What Is the Brahms Guitar?

The eight-string Brahms Guitar is a classical guitar developed in the 1990s through the collaboration between guitarist Paul Galbraith and luthier David Rubio. It features a fan-fretted fingerboard and an extended range, with one additional bass string and one additional treble string beyond the traditional six-string configuration.

Eight Strings, One Instrumental Idea

The usual tuning, from lowest to highest, is B–E–A–D–G–B–E–A. Two additional strings extend the six-string guitar in both directions: a low B below the standard sixth string and a high A above the first.

An extended range that gives the performer greater freedom in shaping dynamics, harmony & counterpoint, resonance and melodic direction. It allows musical material to be distributed across the instrument with greater flexibility, opening new possibilities of balance and colour.

Fan Frets and Scale Length

The frets are arranged in a fan rather than parallel lines. The bass side uses a longer effective string length and the treble side a shorter one, helping the extended strings speak with greater balance while keeping the hand position playable.

Playing Position

Galbraith’s well-known vertical setup places the guitar on an endpin and uses a resonance box beneath it. This can affect projection, physical alignment and the player’s relationship with the instrument.

Its identity is not defined by a single playing posture. Other performers use the Brahms Guitar in a more conventional classical-guitar position, with or without additional support.

Why “Brahms”?

The name is linked to the repertoire that helped motivate the instrument’s creation, including Galbraith’s work on Brahms’s Variations on an Original Theme, Op. 21a.

Not Every Eight-String Guitar Is a Brahms Guitar

Many eight-string guitars use different tunings, scale systems and design priorities. The term Brahms Guitar is most useful when it refers to the specific lineage established by the Galbraith–Rubio collaboration and its later makers, performers and repertoire.

Sources and Notes

This overview is based on interviews, guitar-maker documentation, recordings and doctoral research. Individual instruments may vary in construction and setup.