z6 -> RE: Flamenco guitar - how much buzz is desirable, how much tolerable? (May 19 2014 14:24:07)
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A great thing about flamenco, whether there is too much buzz or too little or too much rasp or not enough. It is perfectly acceptable. What is a killer is if there's, for example, a single note (fret) somewhere that needs 'special attention' while playing. So, playing a classical piece, for example, where no buzz is desired can be a pain. I'm trying to 'relearn' some 'classical' tunes but with (my version of) a 'flamenco' technique. And Bach seems to like big thumb 'rasps' just fine. I'd guess that classical fans might think it sounds a bit 'caveman'. I feel too that the flamenco 'setup' seems just intuitively much more difficult to achieve. I get there are builders here who can give you one extreme to the other, without any problems. But actually playing a well setup flamenco is so much more fun than a 'typical' classical setup. In 'describing' my ideal classical, (in the past) the 'action' (especially closeness of strings to top) would not have been an issue. Now it is more or less the only issue. I need the guitar to be pretty in tune, but I'm a sucker for easy actions. It literally gives everything a much easier feel. It is a part of the (or 'my' if nobody else feels that way) transformative experience of one tiny corner of this great art. I have a classical that is luverly. It has a flamenco feel and a beautiful blah (fill in all classical hyperbole for sound projection, sweetness, etc.). But it is the feel that makes it a truly great guitar. Blind tests for sound do not work but they do for 'feel'. I'd like to try one of those super buzzy jobs some time. But as Anders says, it's not that hard to produce 'rasp' on any guitar. I can control my technique miles more easily with a guitar that thinks it is a flamenco though; whether attempting Bulerias or Bach. Great classical guitars can get away with a few things but great flamencos have to have an easy feel. (But each to their own, of course.)
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