Editing Classical guitar (section)

==Physical characteristics==
The classical guitar is distinguished by a number of characteristics:
*It is an [[wiktionary:acoustic|acoustic]] instrument. The sound of the plucked string is amplified by the [[Sound board (music)|soundboard]] and resonant cavity of the guitar.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.phys.unsw.edu.au/music/guitar/|title=Guitar acoustics|website=www.phys.unsw.edu.au|access-date=15 April 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080722065100/http://www.phys.unsw.edu.au/music/guitar/|archive-date=22 July 2008}}</ref>
*It has six [[string (music)|strings]], though some classical guitars have seven or more strings.
*All six strings are made from [[nylon]], or nylon wrapped with metal, as opposed to the metal strings found on other acoustic guitars. Nylon strings also have a much lower [[Tension (mechanics)|tension]] than steel strings, as do the predecessors to nylon strings, gut strings (made from ox or sheep gut). The lower three strings ('bass strings') are wound with metal, commonly silver-plated copper.
*Because of the low string tension
** The neck can be made entirely of wood without a steel truss rod
** The interior bracing can be lighter
*Typical modern six-string classical guitars are 48–54&nbsp;mm wide at the nut, compared to around 42&nbsp;mm for electric guitars.
* Classical fingerboards are normally flat and without inlaid fret markers, or just have dot inlays on the side of the neck—steel string fingerboards usually have a slight radius and inlays.
*Classical guitarists use their right hand to pluck the strings. Players may shape their fingernails for a brighter tone and feel against the strings.
*Strumming is a less common technique in classical guitar, and is often referred to by the Spanish term "rasgueo", or for strumming patterns "rasgueado", and uses the backs of the fingernails. Rasgueado is integral to [[Flamenco]] guitar.
*[[Machine head]]s at the [[headstock]] of a classical guitar point backwards—in contrast to most steel-string guitars, which have machine heads that point outward.
*The overall design of a Classical Guitar is very similar to the slightly lighter and smaller [[Flamenco guitar]].

===Parts===
[[File:Parts of the Classical Guitar - Diagram.jpg|alt=diagram showing exterior parts of the classical guitar|thumb|Diagram showing exterior parts of the classical guitar]]
Parts of typical classical guitars include:<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.frets.com/FRETSPages/General/Glossary/glossary.html|title=Fretted instrument terminology: An Illustrated Glossary|website=frets.com|access-date=15 April 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180421034033/http://www.frets.com/FretsPages/General/Glossary/glossary.html|archive-date=21 April 2018}}</ref>

* [[Headstock]]
* Nut
* [[Machine head]]s (or pegheads, tuning keys, tuning machines, tuners)
* [[Fret]]s
* Neck
* Heel
* Body
* Bridge
* Bottom deck
* Soundboard
* Body sides
* [[Sound hole]], with [[rosette (design)|rosette]] inlay
* [[Classical guitar strings|Strings]]
* Saddle (Bridge nut)
* [[Fretboard]]

====Fretboard====
The fretboard (also called the '''fingerboard''') is a piece of wood embedded with metal frets that constitutes the top of the neck. It is flat or slightly curved. The curvature of the fretboard is measured by the fretboard radius, which is the radius of a hypothetical circle of which the fretboard's surface constitutes a segment. The smaller the fretboard radius, the more noticeably curved the fretboard is. Fretboards are most commonly made of [[ebony]], but may also be made of [[Rosewood (timber)|rosewood]], some other hardwood, or of phenolic composite ("micarta").

====Frets====
{{Main article|Fret}}

Frets are the metal strips (usually nickel alloy or stainless steel) embedded along the [[fingerboard]] and placed at points that divide the length of string mathematically. The strings' vibrating length is determined when the strings are pressed down behind the frets. Each fret produces a different pitch and each pitch spaced a half-step apart on the 12 tone scale. The [[ratio]] of the widths of two consecutive frets is the [[twelfth root of two]] (<math>\sqrt[12]{2}</math>), whose numeric value is about 1.059463. The twelfth fret divides the string into two exact halves and the 24th fret (if present) divides the string in half yet again. Every twelve frets represents one octave. This arrangement of frets results in [[equal temperament|equal tempered]] tuning.

====Neck====
{{Main article|Guitar neck}}
{{see also|Guitar strings}}
A classical guitar's frets, fretboard, tuners, headstock, all attached to a long wooden extension, collectively constitute its [[neck (music)|neck]]. The wood for the fretboard usually differs from the wood in the rest of the neck. The bending stress on the neck is considerable, particularly when heavier gauge strings are used. The most common scale length for classical guitar is 650mm (calculated by measuring the distance between the end of the nut and the center of the 12th fret, then doubling that measurement). However, scale lengths may vary from 635-664mm or more.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2022-01-10|title=Parts of the Classical Guitar (Names, Descriptions, & Images)|url=https://richterguitar.com/classical-guitar/parts-of-the-classical-guitar-names-descriptions-images/|access-date=2022-01-14|website=Learn Guitar Today|language=en}}</ref>

====Neck joint or 'heel'====
This is the point where the neck meets the body. In the traditional Spanish neck joint, the neck and block are one piece with the sides inserted into slots cut in the block. Other necks are built separately and joined to the body either with a dovetail joint, mortise or flush joint. These joints are usually glued and can be reinforced with mechanical fasteners. Recently many manufacturers use bolt-on fasteners. Bolt-on neck joints were once associated only with less expensive instruments but now some top manufacturers and hand builders are using variations of this method. Some people believed that the Spanish-style one piece neck/block and glued dovetail necks have better sustain, but testing has failed to confirm this.
While most traditional Spanish style builders use the one-piece neck/heel block, Fleta, a prominent Spanish builder, used a dovetail joint due to the influence of his early training in violin making.
One reason for the introduction of mechanical joints was to make it easier to repair necks. This is more of a problem with steel string guitars than with nylon strings, which have about half the string tension. This is why nylon string guitars often do not include a truss rod either.

====Body====
[[File:Jason Vieaux 2013 Gernot Wagner Guitar.jpg|thumb|A photo of a contemporary "double-top" construction guitar made by Gernot Wagner in 2013 and owned by [[Jason Vieaux]].]]The body of the instrument is a major determinant of the overall sound variety for acoustic guitars. The guitar top, or [[Sound board (music)|soundboard]], is a finely crafted and engineered element often made of [[spruce]] or [[Thuja plicata|red cedar]]. Considered the most prominent factor in determining the sound quality of a guitar, this thin (often 2 or 3&nbsp;mm thick) piece of wood has a uniform thickness and is strengthened by different types of internal bracing. The back is made in [[rosewood]] and [[Brazilian rosewood]] is especially coveted, but [[mahogany]] or other decorative woods are sometimes used.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Bucur |first1=Voichita |title=Handbook of Materials for String Musical Instruments |date=2016 |isbn=978-3319320809 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TyvrDAAAQBAJ |page=45 |publisher=Springer |access-date=3 August 2019}}</ref>

The majority of the sound is caused by the vibration of the guitar top as the energy of the vibrating strings is transferred to it. Different patterns of wood bracing have been used through the years by luthiers ([[Antonio Torres Jurado|Torres]], [[Hermann Hauser Sr.|Hauser]], [[José Ramírez (luthier)|Ramírez]], Fleta, and [[C.F. Martin & Company|C.F. Martin]] being among the most influential designers of their times); to not only strengthen the top against collapsing under the tremendous stress exerted by the tensioned strings, but also to affect the resonance of the top. Some contemporary guitar makers have introduced new construction concepts such as "double-top" consisting of two extra-thin wooden plates separated by [[Nomex]], or carbon-fiber reinforced lattice – pattern bracing. The back and sides are made out of a variety of woods such as mahogany, maple, cypress Indian [[rosewood]] and highly regarded Brazilian rosewood (''Dalbergia nigra''). Each one is chosen for its aesthetic effect and structural strength, and such choice can also play a role in determining the instrument's [[timbre]]. These are also strengthened with internal bracing, and decorated with inlays and purfling.
[[Antonio de Torres Jurado]] proved that it was the top, and not the back and sides of the guitar that gave the instrument its sound, in 1862 he built a guitar with back and sides of papier-mâché. (This guitar resides in the Museu de la Musica in Barcelona, and before the year 2000 it was restored to playable condition by the brothers Yagüe, Barcelona). 
The body of a classical guitar is a resonating chamber that projects the vibrations of the body through a ''sound hole'', allowing the acoustic guitar to be heard without amplification. The sound hole is normally a single round hole in the top of the guitar (under the strings), though some have different placement, shapes, or numbers of holes. How much air an instrument can move determines its maximum volume.

====Binding, purfling and kerfing====
The top, back and sides of a classical guitar body are very thin, so a flexible piece of wood called ''kerfing'' (because it is often scored, or ''kerfed'' so it bends with the shape of the rim) is glued into the corners where the rim meets the top and back. This interior reinforcement provides 5 to 20&nbsp;mm of solid gluing area for these corner joints.

During final construction, a small section of the outside corners is carved or routed out and filled with binding material on the outside corners and decorative strips of material next to the binding, which are called ''[[purfling]]''. This binding serves to seal off the [[endgrain]] of the top and back. Binding and purfling materials are generally made of either wood or high-quality plastic materials.

====Bridge====
The main purpose of the bridge on a classical guitar is to transfer the vibration from the strings to the soundboard, which vibrates the air inside of the guitar, thereby amplifying the sound produced by the strings. The bridge holds the strings in place on the body. Also, the position of the saddle, usually a strip of bone or plastic that supports the strings off the bridge, determines the distance to the nut (at the top of the fingerboard).

===Sizes===
The modern full-size classical guitar has a [[Scale (string instruments)|scale length]]<ref>[http://www.hago.org.uk/faqs/scale-length/ Guitar scale length] Hampshire guitar orchestra</ref> of around {{convert|650|mm|in|abbr=on|1|lk=|sigfig=|sp=}}, with an overall instrument length of {{convert|965|–|1016|mm|in|abbr=on}}. The scale length has remained quite consistent since it was chosen by the originator of the instrument, [[Antonio Torres Jurado|Antonio de Torres]]. This length may have been chosen because it's twice the length of a violin string. As the guitar is tuned to one octave below that of the violin, the same size gut could be used for the first strings of both instruments.

Smaller-scale instruments are produced to assist children in learning the instrument as the smaller scale leads to the frets being closer together, making it easier for smaller hands. The scale-size for the smaller guitars is usually in the range {{convert|484|–|578|mm|in|abbr=on}}, with an instrument length of {{convert|785|–|915|mm|in|abbr=on}}. Full-size instruments are sometimes referred to as 4/4, while the smaller sizes are 3/4, 1/2, 1/4, and even as small as 1/8 for very small children. However, there is not a standardized set of dimensions for fractional guitars, and their size difference is not linear from a full size guitar.