Twelve-string guitar

This article is about guitars with 6 courses. For guitars with more than six separate strings, see extended-range classical guitar or ten-string guitar.

Maton CW80/12

The twelve-string guitar is an acoustic or electric guitar with 12 strings in 6 courses, which produces a richer, more ringing tone than a standard six-string guitar. Essentially, it is a type of guitar with a natural chorus effect due to the subtle differences in the frequencies produced by each of the two strings on each course.

Design

The strings are placed in courses of two strings each that are usually played together. The two strings in each bass course are normally tuned an octave apart, while each pair of strings in the treble courses are tuned in unison. The tuning of the second string in the third course (G) varies: some players use a unison string while others prefer the distinctive high-pitched, bell-like quality an octave string makes in this position. Some players, either in search of distinctive tone or for ease of playing, will remove some of the doubled strings. For example, removing the higher octave from the three bass courses simplifies playing running bass lines, but keeps the extra treble strings for the full strums.

The tension placed on the instrument by the strings is great, and because of this, 12 string guitars have a reputation for warping after a few years of use. Some twelve-string guitars have non-traditional structural supports to prevent or postpone such a fate, at the expense of appearance and tone. Until recently, twelve-string guitars were nearly universally tuned lower than the traditional EADGBE, to reduce the stresses on the instrument. Lead Belly may have used a low C-tuning (See Julius Lester/Pete Seeger The 12-String Guitar as Played by Leadbelly, Oak Publications, New York, 1965, 6).

Some performers prefer the richness of an open tuning due to its near-orchestral sound. For a very complex plucked-string sound, the 12-string can be set to standard tuning (or possibly an octave lower), then the top one and low two string pairs can be tuned to whole-tone intervals. The usual gamut of guitar tunings are also available. Many performers who play the twelve-string guitar use an ordinary six-string guitar as their primary instrument, switching to the twelve-string guitar for certain songs that seem to call for a brighter sound.

Because it is substantially more difficult to pluck individual strings on the twelve-string guitar, and almost impossible to bend notes tunefully, the instrument is rarely used for lead musical parts. 12-string guitar is however primarily suited to a rhythm or accompaniment role and is often used in folk songs and some popular music. Some hard rock and progressive rock musicians use double-necked guitars, which have both six-string and twelve-string components, allowing the guitarist easy transition between different sounds.

The greater number of strings complicates playing, particularly for the plucking (or picking) hand. The gap between the dual-string courses is usually narrower than that between the single-string courses of a conventional six-string guitar, so more precision is required with pick or fingertip when not simply strumming chords. The pairing of thin, easily broken octave strings with larger, stiffer bass strings presents difficulties to the player also, and only a very skilled player can reliably pluck single strings from within a course at any speed (notably the very high octave G string, which is the highest-pitched string on the instrument). Nevertheless, with practice, the twelve-string guitar is not unduly difficult to play. It is, however, generally used in a fairly restricted role which emphasises its strengths: rich ringing, full-bodied chords, and fast, rippling single plucked notes on the twinned strings. Twelve-string guitars are made in both acoustic and electric form. However, it is the acoustic type that is most common.

Chorus effect

The double ranks of strings of the 12-string guitar produce a shimmering chorus effect. To produce this effect individual string sounds with roughly the same timbre and nearly (but never exactly) the same pitch converge and are perceived as one. When the effect is produced successfully, none of the constituent sounds is perceived as being out of tune. Rather, this amalgam of sounds has a rich, shimmering quality which would be absent if the sound came from a single source. The effect is more apparent when listening to sounds that sustain for longer periods of time, such as a long guitar chord.

Usage

Use of twelve-string electric guitar almost appears to be cyclical: beginning with Blind Willie McTell in the '20s and '30s, Lead Belly in the '40s, and continuing with Bob Gibson in the '50s and early '60s, performers and Gibson acolytes such as Mike Pender of The Searchers and Roger McGuinn of The Byrds, brought it to the fore for a decade, until it fell out of favor and was largely limited to niche use by progressive rockers in the 1970s. The instrument was revived in the 1980s by alternative rockers such as Robert Smith of The Cure, Dave Gregory of XTC, Peter Buck of R.E.M., Marty Willson-Piper of The Church, and Johnny Marr of The Smiths. During the 1990s, its popularity waned again, although it plays a key part in the sound of indie rock acts such as Low and The Decemberists. The most popular electric twelve-string model since the 1960s has been the Rickenbacker 360/12, first popularized by George Harrison. Many double-neck guitars have a twelve-string neck, in order for guitarists to switch between tones during live performances, for example, when playing Stairway to Heaven, Hotel California or Xanadu.

Notable performers

Two electric 12 strings, a Shergold Modulator 12 (top) and a Maton Magnetone TB36/12 (bottom); the latter is a copy of the Rickenbacker 360/12

Performers who use acoustic 12-string guitars span a range of genres, from folk (Arlo Guthrie, Gordon Lightfoot and Pete Seeger) and traditional blues (Lead Belly) to folk rock (Paul Simon, Neil Young, John Allan Cameron), country (Pinmonkey's Michael Reynolds) and rock bands (George Harrison of The Beatles,David Bowie for his Space Oddity live performances, Pete Townshend of The Who, Tom Petty and Mike Campbell of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, and Brian May of Queen). Some musicians, notably Leo Kottke, Roger McGuinn of The Byrds, and John Butler, use it as their main instrument.

Matt Nathanson plays a 12-string acoustic guitar.

Australian musician, John Butler plays a 12 string guitar for the majority of his performances.

English musician James Blackshaw is also noted for his use of 12-string guitars in creating instrumental songs.

Electric Rickenbacker 12-string users include a range of jangle pop guitarists, ranging from McGuinn to Peter Buck (R.E.M.). The Gibson EDS-1275 electric 12-string was used by blues rock/early heavy metal guitarist Jimmy Page (Led Zeppelin), Guns and Roses guitarist Slash, Alex Lifeson of Rush, Tom Morello of Rage Against the Machine, System of a Down & Scars on Broadway guitarist Daron Malakian. For a longer list, see the List of 12-string guitar players article.

See also

• Bajo sexto
• Portuguese guitar
• Cümbüş
• Guitar
• Guitarist
• Lute
• Lutenist
• Classical guitar
• Electric guitar
• Mandolin

References

External links

• History of the 12-string
• Vintage Guitar Museum