When I
first began this project in February I wouldn't say I was really passionate
about guitar. I was passionate about the idea of learning guitar. That's what
motivated me to choose it for my passion project. But now as the school year
is coming to an end, I have to decide if it is something that I want to pursue
after the semester is over. If I do decide to continue learning, it will mean
buying my own guitar because when I move I have to give the one I am currently
using back to its owner.
This is
a big decision because as you may or may not know, guitars are not cheap. I
also know very little about them and what is a good brand to buy and such. Once
again though, I am lucky to have my faithful mentor Daniel to help me with this
process as well. We took time on Friday to look at the options and have
narrowed it down to two. They are both travel guitars as we figured it would
probably be the most convenient for me because I will be travelling and am a smaller
person in general so it will be easier and more comfortable to hold. I'll tell
you a bit about each of them but if you want to check out a more detailed
description of the guitars, check out my resource page.
The first
option is the Taylor GS Mini which is the bigger and cost about $549.00. Though
the two are often seen as pretty similar, there are a few differences that make
it more expensive. One is that it has a pick guard which the other one doesn't
have and that helps protect the guitar from getting worn away. Another is that
the fret board is made of ebony which is much higher and nicer quality. Also,
despite its size, it has a more "real" guitar sound than the other
one because it is bigger.
(Picture taken from Long & McQuade)
The second
option is the Little Martin LX1 which is slightly smaller and costs $325.00.
Like I said before, it has no pick guard which means the top could get worn
down and loose its smooth texture. The fret board is Rosewood which is not as
high quality but I still like the look and it has no fret board inlays which
are the little white dots you see on most guitars. It also doesn't have as full
and "real" guitar sound because of its size, but it's hard to say if
that we'll bother me until I actually test it out.
(Picture taken from Long & McQuade)
So that
is what will come next. Daniel and I are going to go to Long & McQuade so I
can take a look at both of them in person. At this point I am leaning more
towards the Little Martin because it is quite a bit cheaper than the Taylor.
However, Daniel has made it clear that you get what you pay for so spending the
extra $200 wouldn't be a waste. My only concern is that if down the road I sort
of stop playing guitar, then I'll be sad that I wasted that much money. It
could also however be motivation if I
spent that money, to not let it go to waste and to keep learning and playing.
So clearly there is a lot for me to think about and my decision won't be made
right away.
In
other news, my amazing best friend Naomi (check out her blog here)
surprised me with a capo last week so I can now start learning the songs that I
want. I have started with Dust On the Bottle by David Lee Murphy. It has been
surprisingly easy because once you have a capo you can play simple chords you
already know, just in a different key. The main struggle is learning to multitask
and sing-a-long which I haven't quite got the hang of yet but I'm sure it will
come with more practice.
