美国12弦吉他的诞生

美国12弦吉他的起源可以追溯到19世纪末的一系列专利和制造创新。1卡尔·布朗（Carl E. Brown）在1896年2月8日申请了一项10弦"竖琴吉他"的专利，专利号为#568,108，并在同年8月22日获得批准。1布朗的原始设计目的是"结合竖琴和吉他的特征"，面向业余吉他手，采用"低音独奏"演奏风格。1

随后这项创新得到了商业化推进。11896年秋，布朗与汉密尔顿·戈登公司和雷内·格鲁内瓦尔德公司签约制造该乐器。1格鲁内瓦尔德公司随后将设计改进为12弦版本，并在1902年12月于《The Cadenza》杂志刊登全页广告推广这款12弦"竖琴吉他"。1与此同时，其他制造商也独立开发了类似产品：霍尔茨亚佩尔和贝特尔公司在1900年12月23日有12弦吉他的委托记录，布鲁诺父子公司则在1901年的目录中推出了12弦颈竖琴吉他。1通过这些不同制造商的共同努力，12弦吉他从新奇发明逐步演变为主流乐器。1

The origins of the American 12-string guitar trace back to Carl E. Brown's pioneering design in the 1890s.1 Brown filed a patent application on February 8, 1896, for a 10-string "harp guitar" (Patent #568,108), which was approved on August 22, 1896.1 The instrument was conceived to "combine the characteristics of a harp and guitar,"1 and by autumn 1896, Brown had contracted with Hamilton Gordon and Rene Grunewald's companies to manufacture the instrument.1 The design was originally targeted at amateur guitarists and employed a "bass solo" playing style.1

The transition from Brown's original 10-string concept to the 12-string configuration emerged through parallel development by multiple manufacturers.1 Holzapfel & Beitel held a commission record for a 12-string guitar dated December 23, 1900,1 while C. Bruno & Sons introduced a 12-string neck harp guitar in their catalog in 1901.1 By December 1902, Grunewald was prominently advertising the 12-string "harp guitar" with a full-page advertisement in The Cadenza magazine,1 marking the instrument's transition from novelty invention to mainstream production.