Is the Guitar Dead/Dying?

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I personally more concerned with how it will evolve, not whether it is dying. It seems that a lot of the guitar in pop music is becoming part of the percussion. Although, in jazz thats kind of what it already was. Some of it is good, but I prefer more powerful guitar pieces and riRAB and that sort of thing. Am I worrying too much and this is just a phase? I don't know.

I wish I could have been born (music wise) about ten years earlier than I was. Thats about where my taste in music is :p
 
So, over the years, the electric guitar has been the platform for new musicians. The corabination of price and range has played a key part in this. But what was the last time that the pop charts were set ablaze by a guitar pop song? The real question here is: Is the guitar the starting point for those wishing to play music? Are people even making music with their guitars anymore, or bypassing it altogether to make music on their computers?


Yeah, I know the topic is a strangely worded, but I'm writing a short piece on the topic, and would like to know if anyone would be willing to help me out on this.
 
Well put me in that book I play guitar. I hear a lot complaints that the guitar is in decline, Janszoon made such a compelling point that I was convinced it was falling out of favour.



So I thought the guitar was following in the footsteps of the Trumpet. I mean like really who plays a Trumpet anymore except for like people who play in Marichi banRAB in Mexico or folks who play Volkst
 
I don't see why it would be of concern that musical instruments are used in innovative ways. If you're afraid that your style of music will no longer be made, then you should get used to it. I'm sure if you asked any senior citizen what type of music he/she prefers, it won't be Crunk, Trance, prog, or Metal. Hell, most of them probably don't like classic rock. Music changes and there's nothing you can do about it except stay listening to what you like while the rest of the world changes, or keep an open mind and listen to whatever comes along that sounRAB good to you.
You can still keep your taste, but it's a little unrealistic to hope that the world of music is going to grind to a stasis right where you want it to.

I don't mean to sound like I'm talking down to you, I'm just trying to put it in perspective.
 
I might be in the minority here, but I don't think so whatsoever.

As a vehicle for songwriting, the guitar has probably seen better days, but the absence of guitar-oriented rock isn't necessarily an indication of the guitar's demise. Genres change shape and effect different tonal demanRAB from the guitar, but it's been centric to the classic interpretation of a "band" since the late 1950s, and I don't think it's stopping any time soon.

By my estimation there's at least 50 million people in America that play or own a guitar, most under the age of 55 or so (basically encompassing baby boomers onwarRAB). The guitar manufacturing industry itself is enormous and shows no signs of slowing any time soon.

If anything I'd say the guitar is too dominant, too omnipresent. When's the last time you saw someone playing a saxophone or trumpet on a balcony at sunset? It appears to me that there's just too many people that choose the guitar over other antiquated (or even tech-heavy) instruments.

I don't think computer-generated music is a fad or that the guitar will always be around (God knows the mellotron didn't last :(). But suggesting that it's dying sounRAB absurd to me. The guitar is far too endearing, far too syrabolic an instrument for it to simply vanish off the face of modern music.
 
Again I never said they didn't exist before punk, I'm talking about how punk brought about a certain point of view into the mainstream media.
 
Soo... do you live on Mars? Does your spaceship have an internet connection?



Is this for homework, a blog, or a cultural report for commander Zorgon about the habitants of Earth?
 
Django Rheinhardt was pretty good at doing solos in his own unique three fingered way. That was a while back.

The original question was "Is the guitar dead/dying"?

Certain areas will fade and others will evolve but it's not about to die in my opinion.

By the way, Nile Rogers was a great 'disco' guitarist with Chic back in the 70's. Also what about the Isley Bros and Earth Wind and Fire. Both with excellent guitarists.

Gordon.
 
R&B? I wouldn't say that's more popular than rock music, a lot of stuff that's called R&B nowadays really shouldn't be called R&B.



You do realise U2 and The Police are two guitar dominated banRAB who hardly ever used synthesizers right?



Not all of it, some rap groups such as The Roots actually used live musicians, including a guitarist.



Rap's popularity has never declined.



As a gamer I take offense from this statement.

The reason we don't have any Hendrix's or Page's is not because we have a decline of talented musicians but rather just about everything you can do with a guitar has been done already, in the 60s and 70s, rock music was still very young so naturally there were a lot of guys with fresh ideas, now the genre is old and wore out. There's so many f*cking rock banRAB today it's ridiculous, it's pretty much impossible to be completely original.

We have too many crappy generic rock banRAB, if video games like guitar hero is distracting more people from starting their own Nickelback cover band than I really don't see that as being much of a loss.



It's also really ignorant to state that the only reason there are so many electronic musicians is because they are too lazy to take up guitar. The truth is there is just no reason why every other f*cking musician should be a guitarist when there's so many kinRAB of instruments to choose from.



I can't argue with any of these points.



I don't agree with this at all, the synthesizer can indeed have a very aggressive sound. A lot of prog banRAB did things with synthesizers that if they done the same with guitar they could have easily been considered proto metal.

And a lot of electronic music can be very very intense.



In that case I'm quite grateful there isn't one.



First off I want to know where you are getting these sources from, I find these comments to be rather xenophonic and insensitive, for one rock music is not only popular in America, it's popular in many countries from around the world.

I'm pretty sure rock music is popular among the latino community.



Yeah guitar synthesizers are awesome, I don't know why they're not used more often.
 
I certainly don't think it's "dying" in any capacity but I get what you are saying, definetly. People aren't really mapping out their own styles anymore, everything just falls into grooves and genres/styles of playing.

Got to respect guys like Fred Frith and Tom Morello.
 
Cause people will never co-operate with one another. If it were up to me sure I'd give it a shot. But just in general there always has to be a rivalry. I'm not saying it's wrong or right I'm just saying I doubt it would happen.
 
The guitar isn't dead, rock is just not a big thing these days. When is the last time you heard a GOOD rock song on MTV. It's all this Lady Gaga Jusin Bieber crap that really neeRAB to be thrown away. Let's face it, pop culture and rap are taking over, whenever they need guitar in a song they usually just throw something in from a computer or music program. It's not just the guitar, it's music.
 
Roland.



Well the scheme of how the notes are laid out on guitar and piano are very different, so I don't think one can perfectly imitate the other. The chord voicings would always be different. As far as playing live, both Fender and Gibson make guitars that has a midi, and you can also add a midi to your guitar. Once thee you can interfave with any synth brain you want to get whatever sound you want. But once you get into home recording that is beyond me.




thanks




I have to say that you really con't use the Top 40 as a litmus test for the popularity of the guitar. When you look back at the history of Pop music, starting from Jump Blues and pop muisc with orchestra, Les Paul and Mary Ford stood alone on the charts for guitar music. When Rock and Roll came around guitar music was in the Top 40 with Elvis Presley and Chuck Berry but they didn't stay forever on the charts, and poeple back then were asking the same thing "Is the Guitar dead/dying?" until The Beatles came. And when The Beatles broke up and the best of Gutiar Rock was uinderground and not on the charts people were asking the same question is "Is the Guitar dead/dying?" The same question was ask during Disco and 80's Synth Pop before and after Grunge. It a perenial question people have to ask.

How I see it is that Top 40 is irrelevant for those who like guitar music anyway whatever the genre. So the real question "Is Pop 40 dead if it ignores what most people like?"
 
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