Although the modern guitar is a more recent creation when it comes to music history, there are some surprising facts about the creation of the guitar that goes back almost 1000 years ago.
Are you looking for some interesting facts about this lovely instrument? Sometimes it's cool to hear about events or stories you would never have thought were true. Here are 21 facts about the guitar instrument that may wow you!
You might be able to use one or two of these facts in your next rehearsal/performance to wow your band members or some of your fans.
Or, you could use these facts for a fun game of trivia among musicians and others who would appreciate the knowledge.
The most expensive guitar ever sold was Kurt Cobain's 1959 Martin D18E, which sold for a total of 6 million dollars.
The guitar is said to be the second most popular instrument in the world, behind the piano, which is referred to as the King Of Instruments.
The current fastest guitar player in the world is John "Dr. Hot Licks" Taylor. He played The Flight Of The Bumblebee at 620 bpm in 2011.
The tanbur, a predecessor to the modern guitar, is a very old instrument from Persia that was played in 1500 BC.
An Egyptian musician by the name of Har-Mose played one of the oldest guitar-like instruments an estimated 3500 years ago.
One of the most popular stringed guitars in history in medieval Europe was the Lute, which had anywhere between 8 and 25 strings.
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The guitar is such a popular instrument that it is estimated there are 50 million guitar players worldwide.
The first electric guitar was made in 1937 by Swiss-American electrical engineer Adolph Rickenbacker. It was named the Rickenbacker Frying Pan.
Before we had nylon strings available, guitars used strings made from animal intestines, also known as gut strings.
Every guitar may be made a little differently, but there are three main parts - the headstock, the neck, and the body.
The English word "guitar", the German word "gitarre", and the French word "guitar" are all derivatives of the Spanish word "guitarra".
The Fender factory in California produces over 90,000 guitar strings each day, which creates 20,000 miles of strings per year.
Most guitar instruments have a total of 6 strings, but there are often some with 4 or 12 twelve strings that can be seen as well. Rarer versions can include 7, 8, or 10 strings.
Each year, an estimated 1.5 million guitars are manufactured across the globe. Japan alone has an estimated 645,000 guitars made each year.
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Some people are so obsessed with their guitars that they actually take the time to marry them. In 2018, a man by the name of Harri Best got married to his guitar in Lagos at a legit ceremony.
Leo Fender, the creator of Fender guitars, didn't actually know how to play the guitar at all. He did have some skills with the piano and the saxophone.
The world's smallest guitar can't even be seen by the naked eye yet. It's called the nano guitar and is about as long as one-twentieth of the diameter of a human hair.
Jimmy Hendrix played the guitar upside down because he repped team lefty (just like me!). Thankfully, left-handed acoustic guitars are now for us left-handed people.
The record for the longest time playing guitar is hailed by Irishman Dave Browne, who played at Temple Bar pub for over four days.
The world’s largest guitar is 13 meters long (which is 40 feet long). It weighs roughly 1000 kg (which is 2,255 lbs.)
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