The Guitar is in danger of becoming extinct. Yes, despite its great popularity, and the fact that the guitar is probably at the height of its existence at this present time: It is in danger of becoming extinct, or at the least totally irrelevant.
The guitar in one form or another, but still often retaining the ancient word "tar" in its name, has been a player in the world of music for over four thousand years. Images of guitar shaped instruments, with even what appear to be frets, exist in stone carvings and other artifacts found going back that far. This family of string instruments is the founding family of all string instruments... the proof of this simply stated in the name "Tar" which means string. In fact in some cultures, tar is still the word for string, such as twine which one would use to tie something up with. The significance of this cannot be underestimated, because the idea of string in itself is that which ties us back to the source of all existence, whatever that may be for the individual. And with the guitar, it is this word for string that is still present in its name which sets it apart from perhaps all other instruments... for the guitar in its name still retains that ancient word "tar" which no other instrument has a similar root word in its name. It is from this point of view that the guitar has to be recognized for its significance in the world of musical instruments. It must be understood that this instrument is the beginning of all such instruments including those of the violin family, and like an ancient species of animal or plant life on our planet that's still here like for example the shark, or old growth forests, deserves the protection that only comes with people being educated in these facts.
In future posts on this blog we will look at the history of the instrument more, and its development into its present form, but also we will examine why I say that the guitar is in danger of becoming extinct. I know this seems like an impossibility with the tremendous popularity the guitar holds today and the almost obscene number of people who play guitar everywhere. But...Do they really PLAY the guitar?