The Classical Guitar 'Squeak': Friend Or Foe?

Dear All,

Apologies for spouting off about another geek topic!

In conversation with the eminent young drummer-percussionist Jez Henderson (who had collaborated on the Dark Tales CD project) regarding my latest solo classical guitar CD Reverie On A Hill, I mentioned that I didn't give two hoots about the 'Squeak'. It was at Mr Henderson's suggestion that such a topic would be ideal for as blog (please blame him if you find this to 'geeky'). Thus, the three wound nylon bass strings as fitted to most classical guitars emit a squeak when the hand or finger runs along it. Many guitarists find this a problem:

"I use the D’Addario EJ46 Lightly Polished Composites. The crucial thing is the lightly polished. The lack of squeaks with a lightly polished string is just as important for live playing as recording. A lot of people think the squeaks that everyone gets on guitar are a part of the sound and they like it. There’s hardly anything to like about it. They’re totally out of time and they sound like mice squeaking in the corner of the room! The less you can have of that, the better." (John Williams Interview with Austin Prichard-Levy) http://www.guitarteacher.com.au/johnwilliams.htm

Julian Bream has often complained about the squeak but lives with it for musical purposes:

"It would be lovely if the squeaks were not there, but they nearly always are. I squeak more than some ... If I worried about taking my fingers off the string ... merely to avoid the squeak ... I might lose the musical line." (Julian Bream: A Life On The Road, T. Palmer, Maxwell House, 1982, p163.)

Earl Klugh is the opposite to Bream, and will go to great lengths to eliminate them:

"They’re complete performances, but if there was a squeak on a note that bothered me, I would go in and fix it. But since these songs are improvised, it’s really hard to punch in once I get past the melody. So some of the squeaks had to stay on there." (Earl Klugh)

My view, and this is not a common one these days, is that the squeak is of minor importance ut it's not the end of the world. Thus, I polish my bass strings with very fine wet and dry paper (often very worn-down 1200 grit). Although this process doesn't completely eliminate the squeak, it does diminish it. However, I am reluctant to lose the squeak entirely as I am of the opinion that a guitar should sound as though its being played! I don't want my recordings to be part of a clinically precise technical exercise.

D.H.