The six-string alto guitar or G Guitar or Terz guitar is a smaller version of the

classical guitar The classical guitar, also known as Spanish guitar, is a member of the guitar family used in classical music and other styles. An acoustic wooden string (music), string instrument with strings made of catgut, gut or nylon, it is a precursor of the ...

, designed to be fitted with lighter strings and tuned a

perfect fifth In music theory, a perfect fifth is the Interval (music), musical interval corresponding to a pair of pitch (music), pitches with a frequency ratio of 3:2, or very nearly so. In classical music from Western culture, a fifth is the interval f ...

higher, to B-E-A-D-F♯/G♭-B. Terz guitar (Terz meaning third) refers to either a small sized

or to the practice of tuning a standard

guitar The guitar is a stringed musical instrument that is usually fretted (with Fretless guitar, some exceptions) and typically has six or Twelve-string guitar, twelve strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming ...

minor third In music theory, a minor third is a interval (music), musical interval that encompasses three half steps, or semitones. Staff notation represents the minor third as encompassing three staff positions (see: interval (music)#Number, interval numb ...

higher than standard guitar tuning (as though a capo were on the third

fret A fret is any of the thin strips of material, usually metal wire, inserted laterally at specific positions along the neck or fretboard of a stringed instrument. Frets usually extend across the full width of the neck. On some historical inst ...

of the guitar). The scale length is generally 530 mm (20.8 inches), though sometimes as long as 560 mm (22 inches). Mauro Giuliani and Caspar Joseph Mertz wrote extensively for the terz guitar as a complement to the prime (standard) guitar. Acceptable alternate spellings for ''terz'' include ''tierce'', ''third'', and ''tertz.'' Strings makers now produce strings that allow terz guitar tuning on standard scale length guitars at normal string tension. At the 2018 NAMM Show,

Reverend The Reverend (abbreviated as The Revd, The Rev'd or The Rev) is an honorific style (form of address), style given to certain (primarily Western Christian, Western) Christian clergy and Christian minister, ministers. There are sometimes differen ...

Guitars launched an electric Terz guitar in production along with

Billy Corgan William Patrick Corgan Jr. (born March 17, 1967) is an American guitarist, singer, songwriter, and professional wrestling promoter. He is best known as the co-founder, lead guitarist, primary songwriter, singer, and only constant member of alter ...

Literature

Rainer Stelle: ''100 Jahre Musizieren mit Terz-, Prim- und Quintbassgitarre in Deutschland'', in: ''Auftakt!'' No. 4/2015, p. 43–45 (Fachzeitschrift des Bundes Deutscher Zupfmusiker e. V.)

References

External links

Alto guitar tuning and strings
Classical guitar G instruments Nonstandard-guitar tunings {{guitar-stub

See also

Literature

References

External links