Double neck guitar
Encyclopedia
A multi-neck guitar is a guitar
that has multiple fingerboard
necks. They exist in both electric and acoustic versions. Although multi-neck guitars are quite common today, they are not by any means a modern invention. Examples of multi-neck guitars and lutes go back at least to the Renaissance.
Today, the most common type of multi-neck guitar is the double neck guitar, of which the most common version is an electric guitar
with twelve strings
on the top neck, while the bottom neck has the normal six. Combination six-string and bass guitar
are also used, as well as a fretless guitar
with a regular fretted guitar, or any other combination of guitar neck and pickup
styles. There are also acoustic versions. Two necks allows the guitarist to switch quickly and easily between guitar sounds without taking the time to change guitars.
There are also multi-necked guitars having more than two necks, multi-neck basses, and multi-neck hybrid instruments which combine one or more guitar necks with other instrument necks such as bass, mandolin, banjo, etc. as well as differently shaped multi-necked guitars like the multi-necked guitars Michael Angelo Batio uses which are either a 'v' or 'x' shape allowing him to play on multiple necks at the same time.
One of the more common combinations is where one neck of a double-necked guitar is set up as for a 6 string guitar and the other neck is configured as a 4 string bass guitar. Guitarist Pat Smear
of the Foo Fighters
utilizes a double-necked guitar during live performances (bass guitar top neck, six-string electric guitar bottom neck) in order to perform Krist Novoselic
's bass part in the song "I Should Have Known," from the album Wasting Light
, in addition to his own duties. Rickenbacker International Corporation and Gibson Guitar Corporation
in the USA have both manufactured production models of these configurations in the past.
A less common configuration has a 12 string guitar neck combined with a 4 string bass guitar neck: Geddy Lee
of Rush
is well known for using the 4/12-string Rickenbacker 4080/12 production model live in the 1970s.
In the 1970s and 1980s Mike Rutherford
of Genesis
was known for playing a custom-made Shergold
Modulator twin-neck guitar-bass unit in live shows, as he frequently changed between lead guitar, 12-string guitar and bass guitar, depending on the arrangement of the song. The unique design concept of Rutherford's Shergold guitar set is that it consists of several interchangeable modular elements, each of which could be separated and recombined, and which attached to the other units through a system of dowels and thumbscrews, and an electrical connector. The complete original set consisted of a "top section" 6-string guitar, two "top-section" 12-string guitars (each in a different tuning), and a "bottom-section" 4-string bass. Each section could be separated and re-attached to create a variety of twin-neck combinations, with either the 6-string or one of the two 12-strings on the top, and the 4-string bass on the bottom, and there was a matching lower-body section which could be attached to the 6-string and 12-string main units, which created a single complete guitar when these were not attached to the bass.
One of the more well-known multiple-necked bass guitars is that used by Chris Squire
(of Yes
) for the song 'Awaken'. This is a replica of a guitar built by Wal for Roger Newell of the English Rock Ensemble. Squire's original triple-necked bass guitar was configured with a four-string fretted neck, a four-string fretless neck, and a six-string tuned in octaves (Squire was known to have tuned it to aA-dD-gG). This bass is currently on display at the Hard Rock Cafe
. Steve Digiorgio
used a multiple-necked bass guitar with a fretless neck and another fretted neck. A number of makers have also produced double neck basses with an 8-string bass neck (double courses, tuned in octaves like a 12-string guitar) on top and a 4-string bass neck on the bottom. Double neck basses with various other combinations exist, for example: four string and five string bass; four string and six string bass; etc.
famously played a double-neck Mosrite instsrument that had a regular 6-string neck on the bottom and an "octave guitar" for the top neck. This was a 6-string neck tuned an octave higher than the standard guitar, that both extended the range of the instrument, and allowed Maphis to play mandolin-like sounds. Between 1958-1968, Gibson made an instrument of this type which it called the "Double Mandolin" (Gibson EMS 1235). Hybrids with a 6-string guitar neck and a true 8-string mandolin neck were also made (e.g., the 1971 Dawson Electric guitar/mandolin). And Led Zeppelin's John Paul Jones
has a triple-neck electroacoustic instrument, custom made for him by luthier Andy Manson, which features (from top to bottom) 8-string mandolin, 12-string guitar, and 6-string guitar necks.
Pro Electric has produced a quadruple-necked instrument some have called the "ultimate blugrass axe," not entirely without sarcasm. This solid-body electric instrument combines 6-string guitar, 4-string bass, 8-string mandolin, and 5-string banjo necks into one (heavy) package.
Canadian country music star Steve Puto owns a five-neck instrument that includes guitar, bass, banjo, mandolin, and fiddle necks -- with a harmonica mounted on the fiddle body, for good measure. Puto says he found the instrument (which bears no maker's name) in 1973 in a friend's music shop, and he played it regularly on his TV show (The Lonesome Steve Show) in the 1970's.
crafted a series of third bridge
guitars with two necks on both sides of the body. Linda Manzer
crafted the Pikasso guitar
(a three neck guitar with 42 strings) for Pat Metheny
. Solmania
is an Osaka
-based noise music
band known for making their own experimental electric guitars out of spare parts. The guitars usually take an extremely bizarre form, utilizing unconventional body shapes, extra necks, strings and pickups in unusual places, and various extraneous gadgets such as microphone
s. Most of their instruments are double neck guitars or harp guitar
s.
Luthiers seem, however, to be undeterred by either practicality, or by the limits of human anatomy, and have produced instruments with even more necks. In 2008 Macari's Music of London commissioned a six neck guitar ("the beast"), similar in design to Nielsen's five neck. Eye
, of the Japanese noise/rock bank Boredoms has toured with a seven neck guitar (the "Sevena"). This near-octopus of an instrument has four necks on one side and three on the other, and is mounted on a stand and played with drumsticks (and any other handy appliances) as a percussion instrument. At of 2011, the most necks placed on a single guitar is a ludicrous and puzzling twelve, apparently first achieved in 2002 by Japanese artist Yoshihiko Satoh. Whether this hydra is actually a practical musical instrument or an avant garde sculpture remains conjectural.
Guitar
The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
that has multiple fingerboard
Fingerboard
The fingerboard is a part of most stringed instruments. It is a thin, long strip of material, usually wood, that is laminated to the front of the neck of an instrument and above which the strings run...
necks. They exist in both electric and acoustic versions. Although multi-neck guitars are quite common today, they are not by any means a modern invention. Examples of multi-neck guitars and lutes go back at least to the Renaissance.
Today, the most common type of multi-neck guitar is the double neck guitar, of which the most common version is an electric guitar
Electric guitar
An electric guitar is a guitar that uses the principle of direct electromagnetic induction to convert vibrations of its metal strings into electric audio signals. The signal generated by an electric guitar is too weak to drive a loudspeaker, so it is amplified before sending it to a loudspeaker...
with twelve strings
Twelve string guitar
The twelve-string guitar is an acoustic or electric guitar with 12 strings in 6 courses, which produces a richer, more ringing tone than a standard six-string guitar...
on the top neck, while the bottom neck has the normal six. Combination six-string and bass guitar
Bass guitar
The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
are also used, as well as a fretless guitar
Fretless guitar
A fretless guitar is a guitar without frets. It operates in the same manner as most other stringed instruments and traditional guitars, but does not have any frets to act as the lower end point of the vibrating string...
with a regular fretted guitar, or any other combination of guitar neck and pickup
Pickup (music technology)
A pickup device is a transducer that captures mechanical vibrations, usually from suitably equipped stringed instruments such as the electric guitar, electric bass guitar, Chapman Stick, or electric violin, and converts them to an electrical signal that is amplified, recorded, or broadcast.-...
styles. There are also acoustic versions. Two necks allows the guitarist to switch quickly and easily between guitar sounds without taking the time to change guitars.
Notable double neck guitar users
- Matt Bellamy of MuseMuse (band)Muse are an English alternative rock band from Teignmouth, Devon, formed in 1994. The band consists of school friends Matthew Bellamy , Christopher Wolstenholme and Dominic Howard...
- Michael Angelo BatioMichael Angelo BatioMichael Angelo Batio also known as Mike Batio or MAB, is a guitarist and columnist from Chicago, Illinois. His work has encompassed many genres, notably metal and its subgenres. Batio was voted the "No. 1 Shredder of All Time" by Guitar One Magazine in 2003...
of NitroNitro (band)Nitro was an American glam metal band that formed in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California in 1987. Formed by vocalist Jim Gillette and guitarist Michael Angelo Batio, the band released two studio albums – O.F.R. and Nitro II: H.W.D.W.S. .-History:Nitro was officially formed in 1987 after the... - Junior BrownJunior BrownJamieson "Junior" Brown is an American country guitarist and singer. He has released nine studio albums in his career, and has charted twice on the Billboard country singles charts. Brown's signature instrument is the "guit-steel" double neck guitar, a hybrid of electric guitar and lap steel...
- Jeff CookJeff Cook (musician)Jeffery A. "Jeff" Cook is an American musician who is best known as one of the founding members of the country music group Alabama....
, of AlabamaAlabama (band)Alabama is a country music and southern rock band from Fort Payne, Alabama, United States. The band was founded in 1969 by Randy Owen and his cousin Teddy Gentry , soon joined by Jeff Cook... - Don FelderDon FelderDonald William "Don" Felder is an American musician and songwriter, best known for his work as lead guitarist for the Eagles from 1974 to 1980 and again from 1994 to 2001.-Early life and influences:...
of The Eagles, specifically on Hotel CaliforniaHotel California (song)"Hotel California" is the title song from the Eagles' album of the same name and was released as a single in February 1977. It is one of the best-known songs of the album-oriented rock era. Writing credits for the song are shared by Don Felder, Don Henley and Glenn Frey... - Steve HoweSteve Howe (guitarist)Stephen James "Steve" Howe is an English guitarist, known for his work with the progressive rock group Yes...
of YesYes (band)Yes are an English rock band who achieved worldwide success with their progressive, art, and symphonic style of rock music. Regarded as one of the pioneers of the progressive genre, Yes are known for their lengthy songs, mystical lyrics, elaborate album art, and live stage sets... - Alex LifesonAlex LifesonAleksandar Živojinović, OC, better known by his stage name Alex Lifeson, is a second generation Serbian-Canadian musician, best known as the guitarist of the Canadian rock band Rush. In the summer of 1968, Lifeson founded the band that would become Rush with friend, drummer John Rutsey...
and Geddy LeeGeddy LeeGary Lee Weinrib, OC, better known as Geddy Lee , is a Canadian musician, best known as the lead vocalist, bassist, and keyboardist for the Canadian rock group Rush...
of RushRush (band)Rush is a Canadian rock band formed in August 1968, in the Willowdale neighbourhood of Toronto, Ontario. The band is composed of bassist, keyboardist, and lead vocalist Geddy Lee, guitarist Alex Lifeson, and drummer and lyricist Neil Peart... - John Lodge of The Moody BluesThe Moody BluesThe Moody Blues are an English rock band. Among their innovations was a fusion with classical music, most notably in their 1967 album Days of Future Passed....
- John McLaughlinJohn McLaughlin (musician)John McLaughlin , also known as Mahavishnu John McLaughlin, is an English guitarist, bandleader and composer...
of The Mahavishnu OrchestraThe Mahavishnu OrchestraThe Mahavishnu Orchestra was a jazz fusion group, led by John McLaughlin, that debuted in 1971, dissolved in 1976 and reunited from 1984 to 1987.-First Mahavishnu Orchestra:... - Jimmy PageJimmy PageJames Patrick "Jimmy" Page, OBE is an English multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, and record producer. He began his career as a studio session guitarist in London and was subsequently a member of The Yardbirds from 1966 to 1968, after which he founded the English rock band Led Zeppelin.Jimmy Page...
of Led ZeppelinLed ZeppelinLed Zeppelin were an English rock band, active in the late 1960s and throughout the 1970s. Formed in 1968, they consisted of guitarist Jimmy Page, singer Robert Plant, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham... - Mike RutherfordMike RutherfordMichael John Cleote Crawford Rutherford is an English musician. He is a founding member of Genesis, initially as a bassist and backup vocalist. In later incarnations of Genesis, he assumed the role of lead guitarist. He is one of only two constant members in Genesis . He also fronts Mike + The...
of GenesisGenesis (band)Genesis are an English rock band that formed in 1967. The band currently comprises the longest-tenured members Tony Banks , Mike Rutherford and Phil Collins . Past members Peter Gabriel , Steve Hackett and Anthony Phillips , also played major roles in the band in its early years... - Richie SamboraRichie SamboraRichard Stephen "Richie" Sambora is an American rock guitarist, producer, musician, singer, and songwriter who is the longtime lead guitarist of the rock band, Bon Jovi. He and frontman Jon Bon Jovi form the primary songwriting unit of the band...
of Bon JoviBon JoviBon Jovi is an American rock band from Sayreville, New Jersey. Formed in 1983, Bon Jovi consists of lead singer and namesake Jon Bon Jovi , guitarist Richie Sambora, keyboardist David Bryan, drummer Tico Torres, as well as current bassist Hugh McDonald... - Claudio SanchezClaudio SanchezClaudio Paul Sanchez is an American writer and musician best known for being the lead singer and guitarist for the alternative/progressive rock group Coheed and Cambria. He is also the creator of the comic book series, The Amory Wars and Kill Audio, co-written with wife Chondra Echert...
of Coheed and CambriaCoheed and CambriaCoheed and Cambria is an American progressive rock band from Nyack, New York. Formed in 1995, the group incorporates aspects of progressive rock, punk rock, metal and post-hardcore.... - Chris SquireChris SquireChristopher Russell Edward "Chris" Squire , is an English musician, known as the bass guitarist and backing vocalist for the progressive rock group Yes. He is the only member of the group to appear on every album.-Before Yes:...
of YesYes (band)Yes are an English rock band who achieved worldwide success with their progressive, art, and symphonic style of rock music. Regarded as one of the pioneers of the progressive genre, Yes are known for their lengthy songs, mystical lyrics, elaborate album art, and live stage sets... - Pete TownshendPete TownshendPeter Dennis Blandford "Pete" Townshend is an English rock guitarist, vocalist, songwriter and author, known principally as the guitarist and songwriter for the rock group The Who, as well as for his own solo career...
of The WhoThe WhoThe Who are an English rock band formed in 1964 by Roger Daltrey , Pete Townshend , John Entwistle and Keith Moon . They became known for energetic live performances which often included instrument destruction... - Steve VaiSteve VaiSteven Siro "Steve" Vai is a three time Grammy Award-winning American guitarist, songwriter and producer who has sold over 15 million albums. Steve Vai is widely known as a flamboyant guitar virtuoso....
- Sile Nuić of Siledžije, Terra Slaves, Frama...
- Lita FordLita FordLita Ford is a British-born, American rock musician and singer who was the lead guitarist for The Runaways and achieved popularity for her solo career between the 1980s and late 2000s.-Early life:...
- Brian "Head" Welch Formerly of KornKornKorn is an American nu metal band from Bakersfield, California, formed in 1993. The current band line up includes four members: Jonathan Davis, James "Munky" Shaffer, Reginald "Fieldy" Arvizu, and Ray Luzier. The band was formed as an expansion of L.A.P.D.The band released their first demo album,...
- Leroy "Sugarfoot" Bonner of Ohio PlayersOhio PlayersThe Ohio Players were an American funk and R&B band, most popular in the 1970s. They are best known for their double #1 hit songs "Fire" and "Love Rollercoaster".- Biography :...
There are also multi-necked guitars having more than two necks, multi-neck basses, and multi-neck hybrid instruments which combine one or more guitar necks with other instrument necks such as bass, mandolin, banjo, etc. as well as differently shaped multi-necked guitars like the multi-necked guitars Michael Angelo Batio uses which are either a 'v' or 'x' shape allowing him to play on multiple necks at the same time.
Customization
There are many variations of how multiple-necked guitars can be customized, such as the number of strings on a neck, frets or no frets, the tuning used on each neck, etc. Recently, instruments with two or three necks that combine 6, 7, and 8 string guitars have become popular.One of the more common combinations is where one neck of a double-necked guitar is set up as for a 6 string guitar and the other neck is configured as a 4 string bass guitar. Guitarist Pat Smear
Pat Smear
Pat Smear is a rock musician who has been a guitarist in several well-known bands including The Germs and Nirvana. He is currently a guitarist for the Foo Fighters...
of the Foo Fighters
Foo Fighters
Foo Fighters is an American alternative rock band originally formed in 1994 by Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl as a one-man project following the dissolution of his previous band. The band got its name from the UFOs and various aerial phenomena that were reported by Allied aircraft pilots in World War...
utilizes a double-necked guitar during live performances (bass guitar top neck, six-string electric guitar bottom neck) in order to perform Krist Novoselic
Krist Novoselic
Krist Anthony Novoselic II is a Croatian-American rock musician, best known for being the bassist and co-founder of the grunge band Nirvana. After Nirvana ended, Novoselic formed Sweet 75 and then Eyes Adrift, releasing one album with each band...
's bass part in the song "I Should Have Known," from the album Wasting Light
Wasting Light
Wasting Light is the seventh studio album by American alternative rock band Foo Fighters, released April 12, 2011, on RCA Records. It was produced by Butch Vig and described by the band's lead vocalist and guitarist Dave Grohl as their "heaviest album yet." The title is taken from the lyrics of the...
, in addition to his own duties. Rickenbacker International Corporation and Gibson Guitar Corporation
Gibson Guitar Corporation
The Gibson Guitar Corporation, formerly of Kalamazoo, Michigan and currently of Nashville, Tennessee, manufactures guitars and other instruments which sell under a variety of brand names...
in the USA have both manufactured production models of these configurations in the past.
A less common configuration has a 12 string guitar neck combined with a 4 string bass guitar neck: Geddy Lee
Geddy Lee
Gary Lee Weinrib, OC, better known as Geddy Lee , is a Canadian musician, best known as the lead vocalist, bassist, and keyboardist for the Canadian rock group Rush...
of Rush
Rush (band)
Rush is a Canadian rock band formed in August 1968, in the Willowdale neighbourhood of Toronto, Ontario. The band is composed of bassist, keyboardist, and lead vocalist Geddy Lee, guitarist Alex Lifeson, and drummer and lyricist Neil Peart...
is well known for using the 4/12-string Rickenbacker 4080/12 production model live in the 1970s.
In the 1970s and 1980s Mike Rutherford
Mike Rutherford
Michael John Cleote Crawford Rutherford is an English musician. He is a founding member of Genesis, initially as a bassist and backup vocalist. In later incarnations of Genesis, he assumed the role of lead guitarist. He is one of only two constant members in Genesis . He also fronts Mike + The...
of Genesis
Genesis (band)
Genesis are an English rock band that formed in 1967. The band currently comprises the longest-tenured members Tony Banks , Mike Rutherford and Phil Collins . Past members Peter Gabriel , Steve Hackett and Anthony Phillips , also played major roles in the band in its early years...
was known for playing a custom-made Shergold
Shergold
Shergold Guitars, or Shergold Woodcrafts Limited, was established in October 1967 by former Burns London employees Jack Golder and Norman Houlder...
Modulator twin-neck guitar-bass unit in live shows, as he frequently changed between lead guitar, 12-string guitar and bass guitar, depending on the arrangement of the song. The unique design concept of Rutherford's Shergold guitar set is that it consists of several interchangeable modular elements, each of which could be separated and recombined, and which attached to the other units through a system of dowels and thumbscrews, and an electrical connector. The complete original set consisted of a "top section" 6-string guitar, two "top-section" 12-string guitars (each in a different tuning), and a "bottom-section" 4-string bass. Each section could be separated and re-attached to create a variety of twin-neck combinations, with either the 6-string or one of the two 12-strings on the top, and the 4-string bass on the bottom, and there was a matching lower-body section which could be attached to the 6-string and 12-string main units, which created a single complete guitar when these were not attached to the bass.
Multiple-necked bass guitars
Guitar makers have been producing bass guitars with multiple necks at least since the 1970s, the majority having two necks. There are some basses with three or more necks made, but usually upon custom order only. A double-necked bass guitar can be used for multiple tuning (e.g., B-E-A-D on one neck whilst the other neck is tuned to E-A-D-G, etc.); combining fretted and fretless necks; combining necks with different numbers of strings, etc.One of the more well-known multiple-necked bass guitars is that used by Chris Squire
Chris Squire
Christopher Russell Edward "Chris" Squire , is an English musician, known as the bass guitarist and backing vocalist for the progressive rock group Yes. He is the only member of the group to appear on every album.-Before Yes:...
(of Yes
Yes (band)
Yes are an English rock band who achieved worldwide success with their progressive, art, and symphonic style of rock music. Regarded as one of the pioneers of the progressive genre, Yes are known for their lengthy songs, mystical lyrics, elaborate album art, and live stage sets...
) for the song 'Awaken'. This is a replica of a guitar built by Wal for Roger Newell of the English Rock Ensemble. Squire's original triple-necked bass guitar was configured with a four-string fretted neck, a four-string fretless neck, and a six-string tuned in octaves (Squire was known to have tuned it to aA-dD-gG). This bass is currently on display at the Hard Rock Cafe
Hard Rock Cafe
Hard Rock Cafe is a chain of theme restaurants founded in 1971 by Americans Peter Morton & Isaac Tigrett. In 1979, the cafe began covering its walls with rock and roll memorabilia, a tradition which expanded to others in the chain. In 2006, Hard Rock was sold to the Seminole Tribe of Florida, and...
. Steve Digiorgio
Steve DiGiorgio
Steve DiGiorgio is an American bassist and musician.DiGiorgio has played bass guitar in heavy metal bands such as Death, Autopsy, Control Denied, Testament, Vintersorg, Iced Earth, Sebastian Bach, Charred Walls of the Damned, Obituary, and is a founding member of Sadus. He is widely renowned for...
used a multiple-necked bass guitar with a fretless neck and another fretted neck. A number of makers have also produced double neck basses with an 8-string bass neck (double courses, tuned in octaves like a 12-string guitar) on top and a 4-string bass neck on the bottom. Double neck basses with various other combinations exist, for example: four string and five string bass; four string and six string bass; etc.
Guitar plus -- Hybrids
Multiple neck "guitars" have also been made which include other stringed instruments among the alternate necks. Country guitarist Joe MaphisJoe Maphis
Joe Maphis, born Otis W. Maphis , was an American country music guitarist. He married singer Rose Lee Maphis in 1948....
famously played a double-neck Mosrite instsrument that had a regular 6-string neck on the bottom and an "octave guitar" for the top neck. This was a 6-string neck tuned an octave higher than the standard guitar, that both extended the range of the instrument, and allowed Maphis to play mandolin-like sounds. Between 1958-1968, Gibson made an instrument of this type which it called the "Double Mandolin" (Gibson EMS 1235). Hybrids with a 6-string guitar neck and a true 8-string mandolin neck were also made (e.g., the 1971 Dawson Electric guitar/mandolin). And Led Zeppelin's John Paul Jones
John Paul Jones
John Paul Jones was a Scottish sailor and the United States' first well-known naval fighter in the American Revolutionary War. Although he made enemies among America's political elites, his actions in British waters during the Revolution earned him an international reputation which persists to...
has a triple-neck electroacoustic instrument, custom made for him by luthier Andy Manson, which features (from top to bottom) 8-string mandolin, 12-string guitar, and 6-string guitar necks.
Pro Electric has produced a quadruple-necked instrument some have called the "ultimate blugrass axe," not entirely without sarcasm. This solid-body electric instrument combines 6-string guitar, 4-string bass, 8-string mandolin, and 5-string banjo necks into one (heavy) package.
Canadian country music star Steve Puto owns a five-neck instrument that includes guitar, bass, banjo, mandolin, and fiddle necks -- with a harmonica mounted on the fiddle body, for good measure. Puto says he found the instrument (which bears no maker's name) in 1973 in a friend's music shop, and he played it regularly on his TV show (The Lonesome Steve Show) in the 1970's.
Experimental alternate versions
Some luthiers not only built guitars with two necks in common configurations, but worked to expand the possibilities with multiple necks, extra bridges, odd configurations, and the like. Hans ReichelHans Reichel
Hans Reichel was a German improvisational guitarist, experimental luthier, inventor, and type designer.-Career:...
crafted a series of third bridge
3rd Bridge
The 3rd bridge is an extended playing technique used on some string instruments , that allows a musician to produce distinctive timbres and overtones that are unavailable on a conventional string instrument with two bridges...
guitars with two necks on both sides of the body. Linda Manzer
Linda Manzer
Linda Manzer is a Canadian master luthier renowned for her archtop, flat-top and harp acoustic guitars.She received her training from Jean Larrivée between 1974 and 1978 and later studied with the late Jimmy D'Aquisto in New York....
crafted the Pikasso guitar
Pikasso guitar
The Pikasso Guitar, or Pikasso I, is a custom made harp guitar created by Canadian luthier Linda Manzer.Its name is ostensibly derived from its likeness in appearance to the cubist works of Pablo Picasso.-Players:...
(a three neck guitar with 42 strings) for Pat Metheny
Pat Metheny
Patrick Bruce "Pat" Metheny is an American jazz guitarist and composer.One of the most successful and critically acclaimed jazz musicians to come to prominence in the 1970s and '80s, he is the leader of the Pat Metheny Group and is also involved in duets, solo works and other side projects...
. Solmania
Solmania
Solmania is the Osaka-based noise music project of Masahiko "Masaki" Ohno , who runs the Works Fatagaga noise record label. Formed in 1984, Solmania is one of the earliest noise projects out of Japan...
is an Osaka
Osaka
is a city in the Kansai region of Japan's main island of Honshu, a designated city under the Local Autonomy Law, the capital city of Osaka Prefecture and also the biggest part of Keihanshin area, which is represented by three major cities of Japan, Kyoto, Osaka and Kobe...
-based noise music
Noise music
Noise music is a term used to describe varieties of avant-garde music and sound art that may use elements such as cacophony, dissonance, atonality, noise, indeterminacy, and repetition in their realization. Noise music can feature distortion, various types of acoustically or electronically...
band known for making their own experimental electric guitars out of spare parts. The guitars usually take an extremely bizarre form, utilizing unconventional body shapes, extra necks, strings and pickups in unusual places, and various extraneous gadgets such as microphone
Microphone
A microphone is an acoustic-to-electric transducer or sensor that converts sound into an electrical signal. In 1877, Emile Berliner invented the first microphone used as a telephone voice transmitter...
s. Most of their instruments are double neck guitars or harp guitar
Harp guitar
]The harp guitar is a stringed instrument with a history of well over two centuries. While there are several unrelated historical stringed instruments that have appropriated the name “harp-guitar” over the centuries, the term today is understood as the accepted vernacular to refer to a particular...
s.
There's no limit?
Many of those who have played double neck guitars report that the instruments are heavy and awkward, but this can be managed with practice. Triple neck instruments are even weightier and more unwieldy. This raises the question as to whether some of the larger varieties of multi-neck guitar are even playable as guitars, much less practical in performance situations. The bottom neck of Rick Nielson's infamous five-neck Hammer instrument is barely reachable by a person of average stature holding the instrument in a normal standing playing position, and it's hard to see how that neck could be played with any facility with both arms extended to their limit just to reach it. (Indeed, Neilson himself hardly ever played on that neck.) Five necks, then, would seem to be the practical limit for multi-neck guitars.Luthiers seem, however, to be undeterred by either practicality, or by the limits of human anatomy, and have produced instruments with even more necks. In 2008 Macari's Music of London commissioned a six neck guitar ("the beast"), similar in design to Nielsen's five neck. Eye
Eye
Eyes are organs that detect light and convert it into electro-chemical impulses in neurons. The simplest photoreceptors in conscious vision connect light to movement...
, of the Japanese noise/rock bank Boredoms has toured with a seven neck guitar (the "Sevena"). This near-octopus of an instrument has four necks on one side and three on the other, and is mounted on a stand and played with drumsticks (and any other handy appliances) as a percussion instrument. At of 2011, the most necks placed on a single guitar is a ludicrous and puzzling twelve, apparently first achieved in 2002 by Japanese artist Yoshihiko Satoh. Whether this hydra is actually a practical musical instrument or an avant garde sculpture remains conjectural.
External links
- Multi-neck guitars, ancient and modern
- Double neck guitars on LP/CD covers
- Rick Nielsen of Cheap Trick plays the five-neck Hamer guitar on 2/22/1989 at Houston Astrodome, TX. (better quality)
- Rick Nielsen of Cheap Trick plays the five-neck Hamer guitar on 9/16/2006 at MusicFest2006 in Cranford, NJ.
- Information on the EDS-1275 from 1958-1961
- The Quad Guitar
- Another four-neck, the "ultimate bluegrass instrument"
- Steve Puto's unique(?) five-neck instrument.
- "The Beast," a six-neck guitar
- Eye's "Severna," a seven neck guitar
- Yoshihiko Satoh's "Presents Arms" (2002), a twelve necks guitar sculpture
- Yoshihiko Satoh's "Present Arms / Arc Type" (2011), another twelve necks guitar sculpture
