Two types of guitars are found during the Middle Ages, the Latin guitar and the Moorish guitar. They both appeared in a thirteenth-century manuscript, the ‘Cantigas de Santa Maria,’ presumed to have been written by Spain’s Alfonso the Wise. Detailed, intricate miniatures portray these early instruments. One can see from these illustrations that the Latin guitar comes closer to the shape of the guitars that evolved in Spain and Italy.
The prototype of the modern-day guitar, the vihuela, became the favored instrument for serious musicians in early sixteenth-century Spain. Music for the vihuela, in fact, can be played on modern-day guitars with little change since it has six pairs of strings, similar to the modern twelve-string guitar. Pairs of strings helped the instrument to produce a more vigorous sound. A large repertoire of music was written for the vihuela, in a special type of notation called ‘tablature.’ Played with the fingers, the vihuela was tuned similarly to the Renaissance lute, which the rest of Europe believed to be ‘The King of Instruments.’
A smaller guitar-like instrument developed during this time. This four- and later five-stringed instrument helped to develop the Flamenco strumming style called ‘rasgueado’. Its strings (called courses), as well as its smaller size, made it an easier instrument to use for playing chords and accompanying dances.
It was the vihuela, however, that lost favor as the sixteenth century came to an end. The smaller instrument survived – in its five-stringed version. This instrument was dubbed the ‘Spanish guitar,’ possibly to set it apart from the four-course version. These instruments were also popular in Italy. In fact, an Italian player, Francesco Corbetta (1615 – 1681), published quite a few works played in fingerstyle that took the instrument’s usage far beyond playing chords as an accompaniment. His playing became immensely popular among French and English courtiers during the seventeenth century. His popularity introduced these countries to the guitar.
Robert de Visée (c. 1660 – c. 1720), a talented Frenchman, played frequently for Louis XIV, dedicating his entire collection of pieces composed during the year 1682 to the French monarch. The Spanish player and teacher, Gaspar Sanz, capitalized on the guitar’s popularity to publish an instruction book in 1674. The book, well-known in its day, contained detailed technical instructions, as well as a collection of pieces that are still played today.
Like any art form, guitar music’s popularity waxed and waned many times during its history. The eighteenth century was generally a time of decline, though, toward the end, some technological innovations helped turn the instrument into one more like today’s guitars. Doubled strings fell out of favor, replaced by single ones, and a sixth string was added. Guitar makers began using sheep’s gut to craft the first three strings, while the bass strings were created with silver-plated copper wire wound around a core made of silk thread.
