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What was the first guitar solo ever?


dem00n

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The ancient Sumerians and Babylonians had an early precursor to the guitar known as the tanbur. It was an advancement of the bowl harp, developed by straightening the neck so the strings could be pressed against it.

 

Bowl Harp

1942.1.396_a.jpg

 

 

Tanbur

 

8334-124914292010.jpg

 

 

They were not fretted instruments (frets came later), and most songs were played with idividual notes and some multi note combinations. These could arguably be deemed the first guitar solos.

 

 

hittitemusic.jpg

 

 

So, we're looking at roughly 3500 to 4000 years ago?

 

Ymmv.

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if it's not a guitar, it's not a guitar solo now is it? now if he had asked for the first documented stringed instrument solo...... [flapper]

 

 

Hmmm... fret board, strings, resonator.... called "khatara" in Greece and "quitara" in Spain...

 

 

 

Close enough for me.

 

 

But I'm interested to see what your research into early period instruments has produced...

 

cool.gif

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Hmmm... fret board, strings, resonator.... called "khatara" in Greece and "quitara" in Spain...

 

 

 

Close enough for me.

 

 

But I'm interested to see what your research into early period instruments has produced...

 

cool.gif

Ever heard of the ashmolean stradivarius?

A five-course guitar.

Its lacking lower frets though and has a very low bridge.

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Hmmm... fret board, strings, resonator.... called "khatara" in Greece and "quitara" in Spain...

 

 

 

Close enough for me.

 

 

But I'm interested to see what your research into early period instruments has produced...

 

cool.gif

 

now you're introducing points not in your original post. you referred to a guitar precursor (your own words). That's like saying Homo erectus is the same as a Homo sapien. Close, but no cigar.

 

regardless the OP asked about the first (arguably known) guitar solo. your expose on the bowl harp didn't really answer it. After some quick googling, Charlie Christian wasn't the first known guitar solo player. Looks like George Barnes, Leonard Ware and other pre-dated him. Of course, these are electric players, so who knows.

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I'd say it all depends on what you consider a "guitar."

 

Almost certainly somebody who worked to play whatever it was, was doing it solo, perhaps as a vocal accompaniment.

 

Asia had "frets" on instruments a long, long time ago too - depending, I guess, on what you consider frets.

 

m

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I would venture a guess that the first composition for solo guitar was written some time during the Baroque period.

 

The first modern recorded guitar solo, however, has been attributed to Lonnie Johnson. Let's go for his 1927 recording "6/88 Glide."

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_pV9nO6rYN4

 

This is the first I've ever heard of it, but I love it. [thumbup]

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now you're introducing points not in your original post. you referred to a guitar precursor (your own words). That's like saying Homo erectus is the same as a Homo sapien. Close, but no cigar.

 

regardless the OP asked about the first (arguably known) guitar solo. your expose on the bowl harp didn't really answer it. After some quick googling, Charlie Christian wasn't the first known guitar solo player. Looks like George Barnes, Leonard Ware and other pre-dated him. Of course, these are electric players, so who knows.

 

 

The guitar predates all those players, unless they went by a locative or something as their last name.

 

Ludicrous to think it took centuries to learn to solo, as in play a melody on one string.

 

Now, had the OP asked "what was the first MODERN solo?", why then, you'd be a genius!

 

As it stands, though, my answer is correct. The tanbura IS the first guitar, the same as Homo Erectus is the first man.

 

Not the first MODERN man, but...

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I'd say it all depends on what you consider a "guitar."

 

Almost certainly somebody who worked to play whatever it was, was doing it solo, perhaps as a vocal accompaniment.

 

Asia had "frets" on instruments a long, long time ago too - depending, I guess, on what you consider frets.

 

m

 

 

There are fretted examples of the tanbura, and the Middle Eastern areas even had raised fretboards.

 

 

I'd not thought of the "playing alone" angle... a +1 for you!

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Ever heard of the ashmolean stradivarius?

A five-course guitar.

Its lacking lower frets though and has a very low bridge.

 

I've heard of the famed Stradivarious, but never heard it called by that name.

 

The Messiah of Violins.... priceless!

 

 

Litterally!

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Animal Farm...

 

First, with the pix ... you be bad.

 

Secondly, when I've worked in Texas I never took my hat off unless I was in bed or in the shower???????

 

Okay, I'm not wearing it in the house right now... 'Guess I got civilized.

 

m

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This is a good thought provoking question but as pointed out it is very open ended and needs to be quantified with some parameters to reach a conclusion.

 

  • What do you consider to be a guitar? Do you mean the current design we consider to be a guitar? 6 strings in what we consider to be standard tuning? 12 or more frets, basic modern guitar body design?

  • Acoustic or Electric or amplified acoustic/electric?

  • What basic musical elements you consider a guitar solo contains.

  • Documneted, recorded or assumed?

 

Given these parameters I would have to give credit to whoever the luthier was that created the first guitar that only used 6 strings, and was standard tuned. I doubt (speculative conclusion) that they would know much about chord shapes for the tuning and would have most likely taken the approach of creating single note melodies across the strings. (Which is what I would consider the basic prerequisites of a guitar solo) I make this assumption based on if you hand almost anyone a guitar for the first time and they try to play I have never seen anyone just start playing chords out of the blue. Anyone I have ever seen play for the first time usually tries to pick out some melody using single notes. In my case Iron Man and smoke on the water on the E string. Taking these things into consideration then I can come to the conclusion of............................................................................Heck if I Know!!!!!!! :blink:

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`

 

I'd say it all depends on what you consider

a "guitar."

 

Almost certainly somebody who worked to

play whatever it was, was doing it solo,

perhaps as a vocal accompaniment.

 

 

If it [whatever it was .... ] was played solo,

like by a solo performer, then thaz a "solo

performance" .... but it's not "a solo" which

I think we'd all agree means the ensemble

playing breaks down to feature a member

of the ensemble "playing a solo" .... which

is a different thing than "playing solo", as

one must when one lacks an ensemble.

 

 

 

`

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