

5.G (Salt)

6.A (La)

7.H (B)

For all sounds, we use the same note names, but at the same time divide the scale into octaves to distinguish sounds by pitch.

The octaves have the following names:

Sub - counter - octave

Counter - octave

Big octave

Small octave

First octave

Second octave

Third octave

Fourth octave

Fifth octave

It is important to note that the oscillation frequency (pitch) of the first step of one octave and the first step of the next octave after it (this distance is called an octave interval) will differ by exactly 2 times. For example, note A in the first octave has a frequency of 440 hertz, and note A in the second octave is 880 hertz.

Semitone and whole tone. The name of the derived steps. Flat and sharp.

In the musical system, each octave is divided into twelve equal parts, they are called semitones. A distance of two semitones forms a whole tone. Only between two pairs of notes there can be no whole tone - E, F and B, C. Thus, between the main steps of the scale there are five whole tones and two semitones.

As it was written above, there are 7 main steps, on the piano they are represented by white keys, there are also derivative steps, black piano keys, they are formed by raising or lowering the main steps by half a tone. This process is called alteration. To decrease or increase the main steps, alteration signs are used: flat (♭) - a decrease by a semitone and a sharp (#) - an increase by a semitone.

Thus, we get 12 equal semitones: A, A # | Bb, B, C, C # | Db, D, D # | Eb, E, F, F # | Gb, G, G # | Ab. Remember that between E, F and B, C is a semitone, so C and F cannot be C ♭ and F ♭, and E and B cannot be E # and B #.

In music, apart from these notes, there are no more, and each song is written using combinations of them in different octaves, so a melody is just a sequence of notes with a certain rhythm.

Notes on the guitar fretboard.

You also need to know where all these notes are located on the guitar fretboard. Knowing the notes that are played with the open strings, you can find all the others using what you learned earlier. An open string is a string that is not pressed against the frets with your left hand while playing. A closed string is when we play a note with the left hand pressing the string between frets, forcing the string to remain stationary in relation to the fret and play a higher note.

So what are open strings? Starting with the highest (and thinnest) string and going up (you are looking at the guitar from above), the notes are arranged as follows: E, B, G, D, A, E - remember this! Also, each string has a serial number. The thin string E (mi) is called the first string, the string B (b) is called the second string, and so on up to the 6th string E (mi).

(it seemed to me alone with)

Now how to play other notes is very simple ... The rule is very simple. Moving a fret means moving a semitone. Let's play the G (G) or 3rd string, but there are many other options and you can play one or more G (G) notes on each string. Let's take the first string. We know this is an open E (e) string, so on the first fret this is an F, remember there is no E #. 2nd fret will be F #. 3rd fret will be G! Let's try another way. We start with the B (c) string - B, C (not B #), C #, D, D #, E, F, F #, G - 8th fret.

It seemed strange to me alone that one of the notes was thrown away? Or I have not quite tasted yet, why is everything so?

In general, then for me, as a person far from musical wisdom (I only like to listen to music, but there is already a desire to learn how to play any musical instrument) the fact of using six strings instead of seven ( there are seven notes!) seems pretty strange.

Therefore, we will learn more about the seven-string guitar - wouldn't it be more logical to use the model: one string - one note? Or am I still missing something?

Russian seven-string guitar - stringed plucked musical instrument from the family of guitars. Has become widespread in Russia since the end of the 18th century. Its main feature is the tuning, which is different from that of the classical six-string guitar.

The Russian seven-string guitar appeared in Russia at the end of the 18th century. The exact fate of her formation is unknown. According to some researchers (M.A.Stakhovich, M.I.Pylyaev, A.V. and S.N. Tikhonravovs), the inventor of the Russian guitar is Andrey Osipovich Sikhra (1773-1850) - the founder of the guitar art in Russia, who wrote for She has about a thousand musical compositions and arrangements of folk and academic music. The first experience of creating and playing the Russian guitar was made by him in Vilna (Vilnius) in 1793, with its subsequent improvement in Moscow. Andrey Sikhra gave concerts, published popular guitar magazines, taught a lot.

Considering the fact that the major triad tuning has been known in Europe since the 16th century and was used on the English guitar (in the key of C, strings: (g1, e1, c1), (g, e, c)), it can be assumed that Andrei Sikhra borrowed this tuning principle for his invention with the addition of the seventh (bass) string D (strings: (d1, h, g), (d, H, G), D). It is also known that the author of the first in the history of the School of playing the Russian seven-string guitar, published in 1798, Ignaz von Geld (Ignatius Frantsovich Geld, 1766-1816) played the English guitar.

In terms of body shape and design features, the seven-string guitar is generally similar to those of the classic six-string guitar.

In general, I am not strong in music. Maybe someone can explain it simply and clearly, and not as below (too much specific terminology)

The sound of the open strings forms the tuning of the guitar. A sequence of tones, starting with the first string, the highest in pitch: Re (first octave); Si, Salt, Re (small octave); Si, Sol, Re (large octave). This tuning is a standard academic tuning for the Russian guitar.

Mixed tuning - third-third, formed by the major triad in the key of G: (d1 ← h ← g), (d ← H ← G), D) (Helmholtz letter notation). In total, the tuning contains two single-tone triads formed by groups of strings 3-1 and 6-4, with intervals of an octave between the corresponding steps of the triads. The group of strings 7-5 forms a G major quarter-text chord (the second inversion of the G major triad) with a triple fifth fifth, doubled prima G and a third C [KI 1] [KM 2].

The intervals between adjacent strings: d1 (m.3) h (b.3) g (p.4) d (m.3) H (b.3) G (p.4) D (m.3 and b.3 - minor and major thirds, part 4 - pure fourth). Thus, the scale contains two identical groups of intervals: (m.3, b.3, ch.4) (m.3, b.3, ch.4) - only 2 quarts and 4 thirds.

And the pyramid in the figure at the beginning of the post is not for nothing.
The seven chakras of a person are, as it were, seven levels of frequencies of his vibrations - from the lowest to the highest.
From Muladhara to Sahasrara.

Does the picture look like nothing?

That's right - the pyramid, the same one. Only at the top of the post is it truncated, without the Sahasrara, so to speak. Those. without high frequencies, the Divine Principle.

The answer to this question, it would seem, lies on the surface - the difference in the number of strings. But, these guitars are even called differently: Spanish (six-stringed) and Russian (seven-stringed), which indicates a deeper difference associated with the state characteristics of music.

Spanish guitar (aka traditional).
Without going into too much history, it is possible to say that it was formed by the end of the 18th century in Spain. After that, its shape underwent some more constructive configurations, and in the 19th century it was finally determined as traditional. The guitar has a fourth tuning (except for one pair of strings tuned to a third). Such an arrangement allows not only to accompany, but also opens up wide abilities for solo performance. Namely, due to the ease of playing polyphonic pieces.

Russian guitar (aka gypsy).
Coming from Spain to Russia, the guitar got an additional string, together with which its tuning changed - it became tertz (except for 2 pairs of strings tuned to a fourth), which significantly affected the technique: it became easier to play chords, the emphasis shifted to the side accompaniment (romances, songs). Apart from this, such a system generates absolutely special overtones (overtones), more monotonous to Russian folk music.

Materials provided from the website www.otvetin.ru

Spanish guitar (aka traditional) Without going into too much history, it is possible to say that it was formed by the end of the 18th century in Spain. After that, its shape underwent some more constructive configurations, and in the 19th century it was finally determined as traditional. The guitar has a fourth tuning (except for one pair of strings tuned to a third). Such a system allows not ...