Electric Guitar From a popular culture standpoint, the electric guitar is one of the most important inventions of the 20th century. More than any other instrument, it defines the tone and character of rock and roll music. But when the electric guitar first hit the scene in the 1930s, few people saw its potential. It took quite a while for the instrument to find its place in American music.
Despite the slow start, the electric guitar did find its place. It has inspired and defined entirely new types of music. The electric guitar remains the most prominent instrument in rock music, and the most famous instrument ever to come out of the United States.
The guitar in its present form originated in Spain in the 16th century and spread all over the world. The standard instrument has six strings and frets along the fingerboard to indicate the position of the notes of the scale. The strings are tuned in fourths, with the exception of the interval between the fourth and fifth strings, which is the major third: E, A, D, G, B, E, the lowest string being an E in the middle register of the bass clef. The notation is an octave higher than the actual sound.
Toward the 20th century, the guitar was electrically amplified and became the primary instrument for all modern rock musicians. The rock guitar stayed the same until about seventy years ago, they invented the electric guitar.