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I guarantee that you've heard many, many steel guitars in your musical listening experiences, although you may not know what it is. A steel guitar, at it's most basic, is a derivation of a Hawaiian instrument, that was played by setting it sideways on your lap and using your left hand to manipulate a "tone bar", a piece of solid metal that is used to glide along the strings, rather than "fretting" the strings by pressing them down.
The modern steel guitar is a mainstay of country music, providing that "crying" and mournful sound that country is known for. They are also used by country-rock artists, such as Counting Crows and the Wallflowers. A modern-day steel guitar has 10 strings, along with multiple levers and foot pedals to bend the strings and manipulate the sound. The steel guitar, although an extremely beautiful-sounding instrument, can also be quite difficult to learn, so take advantage of the many fine instructional products available, such as DVDs and videos. Since steel guitars utilize 10 strings, as well as many different tunings, they are traditionally not an instrument that a guitarist can cross over to without specific training. If you want the sound of a steel guitar, but want something less challenging, a great alternative is the lap steel, which has six strings, no foot pedals or knee levers, and can be tuned like a traditional guitar.
You can learn more about steel guitars at online guitar stores for steel guitars. They can recommend great starter packages as well as instructional products to get you started!
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