Three of Australia’s musical icons died recently, and the world news is awash with stories of extreme climatic events. Plenty to reflect on and ponder about the future.
Posts
Guitars without trees: Blackbird, flax and Ekoa
Alternatives to wood for guitar making include various types of natural and synthetic fibers. Flax is a renewable material that makes great sounding guitars. San Francisco encounters In an early post on this site, I told the story of how idea for the Nature of Music project began – with the guitars of Wayne and…
Cities, urban forests and Taylor’s Urban Ash guitars
Cities are human’s prime habitat, but trees and other natural features play an important role in regulating the city environment. The urban forest provides many services, and the wood from trees that have to be removed can also be very useful – and make excellent guitars.
Witnessing the past: memories and hope in trees and wood
Freeman Vines made guitars with wood from a tree in which a man had been hanged. Trees bear witness to the many things humans do to the environment, and to each other – and can remind us of the past but also provide hope for a better future.
Volcanoes, slide guitar and koa: nature and music in Hawaii
Hawaiian music took the world by storm in the first part of the 20th century and catalysed new guitar types and playing styles. Hawaiian koa also become one of the most desirable tonewoods, and after history of over-exploitation is now being actively conserved and restored.
Guitars, bugs and climate change – Fender and the Emerald Ash Borer
The ash trees that produce Fender’s iconic Telecasters and Stratocasters are being threatened by an invasive beetle and changing rainfall and flooding regimes.
Trees, guitars, lizards and squid – perspectives on nature and music in the Anthropocene
I’ve been a researcher in ecology for 40 years, but recently jumped into the world of guitars. These foci intersect in the increasing concern for how the natural world continues to be affected by human activities. Two recent books provide fascinating accounts of recent research in both these areas.
Cigars and guitars: turning junk into music
Cigar box guitars were an inexpensive means to make music by using discarded materials and are gaining popularity again today.
Ethical consumer choice and guitars
Consumer choices are increasingly influenced by environmental and social factors – Gibson’s corporate behaviour is alienating many guitarists
Women, war and wonderful guitars
Some amazing guitars came from Gibson during World War II and were made by women – but the story only recently surfaced.