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By: ShanzuGuitars
The word Jazz often evokes a darkly light Smokey club with
musicians expertly improvising against seemingly complex chord
progressions. Featuring passionate tone - getting that jazz
sound can be a complex process - in this article we'll address
what you'll need to get a great jazz guitar sound. A Jazz Guitar Getting the right guitar for a jazz sound used to be expensive.
Jazz masters such as Wes Montgomery and Joe Pass may have played
expensive Gibson Semi's but these days there are a variety of
entry level guitars that are suitable for getting a jazz tone. For an authentic jazz tone, you should have a semi-acoustic
hollowbody electric guitar. Models such as the Gibson ES-175 or
the Gretch Tennessean can run into thousands of dollars but
there are also excellent entry models such as Ibanez Artcore
line of guitars. Guitar manufacturers such as Yamaha or Guild
also make entry level semi-acoustics similar to the more
expensive Gibson 335. There are also numerous Epiphone
hollowbody guitars that will also be suitable and come from the
Gibson stable. Explore your local music store and try out what
they look for something that is comfortable to play and can
produce a tight clean tone with plenty of sustain. Hollow body guitars will provide a suitable mellow tone and most
will be fitted with two humbucker pickups allowing you to vary
your sound accordingly. Most guitars will be fitted with tone
controls. Practice rolling the treble off your tone and
experimenting - Jazz guitarists often play with a less trebly
sound as it produces a rich mellow resonance that is suitable
for the style. A Jazz Guitar Amplifier Whilst it could be said that there is "no jazz amp" there are a
number of considerations for the jazz guitarist when selecting
an amplifier. Firstly it is important to determine the playing
style and sound that you wish to attain. Traditional jazz
guitarists often choose amps that can produce a clean sound
which compliment acoustic archtop guitars. For this sound solid
state amps produce a nice clean tone. For a more distorted sound
a tube amp may be more applicable. There are many popular amps
that are used by Jazz guitarists for example - try experimenting
with a Fender Pro or a Polytone Another requirement may be on
board effects this may range from simple reverb to an overdrive
channel - again this will depend on the style your trying to
achieve. Effects Traditional Jazz may only require a hint of reverb but many
modern jazz guitarists apply a range of effects from Chorus,
Overdrive through to delay. There are many effects units
available from single stomp boxes to complex digital "modeling"
devices such as the Line 6 Pod. When choosing effects ensure
they compliment your playing style and that you retain that
"clarity" in your tone. Too many effects often muddy the sound
and do not produce a quality sound. Conclusion In summary there are primarily 3 things that you should
investigate when trying to get a jazz tone. Ultimately you
should also listen to a wide range of jazz greats - listen
closely to their sounds and try to emulate them. Ultimately when
you have done this a few times they will begin to merge and you
will begin to develop your own tone that will sound equally
brilliant! About the author:
ShanzuGuitars.com
offers the latest guitar news, resources, online lessons,tools
and tips for budding guitarists everywhere.
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