subject: Selecting Your First Classical Guitar [print this page] Selecting Your First Classical Guitar Selecting Your First Classical Guitar
First of all I want to make it clear that there is no one correct answer to the question which Classical Guitar should I buy. Like any musical decision the final choice is always going to be a matter of personal choice and opinion, however for better or worse I am going to attempt to give you the benefit of my experiences.
Classical Guitars are all very similar in appearance and size, but there is quite a variation in colors weight and most importantly the width and depth of the neck or fretboard of the various Classical Guitars.
The best starting point is to see if anyone you know plays and to take a look at their guitar and even borrow it if you can to get an idea of what feels right to you. If there is a good music store in your neighborhood go and try some of the instruments to get a feel for them. If you are not confident to play ask the staff to play for you, they usually are prepared to do this. Do not buy the first instrument you see, try several and compare the features you like and dislike about them.
Things to look for are that the face board (immediately behind the strings should be solid wood and not plywood. The neck (fretboard) behind the strings should be a high quality hard wood. If you look inside the guitar through the sound hole you should see even and lightly glued woodwork the workmanship should be neat and tidy. The exterior should be well finished and all surfaces smooth and free of cracks and blemishes. The finish may be high gloss or matte, this is personal preference and the wood finish light or dark again a matter for personal choice.
Choose well as you will probably be playing the same instrument for a good few years and you want to be happy that you made the choice you did.
It is not necessary to buy a very expensive instrument most starter guitars are in the $150 to $300 price range and most of these instruments are well made and quite acceptable to all but the most accomplished players. It is perfectly possible to pay in excess of $3,000 for a Ramirez or other top quality guitar, but I do not think paying this much is advisable, unless you already play like Julian Bream, John Williams or Andres Segovia.
Once you have decided on the type, color and finish of the guitar you like it is quite a good idea to do some research on the Internet as many of the popular Classical Guitars are available on-line for considerably less than you would have to pay in a quality music store.
I wish you luck in your choice and hope that I have been of assistance in helping you make the right choice.
