{"id":10298,"date":"2018-06-27T19:54:14","date_gmt":"2018-06-28T02:54:14","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/classicalguitarmagazine.com\/?p=10298"},"modified":"2018-06-27T20:00:18","modified_gmt":"2018-06-28T03:00:18","slug":"the-flamenco-players-friend-a-few-words-about-capos","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/classicalguitarmagazine.com\/the-flamenco-players-friend-a-few-words-about-capos\/","title":{"rendered":"The Flamenco Player’s Friend: A Few Words About Capos"},"content":{"rendered":"
BY KATHLEEN A. BERGERON \/ FROM THE SUMMER 2018 ISSUE OF CLASSICAL GUITAR<\/a><\/strong><\/h6>\n

If you had three hands, and you wanted to change keys without modifying the shapes of the chords you play, you could simply barre the neck with one of them. But you don\u2019t, so someone, probably sometime in the 18th century, invented the capo.<\/p>\n

A standard tool of the flamenco guitarist and steel-string acoustic guitarist, and less common in classical-guitar circles, the capo takes its name from the Italian, capotasto<\/i>, which literally means \u201chead of the fingerboard,\u201d or \u201cnut\u201d in English guitar-parlance. Indeed, a capo is, in a sense, a moveable nut. The bar is placed across the guitar neck to change the pitch of the strings uniformly\u2014higher with each fret up the neck\u2014and also allow for a key change without the player having to alter the chord shapes. It acts as a barre, allowing the player to leave the device in place while playing as normal.<\/p>\n

The primary benefit of the apparatus among flamenco guitarists is that their playing is often done to accompany a singer. Since not all singers have the same pitch to their voices, without a capo there would be three difficult choices: Either the singer is going to have to modify his or her voice to fit the guitar; the guitarist is going to have to tune the instrument down or up, one string at a time; or the guitarist will have to be able to mentally change to totally different fingerings to match the pitch of the instrument to that of the singer. Often in flamenco, performances happen on the spur of the moment, with little preparation time for the guitarist and singer to make any necessary modifications. <\/span><\/p>\n

That\u2019s where the capo comes in. Instead of the guitarist going through mental or physical gymnastics, he or she can simply place the capo on the particular fret needed for the singer\u2019s voice. Many flamenco singers already know which fret is appropriate for their voice, and they can simply inform the guitarist where to place the capo.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The noted Southern California\u2013based flamenco guitarist Ben Woods says, \u201cPlaying flamenco guitar as an accompanist for cantaores y bailaores<\/i> for the past 20 years, I\u2019ve had my fair share of capo usage. For obvious reasons, we flamenco accompanists use the capo to bring the guitar into a comfortable range for the singer. Of course, if a guitarist uses the fret-marker dots for orientation, this will be a baffling endeavor! The singer may ask us to put the capo anywhere\u2014I have even put it on fret 7 to play a Solea<\/i>, which does not leave much room to move around, but it certainly gives the guitar a higher register, buzzier strings, ease of play with lower action, and that crispy flamenco attack sound we hear and love in so many recordings.<\/p>\n

\u201cUsing a capo was also a very beneficial tool when learning flamenco and spending hours and hours fretting full barre chords with hands cramping,\u201d Woods continues. \u201cThe capo alleviates some of the stress and stretches on the fretting hand, saving it from potential injury.<\/p>\n

\u201cPersonally, I try not to use one any more unless a singer demands it. Instead, I try to transpose anything I play to the key they are comfortable with. Unfortunately, that means all the pre-practiced falsetas<\/i> [phrases] in a different key are thrown out the window and you have to rely on instant improvisation for those musical sections in a number. That can be fun, but sometimes results in a crash and burn.\u201d<\/p>\n

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