Nine-string guitar

Nine String Guitar

A nine-string guitar is a guitar with nine strings instead of the commonly used six strings. Such guitars are not as common as the six string variety, but are used by guitarists to modify the sound or expand the range of their instrument by adding three strings. Unlike seven- and eight-string guitars the nine string guitar is often employed with three pairs of coursed strings similar to a twelve string guitar. Often the three wound strings are single and the three thin strings are doubled to six strings. This allows dry power chords on the upper three and a more spheric chorus sound when all strings are played. Some examples of this type of nine-string guitar are the Vox Mark IX and the Vox Phantom IX. Agile manufactures a 9 string guitar without coursed strings, much like the 7 and 8 string guitars.

Notable Nine-String Guitarists

Mississippi blues singer and guitarist Big Joe Williams spent most of his career playing nine-string guitars he had adapted himself from six string instruments, with the first and second strings doubled in unison and the fourth doubled in octaves.^[1] His grave marker reads "King of the Nine-String guitar".^[2]

Canadian born Kurt Szul has been playing on a nine-string guitar of his own design since 1989. Instead of using the conventional standard tuning plus lower and or higher A, B or G stings, he has developed his own tuning (based on a symmetrical augmented chord or major thirds tuning). He has adapted his unique sound to play jazz, funk, bossa nova, Latin, electronica, rock, blues, and African genres. Kurt has formed bands and performed in many cities around the world, including Tokyo, Vancouver, Toronto, Montreal, and Melbourne. Kurt now resides in Los Angeles, CA where he performs professionally and as a session player.

See also

• Eight-string guitar
• Brahms guitar
• 10-string guitar
• Seven-string guitar
• Russian guitar
• Harp guitar
• Major Third

Notes and references

1. ^ James, Steve (2001). Inside Blues Guitar. Milwaukee: Hal Leonard Corporation, pp. 33-34
2. ^ Cheseborough, Steve (2009). Blues Traveling: The Holy Sites of Delta Blues. Jackson: Univ. Press of Mississippi, p. 217

Kurt Szul's Website: www.kurtszul.com