- Dreadnought (guitar type)
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A C.F. Martin & Company dreadnought
Dreadnought is a type of acoustic guitar body developed by guitar manufacturers C.F. Martin & Company. The Dreadnought style has since been copied by other guitar manufacturers and is now a common style of guitar body. Dreadnought is sometimes misspelled as "Dreadnaught".
The dreadnought guitar body is larger than most other guitars that existed at the time of its creation, and thus results in a bolder and often louder tone. In 1916 the word 'dreadnought' referred to a large, modern superbattleship of the type inaugurated by HMS Dreadnought in 1906. The distinctive marks of a Dreadnought guitar are square shoulders and bottom. The neck is usually attached to the body at the 14th fret.
Martin Dreadnought guitars are also known as "D-size" guitars. Martin Dreadnought guitars have model numbers consisting of "D-" followed by a number, such as "D-18" and "D-45".
History
The Dreadnought style was originally developed in 1916 and was manufactured by Martin specifically for retailer the Oliver Ditson Company.
In 1931, Martin began producing Dreadnought guitars carrying the Martin name. The first two models were the D-1 and D-2.
The popularity of and demand for Martin Dreadnought guitars was increased by their use, almost exclusively, by folk musicians of the mid-20th century, including most bluegrass guitarists. Today they are considered the standard guitar of bluegrass music,[citation needed] used by many bluegrass musicians to produce the signature sound of that genre.
See also
- C.F. Martin & Company
External links
Categories:- Acoustic guitars
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