Electric plucked instrument
The Electric Guitar
The electric guitar shapes its sound only through pickups and amplifier — from crystal clear to heavily overdriven. It is the defining voice of rock, pop and blues.
At a glance
The electric guitar is an electrically amplified guitar, usually with a solid body. Pickups convert the vibration of its strings into an electrical signal, which an amplifier makes audible. Only the interplay of instrument, amplifier and effects creates its characteristic sound — from crystal clear to heavily overdriven.
History & origins
Electric amplification of guitars emerged between the 1930s and the 1950s, so that players could be heard in loud bands. Models such as the Fender Telecaster and Stratocaster and the Gibson Les Paul of the 1950s became classics and laid the foundations for the sound of popular music. The electric guitar opened up entirely new sonic possibilities.
Construction & how it works
The solid (or semi-hollow) body carries the neck and the fretted fingerboard. Magnetic pickups sit beneath the strings and convert the vibration of the steel strings into an electrical signal. Controls for volume and tone, together with a selector switch for the pickups, shape the sound before it is sent on to the amplifier. Effects units add distortion, reverb and much more.
Sound & tuning
The tuning matches that of the acoustic guitar (E, A, d, g, h, e′ — in the German naming system, where “h” is the note called B in English usage). The sound depends heavily on pickups, amplifier and effects, ranging from a soft clean tone to rich distortion. Techniques such as long-held notes (sustain) and string bending are part of its characteristic expression.
Playing & technique
Fretting and striking work as on the acoustic guitar, with the addition of techniques particular to the electric: string bending, vibrato, slurs (hammer-ons and pull-offs), palm muting, powerful power chords, riffs and solos. A feeling for timing and for sound matters just as much as fretting technique.
Role & repertoire
The electric guitar is the defining voice in rock, pop, blues, metal, funk and jazz. It can accompany rhythmically, lead melodically and shine in solos. Hardly any instrument has shaped the sound of modern popular music so strongly.
Getting started at our music school
Starting works well from around eight or nine years old. To begin with, a guitar with a comfortable action and a small practice amplifier are enough — or a headphone amplifier for quiet practice. Some grounding on the acoustic guitar helps, but it is by no means required.
What else do you need?
An electric guitar needs an amplifier, a cable and, to taste, effects units. At home a small practice amplifier is enough, or a headphone amplifier that lets you practise in complete silence. Plectrums in various gauges, a tuner and a strap for playing standing up round off the basic kit.
Shaping the sound
The pickups define the sound above all: single coils are bright and clear, humbuckers fuller and warmer. From there, the amplifier and effects shape everything from a pure clean tone to rich distortion. That makes the electric guitar a highly personal instrument whose sound every player designs for themselves.
For beginners: what makes the electric guitar special?
The electric guitar is exciting because you shape its sound yourself — from a soft, crystalline tone to a powerful rock sound. Through headphones it can be practised in complete quiet, which is particularly welcome in a flat. Even simple riffs and power chords sound immediately like “real” music and leave you wanting more. Anyone who already knows a few chords on the guitar will progress especially quickly, but starting here directly works well too.