Gibson Style U

The Gibson Style U is a harp guitar, a design the company made in the early twentieth century. Alongside the normal six strings it carries a set of additional bass strings held on an extension of the body, which are plucked separately to supply a low accompaniment under the melody, an arrangement found in instruments built for parlour and ensemble music of the period. Gibson's harp guitars were elaborately made, with carved top and back and ornate inlay work, and they are rare today, valued as examples of the company's earliest production and of a style of instrument that has since disappeared from general use.

Gibson Style U

See also