(String Letter Publishing). Acoustic guitarists can now better understand their instruments, preserve and protect their value, and get the sounds they really want, thanks to this new book from the experts at Acoustic Guitar magazine. This indispensable guide begins by acquainting players with their instruments and laying to rest some pervasive guitar myths, then proceeds through various aspects of basic care, setup, common repairs, and pickup installation. Whether it's cleaning and polishing a beloved guitar, protecting it from theft or changes in humidity, selecting a case, or performing diagnostics, readers will become more savvy acoustic guitar owners and repair-shop customers and can forego dubious advice from well-meaning friends and anonymous "experts" on the Web. Includes a primer and glossary of terms.

Cross offers an inspiring, easy-to-follow introduction to rock's most popularinstrument.

(Book). Every guitarist dreams of owning a handmade instrument, but for most, the cost is likely to be prohibitive. The alternative building your own fine guitar is not as difficult as you might imagine, given some skill, patience, and the expert guidance of a master luthier. Every step of construction is fully covered, from choice, selection, and preparation of woods, to consideration of size, bracing, and tonal qualities. Each step of the building sequence is clearly photographed in color, with variations to the standard design shown to enable you to personalize your instrument as you make it. Briston, England-based Jonathan Kinkead has been building guitars for nearly 30 years. His craft is born out of experience and intuition rather than a strict following of technical detail. The resulting beauty of form and distinctive tone have earned him his reputation as one of the world's most respected independent luthiers.

The acoustic guitar is the instrument of the people and Play Acoustic tells the people how to play it. This detailed and beautifully illustrated book explores the history of the acoustic guitar, from the jazz age to the folk revolutions of the early 1960s and late 1990s to the current rebirth of bluegrass and the singer-songwriter boom of the past decade. Skilled professional musicians and experienced tutors coach the reader through 11 styles, using exercises suitable to novice players new to each style and working up to full pieces and advanced techniques. Entire chapters are devoted to folk, rock and pop, blues, country, bluegrass, jazz, and more, with detailed guidance through both musical notation and tablature, diagrams, and explanatory text. Accompanying audio also offers listening examples of the most crucial of these exercises, to help players master each style.

This beautiful book is a comprehensive guide to the new Golden Age of handcrafted acoustic guitars! Illustrated with full-color photos of custom instruments throughout, this rich resource also contains profiles of top luthiers, advice on buying a custom instrument, and an extensive directory with complete contact information for hundreds of makers. Encompassing steel-string flattops, nylon-strings, resonators and Hawaiians, archtops and more, Custom Guitars presents the history and current state of the art of guitar making. Includes an intro by Alex de Grassi.

(String Letter Publishing). Whether you're a first-time fingerstylist who's studying with a teacher or on your own, The Acoustic Guitar Fingerstyle Method by David Hamburger gives you the detailed, comprehensive instruction you need to improve your skills. This book introduces you to the two most essential fingerstyle approaches for playing American roots music: Travis picking and the steady-bass style. In each lesson, you'll learn new techniques, concepts, and chord voicings along with ways to practice and get them under your fingers. Then you can use what you just learned to play a classic song or solo break from the blues, ragtime, folk, country, and ragtime traditions. 18 In-Depth Lessons, including: Travis Picking Basics, Switching Chords, Eighth Notes and Syncopation, Picking Pattern Fills, Double Stops, and much more. 15 songs to play, including: John Henry * Delia * St. James Infirmary * Nobody's Fault but Mine * Houston Blues * Alberta * and more. Each book includes access to recordings of demonstration tracks of all the exercises and songs. Audio is accessed online using the unique code in each book.

A comprehensive guide to the guitar, with a practical playing manual and chord finder, a historical overview of the instrument and a visual directory of over 150 acoustic guitars, all shown in over 900 photographs and illustrations. ,