EnglishAre 'Spanish Guitar' and 'Flamenco Guitar' the same thing? No, they are not. Classical Spanish Guitar is a term comprising several varieties of musical instruments, including the Flamenco Guitar. Flamenco has been recognized as World Heritage by UNESCO, so the flamenco guitar is currently the most commonly used variety of Spanish guitar.
The first difference between Spanish classical and flamenco guitar is that the flamenco guitar has a narrower sound box, allowing the musician to perform fast-paced flamenco rhythms with higher agility and comfort. For the same reason, the strings are closer to the fretboard, enabling the guitarist not to apply too much pressure on the strings with his left hand. In this way, the musician can save energy and concentrate on the powerful rasgueo with his right hand.
Apart from proportions, even the material is different. There are specific kinds of wood used for the construction of a flamenco guitar. For the rear part and sides, cypress, rosewood and sycamore are generally chosen. For the front part, fir is the best choice. Each guitar player personally chooses the wood, because it gives different characteristics to the sound produced.
Finally, since the art of flamenco is characterized by the use of percussion on the guitar body, namely golpes and rasgueo, one section of the front part of the guitar is covered by a protective film.
The sound of the flamenco guitar is more metallic and has less volume than the sound produced by the traditional Spanish guitar, because it adapts to the typical timbre of flamenco.
Flamenco concerts take place and are appreciated across the five continents.