Put all my Guitars away except for my Classical?

[LadyPicker]

I have been struggling with learning my classical. After devoting all my playing time to just my nylon string during the week, the weekends are spent plugging in the electric or strumming on my steel string acoustic. The interesting thing is that playing these now seem more effortless and fun. However when Monday rolls around again, it seems like I am back to square one with my classical. It's like my fingering is a bit off and my fingerstyle slightly out of sync.

So I guess the answer is to lockup the steel string guitars and emerse myself in the classical. I am just having a real difficulty in transistioning back to the nylon string after playing the others.

Anyone else ever suffer this problem?

[GuitarVlog]

Yes, but it's the other way around. I play my classicals and flamenco guitars a lot. My OM and my dread gather a bit of dust until I get a strong craving for Celtic guitar.

[dragonfly66]

I actually play my classical repertoire on my steel strings that way I don't forget the songs. Of course right now I only know 4 songs. I do have to make a small adjustment to the wider spacing, but it is actually easier to play the classical songs with the wider spacing so the transition isn't all that bad for me.

[Bobby1note]

Last summer, I pulled my lil' Takamine classical out of the closet, after barely playing it over the last 20 years. At first the spacing was causing me a lot of grief, but roughly two months later, I was finding it difficult to go back to my other acoustic steel-string guitars. Lately, the nylon-string guitars are all I play.

[Kabalan]

hi ladypicker
i play both, really for me, if there is a problem, are the nails,after playing
steel, nylon feels terrible, so i have to fix nails to switch nylon.
about sizes, my classical it is an 8 string(wide nut) to feel comfortable in steel; i have a custom kronbauer with 1 7/8 nut, short scale, custom light strings (11) and low action, in a way pretty close to a classical.
hopes can help
Eblen

[Bob Womack]

I suppose I've found that the longer I switch between types, the less the string spacing seems to bother me. Of course, I've been doing it a pretty long time, but that is to say that it does get better.

Bob

[Play2PraiseHim]

I used to suffer similiar problems, but soon, the nylon captured my heart completely. After amny years, and many guitars, I realized that I was trying to get a steel string to duplicate that richness that is only found in the nylon string. The only thing that compares to my ears, is the harp. And since, I don't play harp, I am strictly a nylon string player now. I really don't miss steel string at all.

[LadyPicker]

I guess that's it. After playing a nylon I realize nothing that a steel string offers can match the sweet warm tones that my classical produces. There is something very earthy about playing my nylon and a connection that I have never really felt with my other guitars.

So now it's just a matter of practice, practice and some more practice!

[ewalling]

Originally Posted by LadyPicker

I guess that's it. After playing a nylon I realize nothing that a steel string offers can match the sweet warm tones that my classical produces. There is something very earthy about playing my nylon and a connection that I have never really felt with my other guitars.

So now it's just a matter of practice, practice and some more practice!

Yes, I think once you go nylon you can't go back! I still love my steel strings, but about 3 1/2 years ago I bought an all-solid wood Raimundo classical in cedar and mahogany that sounded exquisite. Trouble was, the action was high, the string-spacing wide, and the neck like a tree trunk. I sold it and began the quest for a crossover that had that sweet sound but without the forbidding size and dimensions.

That's where the difficulties arose. I went through Taylor, Takamine, Godin, and Ovation but none them held a candle soundwise to that Raimundo. In desperation I've resorted to classicals twice, once with a La Patrie Motif and once with an Orpheus Valley Fiesta. Like the Raimundo, they both sounded great, knocking spots off any crossover I'd tried. But the neck and string spacing remained a problem. The thing is, for me, I like to wrap my thumb round for chords even on a nylon string and this is something I can manage with 1 7/8" but not with 2" at the nut.

So, the search continues; I may give the Ovation Classic a look. The one I owned before was a Country Artist which had 14 frets to the neck. The Classic keeps the 12 frets to the neck, which I prefer in any nylon string instrument.

But once you've got the sweet nylon sound in your head, it's there for keeps!

[Philly5834]

I too find it difficult to return to the steel strings after a session with one of my classicals. Yet, I do a lot of folk singing, and for some songs it just seems that the steel strings are better. Yet, when I'm stressed a bit, there's nothing like the calming effect of playing old folk song melodies (unaccompanied by my voice) on the classicals. Sometimes, I go on for hours like this and wonder where the time went.

[Kabalan]

hi
what i can read in the thread, people has been playing steel for a long time and
discover the gently nylon,,, i am the other way, after playing 40 years my
music and classic stuff in nylon; now i am seduce by the beautiful overtones, like
bells, and the incredible intonation in the upper chord notes! by the steel guitar. after years and years of listening the same tone, we get tired, so the
change makes us to found something new and stimulate.
in conclusion i think both steel and nylon are beautiful instruments, so why not play both? like Ralph Towner, Pat Metheney, Egberto Gismonti and Jhon Mc laughlin, just to mention some great players.
Eblen Macari

[Play2PraiseHim]

Originally Posted by ewalling

Yes, I think once you go nylon you can't go back! I still love my steel strings, but about 3 1/2 years ago I bought an all-solid wood Raimundo classical in cedar and mahogany that sounded exquisite. Trouble was, the action was high, the string-spacing wide, and the neck like a tree trunk. I sold it and began the quest for a crossover that had that sweet sound but without the forbidding size and dimensions.

That's where the difficulties arose. I went through Taylor, Takamine, Godin, and Ovation but none them held a candle soundwise to that Raimundo. In desperation I've resorted to classicals twice, once with a La Patrie Motif and once with an Orpheus Valley Fiesta. Like the Raimundo, they both sounded great, knocking spots off any crossover I'd tried. But the neck and string spacing remained a problem. The thing is, for me, I like to wrap my thumb round for chords even on a nylon string and this is something I can manage with 1 7/8" but not with 2" at the nut.

So, the search continues; I may give the Ovation Classic a look. The one I owned before was a Country Artist which had 14 frets to the neck. The Classic keeps the 12 frets to the neck, which I prefer in any nylon string instrument.

But once you've got the sweet nylon sound in your head, it's there for keeps!

My story is quite similiar to yours. I always prefered nylon to steel but could not deal with the wide flat fretboard. I too went through a Taylor, Takamine, Tacoma, Larrivee, Yairi, Ovation, & Hohner nylon along with countless steel strings including Seagull, Martin, Goodall,Taylor, Larrivee, Gibson, Adamas, Blueridge. Nothing compared.

I waited and longed for a great sounding & playing Crossover with the asthetic feautures that I desired at a great price point. In comes the Cervantes Crossover 1 and that dream was achieved for me. It is truly a match made in heaven. If you haven't already, you owe it to yourself to give a Cervantes Crossover 1 a try. THey are hard to come by, but well worth the wait.

[ewalling]

Originally Posted by Play2PraiseHim

I waited and longed for a great sounding & playing Crossover with the asthetic feautures that I desired at a great price point. In comes the Cervantes Crossover 1 and that dream was achieved for me. It is truly a match made in heaven. If you haven't already, you owe it to yourself to give a Cervantes Crossover 1 a try. THey are hard to come by, but well worth the wait.

Interesting. I'll keep an eye open for it. But if they're hard to come by, I can't see my local Sam Ash or GC stocking them. These two stores seem to have the same mantra: "Take...no...risks!"

[FingerFlicker]

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[Polyhymnia]

I'm going to be a bit of a contrarian, but at the same time agree with the general thrust of the comments. I'm a long-time ex-pro steel player (acoustic and electric), but I've have had a "classical" guitar for a long time, and played it now and then just to add another color to my palette.

However, I'm playing more nylon seriously now with a friend of mine who is a classically-trained violinist, and the old classical wasn't going to cut it. The neck was too wide for my not-so-large hands, and the lack of fret markers drove me crazy.

So, I traded it in on a entry-level Taylor nylon. The Taylor was perfect in almost every way, except that it didn't "pop" as acoustically as I needed. (Michael and I are working eventually towards a series of public performances and a commercial recording, and I need something that really resonates.) Regretfully, I sold it. In the meantime, I have a Cervantes Crossover in cedar/rosewood. It pops, but it just doesn't quite play as nicely as the Taylor did, and it has only 12 frets at the body and no fret markers.

Yes, I know you can get used to it, but I'm not interested in putting away my other guitars, nor my mandolin or my octave mandolin. Guess I'm just too much of a dilletante there. So, I have a Taylor NS74CE on order which should come in today. I realize it probably won't have quite the sound of the Cervantes, but it will have the playability and configuration that will make me a more confident nylon player.

The bottom line is that I will very likely sell the Crossover, since I don't really want to spend the bread to keep both. Look for it soon, or if you're really hot for one, PM me and we'll talk.

And yes, I love the nylon sound, I really do. I hope to find some Brazilian jazz cats who would tolerate me, maybe even a vocalist, and work up some nylon string light Bossa Nova tune eventually. That would be so very cool...