Guitar

Main article: Guitar pick

A variety of guitar picks

A "guitar pick" or "plectrum" is a small piece of hard material which is generally held between the thumb and first finger of the picking hand and is used to "pick" the strings. Though most classical players pick solely with their finger nails, the "pick" is often used for electric and some acoustic guitars. Though today they are mainly plastic, variations do exist, such as bone, wood, steel or tortoise shell. Tortoise shell was the most commonly used material in the early days of pick making but as tortoises became more and more endangered, the practice of using their shells for picks or anything else was banned. Tortoise shell picks are often coveted for a supposedly superior tone and ease of use.

Picks come in many shapes and sizes. Picks vary from the small jazz pick to the large bass pick. The thickness of the pick often determines its use. A thinner pick (between .2 and .5 mm) is usually used for strumming or rhythm playing, whereas thicker picks (between .7 and 1.5+ mm) are usually used for single-note lines or lead playing. The distinctive guitar sound of Billy Gibbons is attributed to using a quarter or peso as a pick. Similarly, Brian May is known to use a sixpence coin as a pick.

Thumb picks and finger picks that attach to the finger tips are sometimes employed in finger-picking styles.

Notes

^ Kasha, Dr. Michael (August 1968). "A New Look at The History of the Classic Guitar". Guitar Review 30,3-12
^ [A Brief History of the Guitar http://www.guyguitars.com/eng/handbook/BriefHistory.html]
^ Kithara appears in the Greek New Testament four times (1 Cor. 14:7, Rev. 5:8, 14:2 and 15:2), and is usually translated into English as harp. Strong's Concordance Number: 2788 [1]
^ Online Etymology Dictionary. Retrieved on 2007-09-21.
^ Summerfield, Maurice J. (2003). The Classical Guitar, It's Evolution, Players and Personalities since 1800 (5th ed.) Blaydon on Tyne: Ashley Mark Publishing. ISBN 1-872-63946-1.
^ [Viking Art & Architecture http://www.angelfire.com/realm/shades/vikings/vikart.htm]
^ [A Look At The History Of The Guitar http://www.thejazzfestival.net/showarticle?id=109580]
^ The Classical Mandolin by Paul Sparks (1995)
^ Early Romantic Guitar
^ The Guitar and Its Music: From the Renaissance to the Classical Era by James Tyler (2002)
^ Evans, Tom and MaryAnne (1977). Guitars: Music, history, Construction and Players from the Renaissance to Rock, 42. ISBN 0-448-22240-X.
^ The Official Steve Vai Website - www.vai.com > The Machines > Steve's Guitars
^ Mottola, R.M.. Lutherie Info – Calculating Fret Positions.

References

Flamenco! The Guitar and the Music – An Indiana University research paper on Flamenco, the indigenous music of the Gypsies of southern Spain, written by Jeff Foster, 1987.