Diamonds, Abaci, and Hexagrams: Exploring the Pitch Surface of the Guitar Fretboard

Abstract

In this presentation, I will analyze the idiosyncrasies, challenges, limits, and affordances of the guitar’s "pitch surface": its fretboard and tuning. Whatever the context—staff notation, music theory, improvisation, performance, and other arenas of guitar activity—the layout of the fretboard exerts a profound influence on how guitarists learn, play, and compose. Inspired by De Souza, Goodrick, and Martino, I will also explore the benefits of creative constraints: scordatura, capo, MIDI tools, and other ways of remapping the guitar’s pitch matrix. These constraints can be used to break the guitarist’s tight auditory-motor link, revitalizing the fretboard as a primary musical space and insightful musical "abacus."