Organology

Harp Guitar Form 1c
by Gregg Miner

Theorboed Headstock harp string attachment, Extension is a contiguous, slightly extended, enlarged, or "fanned" component of the main headstock.
Sub-bass string(s) can be held by a simple extension nut, extension of wood, or on an enlarged fan-shaped headstock.

NOTE TO RESEARCHERS:  Please understand that many of the instruments on this page were not originally referred to as "harp guitars."
To understand why they are classified as such today, it is imperative that you first thoroughly read and comprehend the site author's thesis.

See bottom of page for image copyright information

          European

Lamblin, 1807 (Gent, Belgium)

8-string (2+6)

Is this instrument fully original?  It would seem to be one of the very first true "Early Romantic" harp guitars.

Lacote decacorde (10-course), 1826 Lacote, 1855, modified by Coste Olry, modified by Coste
See Lacote: Multi-course, Extended Range or Harp Guitars? for all known specimens

Unknown, Mirecourt, c.1830 Thorel, Mirecourt Gaetano Guadagnini, Torino Italy, 1839 (special order) Carl Knudsen, c.1847, Copenhagen, Denmark

Antonio de Torres, Spain
1885
Vicente Arias, Spain, 1890 hiros de Gonzalez, Spain (att)
(best guess according to guitar scholars
Françoise & Daniel Sinier de Ridder)
Luis Soira, Spain, c.1900

Despite the greatly enlarged, floor-resting soundbox, this 11 or 12-string (3+8?) is best placed in the Form 1c category.
(See Soria in Historical Makers)


Bohmann, Chicago, c.1899
See The Harp Guitars of Joseph Bohmann
Vinaccia, Naples, 1900 Emanuele Egildo, Italy, 1926 Richard Jacob, Markneukirchen, 1933

     Argentina

Breyer Hermanos (Publisher and Music store), Buenos Aires, c.1910-1920

Label

Manuel Dominguez, Buenos Aires, 1920

Additional images   Label

Manuel Gil, Buenos Aires

Label

Francisco Nuñez, Buenos Aires, c.1910-1920

Label

          Contemporary         

Stephen Sedgwick, 1999
(Torres 11-string reproduction)
Joseph Mayes, 2001 (7th floating D string, a la Lacôte) Jack Sanders, 2006 (Lacote decacorde reproduction) Jeffrey Elliott, 1990

Additional images

Erwin Somogyi, c.1985
(for George Winston)
Alan Perlman 
(for James Kline)

Hans Haider

13-course (3 floating basses), made for himself.  Hans played a fully fretted 12-string on his recordings

 

Federico Sheppard

12-course (3 floating basses), made for Peter Lang.

Erik Pierre Hofmann,
2004
Andrew Ellis, Perth, Western Australia, 2005
A resophonic guitar (for Jeff Martin) with a 7th floating "drone," with movable nut for scale/tuning changes. Additional images on the builder's site here.
Julius Borges, 2006

A 6 string with an unfretted A drone (for Emmylou Harris)

 

To

What is a Harp Guitar?

To

Harp Guitar Family Tree

Back To

Photo Reference Library of Examples.

 


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