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In a string instrument, the scale length (often simply but confusingly called the scale) is the sounding length of the strings. It is the length of string between the nut and the bridge. A string instrument (or stringed instrument) is a musical instrument that produces sound by means of vibrating strings. ...
In general English usage, length (symbols: l, L) is but one particular instance of distance – an objects length is how long the object is – but in the physical sciences and engineering, the word length is in some contexts used synonymously with distance. Height is vertical distance; width (or breadth...
A string is a vibrating element used on many musical instruments, such as the violin, guitar, harp, and piano. ...
A small strip of hard material used to stop string vibrations on some stringed instruments. ...
A bridge is the part of a guitar, bass or other stringed instrument where the strings join the body of the instrument. ...
In many but not all instruments, all the strings are roughly the same length, so the scale can be expressed as a single length measurement, as for example in the case of the violin or guitar. In others, the strings are of different lengths, as for example in the case of the harp or piano. The violin is a bowed stringed musical instrument that has four strings tuned a perfect fifth apart, the lowest being the G just below middle C. It is the smallest and highest-tuned member of the violin family of string instruments, which also includes the viola and cello. ...
A guitar is a musical instrument characterized by its visually dominant body and neck. ...
The harp is a stringed instrument which has its strings positioned perpendicular to the soundboard. ...
A grand piano A piano is a musical instrument which is classified as a keyboard, percussion or string instrument, depending on the system of classification used. ...
In many instruments, for example the violin, the scale of a full-sized instrument is very strictly standardiised. Smaller scale instruments are still often used: The violin is a bowed stringed musical instrument that has four strings tuned a perfect fifth apart, the lowest being the G just below middle C. It is the smallest and highest-tuned member of the violin family of string instruments, which also includes the viola and cello. ...
- By younger students.
- By smaller advanced players.
- To obtain a particular tone or effect.
- For convenience when travelling.
Larger scale instruments are rare, but may be used by experimental and avant-garde players, or specially made for soloists with particularly extended reach.
In other instruments, for example the viola and the electric guitar, the scale of a full-sized instrument varies a great deal. The viola (in French, alto; in German bratsche) is a stringed musical instrument played with a bow which serves as the middle voice of the violin family, between the upper lines played by the higher violin (soprano register) and the lower lines played by the deeper cello (bass) and double...
An electric guitar is a type of guitar with a solid or semi-solid body that utilizes electronic pickups to convert the vibration of the steel-cored strings into electrical current. ...
Bowed strings
The two most famous violin makers, Antonio Stradivarius (1644-1737) and Joseph Guarnerius (1698-1744), both used an open string length of 12.875" (327mm) for their violins, which had already been established a generation before by Jacob Stainer (c. 1617-1683). Later makers have been unwilling to deviate from this. The Violin family of instruments was developed in Italy in the 17th Century. ...
Antonio Stradivari (1644 - December 18, 1737) was an Italian luthier (maker of violins and other stringed instruments), the most prominent member of that profession. ...
The violin is a bowed stringed musical instrument that has four strings tuned a perfect fifth apart, the lowest being the G just below middle C. It is the smallest and highest-tuned member of the violin family of string instruments, which also includes the viola and cello. ...
violin by J.Stainer Jacob Stainer (c. ...
Smaller scale instruments are used extensively to teach younger players. The size of these is described by a conventional fraction that has no mathematical significance. For example, a 7/8 violin has a scale of about 317mm, a 3/4 a scale of 307mm, a 1/2 287mm, and a 1/4 267mm. 1/8, 1/10, 1/16 and 1/32 and even 1/64 violins also exist, becoming progressively smaller but again in no proportional relationship.
A full scale instrument is described as 4/4.
Cellos exist in a smaller range of sizes than violins, with 4/4, 3/4, 1/2, 1/4, 1/8, and 1/10 being reasonably common. As with the violin, the Stradivarius scale is regarded as standard for orchestral work; This is about 25" (695mm). A cello The cello (the c is pronounced /ʧ/ as the ch in church) or cello, short for violoncello, is a stringed instrument and a member of the violin family. ...
Violas are commonly described in terms of their scale length rather than by a conventional fraction. There are two reasons for this. Firstly, unlike that of the violin and the cello, the viola scale length has not standardised, but rather an advanced player will use whatever scale length best suits them, see viola. Secondly, student sizes are not as often required, as most viola players who start learning at a young age would start on the violin. Common sizes include 17", 16.5", 16", 15.5", 15", 14", and less commonly 12", smaller than a standard violin; These measurements are nominal and approximate. At least one of the surviving Stradivarius violas has a scale length of 14.25" (362mm). The viola (in French, alto; in German bratsche) is a stringed musical instrument played with a bow which serves as the middle voice of the violin family, between the upper lines played by the higher violin (soprano register) and the lower lines played by the deeper cello (bass) and double...
The viola (in French, alto; in German bratsche) is a stringed musical instrument played with a bow which serves as the middle voice of the violin family, between the upper lines played by the higher violin (soprano register) and the lower lines played by the deeper cello (bass) and double...
There is some variation in the scale length of orchestral string basses, generally in the range 42.3"-43.3" (1050-1100mm). There are also smaller versions of this "full scale" string bass with the same scale length but with a smaller sound box, intended for other musical idioms. Smaller scale instruments are also quite commonly used by full-sized players in jazz, folk music and similar ensembles. Side and front views of a modern double bass with a French bow. ...
The system of conventional fractions is taken to its logical conclusion with string bass sizes, in that a 7/8 string bass is full size and is also described as 4/4. Sizes for younger students include 3/4, 1/2, and 1/4 sizes.
Classical guitar Like that of the violin, the scale of the classical guitar was standardised by the work of its most famous maker. Antonio De Torres (1817-1892) used a scale length of 25.6" (650mm), and later makers and their customers have been unreceptive to any suggestion of change. Classical guitar A classical guitar, also called a Spanish guitar, is a musical instrument from the guitar family. ...
Unlike Stradivarius, Torres had no strong tradition on which to build regarding scale length, so the 25.6" figure can be validly attributed to him.
Electric guitar As of 2006, the scale length of the electric guitar was one of the least standardised of all instruments. 2006 is a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ...
History Fender have used a standard scale length of 25.5" since the original Fender Esquire, but have also produced several 24" models which they describe as full scale to distinguish them from the student or 3/4 scale models. These 3/4 scale models have most commonly been 22.5", but some have been shorter. The Fender logo, often called the spaghetti logo. ...
The Fender Esquire is a solid body electric guitar manufactured by Fender, and was the first guitar sold by Fender, in 1950. ...
Gibson have used several scale lengths, but most commonly 24.75", which was the scale of the original 1937 Gibson ES-150 and the Gibson Les Paul. However later ES-150 guitars had a 25.5" scale length. This article or section needs to be wikified. ...
The Gibson Guitar Corporations ES-150 guitar is generally recognized as the worlds first commercially feasible electric guitar. ...
The Gibson Les Paul signature model is among the most recognized solid-body electric guitar designs. ...
Summary This list is incomplete. Please add significant examples. - 20.75" (527mm):
- Squier Bullet Mini, a hard-tail Stratocaster look-alike described as 3/4 size.
- 22.5" (572mm), known as 3/4 scale in Fender sales literature:
- 24" (610mm), confusingly called full scale in Fender sales literature:
- 25.5" (648mm), known as standard scale, and approximately equal to the classical guitar scale:
Squier is an off-brand to the Fender guitar manufacturer, as Epiphone is to Gibson. ...
The Fender Mustang is a popular guitar by the Fender Musical Instruments Company. ...
The Stratocaster is a model of electric guitar designed by Leo Fender in the early 1950s, and manufactured continuously to the present. ...
The Fender Jaguar guitar was introduced in 1962. ...
The Fender Mustang is a popular guitar by the Fender Musical Instruments Company. ...
The Fender Bronco is an electric guitar model produced by the Fender company. ...
The Gibson Les Paul signature model is among the most recognized solid-body electric guitar designs. ...
The Gibson SG is a popular model of solid-bodied electric guitar that was introduced in the early 60s. ...
The Gibson Guitar Corporations ES-150 guitar is generally recognized as the worlds first commercially feasible electric guitar. ...
The Cyclone is the name of an electric guitar made by Fender. ...
The Fender Esquire is a solid body electric guitar manufactured by Fender, and was the first guitar sold by Fender, in 1950. ...
1950s-style Telecaster with natural finish, with metal bridge cover removed. ...
A Fender Stratocaster with rosewood fingerboard and three-tone sunburst finish. ...
1962 Fender Jazzmaster Sunburst The Fender Jazzmaster electric guitar was introduced in 1958 and was designed as a more upmarket instrument than the Fender Stratocaster, which itself was introduced in 1954 as a higher-priced product than the companys Telecaster series. ...
The Gibson Guitar Corporations ES-150 guitar is generally recognized as the worlds first commercially feasible electric guitar. ...
Electric bass
History The first electric basses were upright electric basses built in the 1930s by fitting an otherwise normal string bass with electric pickups, and so had a scale length of about 43". Side and front views of a modern double bass with a French bow. ...
In 1951 the Fender Precision Bass shortened this to 34". This is still often regarded as the standard length for a bass guitar. The Fender Precision Bass, known as P-bass for short, is an early model of the electric bass designed by Clarence Leonidas Fender on the electronics and his team crafting the body and neck, and brought to market in 1951. ...
Bass guitars typically have four strings instead of six as found on regular guitars. ...
On a modern bass guitar, 30" or less is considered short scale, standard (also called long) scale is 34" for a 4 string and 35" for a B-E-A-D-G 5 string, and extra-long scale basses of 36" also exist.
Summary - 28.5" (724mm)
- Fender Jaguar Bass VI Custom.
- 30.5" (775mm)
- Gibson EB-1, EB-0 and other EB-x basses, Gibson SG bass.
- Fender Bass VI.
- 34.5" (876mm)
- Gibson EB-0L and other EB-xL basses.
The Fender Mustang Bass is an electric bass guitar model produced by Fender. ...
A Fender VI on a stand The Fender Bass VI, originally known as the Fender VI, is a six-string electric bass by Fender. ...
The Fender Precision Bass, known as P-bass for short, is an early model of the electric bass designed by Clarence Leonidas Fender on the electronics and his team crafting the body and neck, and brought to market in 1951. ...
The Jazz Bass was the second bass model created by Leo Fender. ...
Side and front views of a modern double bass with a French bow. ...
Piano - Main article: piano acoustics
The scale length of a piano is quoted as the length of the longest string. As this is normally the lowest bass note, it will be a single string. Piano acoustics is an exploration of how physical science, particularly acoustics, can help to explain a number of important properties of the piano. ...
Concert grand pianos range in scale from about 7'6" to 9' or occasionally more. Notable concert grands include: A grand piano from Schiedmayer & Söhne, Stuttgart. ...
- The Steinway Model D, at 8'11-3/4" (274 cm).
- The Fazioli F308 at 10'2" (308 cm).
Smaller grand pianos vary in naming. The larger models, about 6' or more in scale length, may have the full grand piano action, and are used in smaller concert spaces. Others are intended for larger homes, and may have a simplified action lacking the repeat lever that is only useful for advanced players. Steinway & Sons is a piano manufacturing firm, currently based in New York and Hamburg, Germany. ...
Fazioli is a piano manufacturing company founded in 1978 in Sacile, Italy by Paolo Fazioli and a small team of his friends. ...
Baby grand pianos are the smallest, intended for homes, restaurants and similar applications where the grand style of piano is desired even at the expense of the longer scale and better sound that an upright format would permit in the available space.
The piano Piano is a common abbreviation for pianoforte, a large musical instrument with a keyboard (see keyboard instrument). ...
A harpsichord is the general term for a family of European keyboard instruments, including the large instrument nowadays called a harpsichord, but also the smaller virginals, the muselar virginals and the spinet. ...
See also The fingerboard, also known as a fretboard, is a part of most stringed instruments. ...
Offline references - Fender's 3/4 Scale Guitars, a two-part article by Tim Pershing in 20th Century Guitar Magazine, December 1996 and January 1997.
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