How to choose the right guitar - Part II (Music Society)

In 'How to choose the right guitar' Part I (Music Cultures) the role of the guitar has been important in the search for 'your music identity'. When looking at the music industry there is also a lot of rivalry about this 'music image' or 'music stereotypes'. There are so many guitarists nowadays! How to stand out with a guitar that not only is technically efficient, and thus has good value too? How not to dissapear behind all these famous legends... Read further... This is part II of 'How to choose the right guitar'.

The guitar: Part of a style
When music became more rebellious, it became clear that the music instrument makers had to deal with the upcoming music factories that produces way more and more music instruments - and thus way more and more guitars. In this way the economic and market value of the guitar has grown in the music industry.

With the huge demand for guitars and the rise of music genres, more variations of guitars had been brought to the market. Not only did it bring different sounds - and different techniques of playing the guitar - , it also creates music groups and brought people together to create the right style of music.
Jazz-musicians played on the jazz-guitar,
the blues-musicians played on the blues-guitar (archtopguitar),
the tocaores-musicians played on the flamenco-guitar,
the blue-grass and country-musicians played on the dobro/resonator-guitar and so on. Specific guitars became suitable for it's music genre.

Many musicians have multiple guitars in their 'collection' to be able to play a lot of different music genres. The accessibility of the guitars in the market brought more commercialization of the guitar. In this way, the rivalry of the music industry became bigger. Companies put their marks on the headstock, in the guitar cast or on the bridge of the guitar. Also, the merchandise and music products like guitarstrabs and a lot of plectrums with their companyname had an effect on the branding of guitars.

Cultural Industry: Stereotype
Big music factories/companies - for example Gibson and Fender - were competing to create guitars with new elements: New sounds! It was all about creating the best sound possible for the right song. So, they build extra music machines and music boxes and even started to give a name to the guitars inspired by persons or concept stories (fe. space).
To promote these guitars the best, they made an economic business deal. Famous guitarists could request a guitar at these factories/companies in return for promoting the factory/company (endorsement). So, while playing the guitar on stage, the factories/companies hoped to be more seen in public so that people would buy guitars from them. The guitar became part of a "Cultstatus".
A good example is Eddie van Halen with his "Frankenstrat" (Frankenstein & Stratocaster guitar). This guitar has been made for Eddie. Or think about Michael Angelo Batio with his duo-guitar and quad guitar.

Influences
The guitar became part of a music campaign. The more unique of a sound, edgy designs, vibrant colours, positions and shapes, or aestethic style of the guitar.... The better! Guitarists could stand out, create beautiful sounds and at the same time be popular thanks to these exceptional guitars.
In most bands, the focus is mainly on the singer and the guitar player. The guitar player creates extra sound by highlighting certain solos, abilities and skills. The guitarists does everything to make the public go wild and create a fantastic show. The more publicity for the guitar player, a greater reach for reputation.

The Guitar: "Instrument of Change"
Nowadays the growth in accessibility has allowed more people than ever to express themselves with the guitar. In times where confirmity can be overwhelming, the guitars continue to inspire people to:
1. Break free from societal constraints
2. Encouraging spirit of rebellion
3. Creative exploration.

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Old versus New
Nowadays there are plenty of guitars in the world. Not only the shape, also the wood, colour, the modelling (the parts on a guitar) and the shapes of the modelling can have a big effect on the identity of the guitar. So, you can actually "create" your own sound by looking at these elements. For everyone there is a guitar available on the market!

Expensive versus "normal"
There is an option to outshine the "normal" guitars: Go to a guitar-builder and personalise your own style, a "unique" guitar build for you. Or try out a 3D-printed guitar. Still, this is the most expensive option. It supports the business of still developing guitars and it is good for luthiers and guitarbuilders to get some recognition. To be honest: There is no "perfect" guitar: Every guitar has a little wound.That's why there is an option to let the guitar-builder make a "normal" guitar. The guitar-builders use their expertise, profession and what they think sounds the best. It might be a cheaper option, although the work and quality by the guitar builder has been carefully thought out.A guitar-builder knows about the types of wood, the thickness or the type of soundhole and many more tips and trics. Take a visit and find out what makes this "click". Try out to play on many guitars. Hereby you will hear the differences in your likes and dislikes. Everyone feels differently; The elements of the guitar connects with your feelings/emotions.
Many guitarists have a few guitars in their catalogue - In every 'phase' of your life (your own music history) there has been a development and that reflects in the sound and connection with the guitar.

Buy, rent or try-out
Choose wisely when you play a lot on the guitar. When you don't play that much, it might be not so important to invest in a proper guitar with good quality. There are other options as well: Borrow/lend a guitar from the music store or music foundations.

The guitar: Part of ornaments
According to Anuja Kamat, who spoke at TedX:
Music is powerful for two reasons: Recognition and Association.
Anuja Kamat found out that the elements of music - language, instrumentation and musical scales - are part of the music genre. Still, it doesn't define the "music identity".
There are many combinations found within these elements of music that makes a variety of differences in the music we listen to. That causes the difficulty in finding this "music identity".
By looking at the musical intonation, or "accent", there is a chance to create this  music identity. It is the way in which the words are pronounced and the tune is approached. It can be called music ornaments. A composer can use ornaments to create more 'feeling' and thus association and recognition in the song.
Anuja mentioned:
Each genre has it's own estathics, it's own beauties. It goes deeper than musical intonation. Each type of music has it's own grammar, it's own literature, it's own filosophy.
In this society where we grew up in, the focus has been on impressing others. It is a very hard wired business! We might can change this.
Musicians can inspire the generation of music practitioners: Use music as a medium to express. Music is not only about the skillset, it is an artform as well. To find your true music identity, is based on your intention and your emotion.

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I would like to encourage people to follow your own ideas and intuition at first hand, besides the opinions of others. I believe that a good guitar player can play the best colours of the sound of any guitar!