The guitar has become one of the most adaptable and popular instruments; can be used in most musical genres. The guitar has existed since the 15th century. An instrument in Spain called a vihuela is the first guitar but it only had four strings and was very small if we compared it to a modern instrument it would look a lot like a ukulele. The tool has made progress since then. From jazz to rock 'n' roll, country guitar has the biggest impact on what music is like today. There is a lot of history from electric guitars to acoustic guitars. The ancestor of the guitar is the lute. The lute is like an older version of the guitar but is much more complex considering it had 25-35 strings. The lute is entirely made of wood. The body of the instrument almost looks like a teardrop. The neck of the lute is made of a light wood with a hardwood cover. The pegbox was angled 90 degrees to hold the low tension strings so they were secure against the nut. During the Renaissance, an instrument called the lute was very popular. They were so popular that people like Henry VIII, Francis I and the Pope of Rome hired lutenists as personal musicians and held competitions against other musicians. It would help impact that ruler's status. During the 17th century the lute began to lose its popularity. Pianos became the most popular as the lute was difficult to maintain and play. In the 16th century there was a five-string guitar. The guitars had frets, the frets are strips of nickel or brass and are inserted into the fretboard of the guitar where the chords are played. Later, in the 18th century, the five-string guitar was transformed into the very popular six-string guitar. One of the first six strings... middle of paper... pays for the guitar's name. The amplifier affects the way the guitar plays as much as the guitar's pickups. If you play in front of an audience with a $50 amp, the guitar will sound bad too. If you play on a $600 amp there will be a huge difference in the sound. So price and equipment are important for the guitar because the more expensive the equipment, the better the material it will be made from. Another thing that can affect the sound of the guitar is what chemicals you use to customize it with. For example, paints and lacquers can affect the sound of the guitar. Lacquer and varnish serve many purposes: they will improve the tone, protect the wood, age it well, and make the guitar overall nice. But lacquer is the most important because it can damage the tone of the guitar since the tone is given by the wood.