What does it all mean
Capo is an abbreviation of Italian word Capotasto.
(Capo =
"at the beginning" or "at the top", or "head", as in mafia
boss.)
(Tasto =
"guitar finger board").
The Spanish name for Capo is Cejilla (Say-Hee-Ya) which
means "little eyebrow". This comes from the general shape
of the traditional model (5). It is a transposing device
fixed across the strings and acts as an artificial nut to
raise the musical pitch. Traditionally, its purpose is to
match what you play on the guitar to the range of a
singer's voice. It allows a guitarist to play familiar
chord structures and falsetas in a range of different keys.
Western and country folk singers have also traditionally
used a capo to accompany themselves using a limited
collection of chord shapes. It's amazing what you can do
with a 3 chords and a capo.
Even without a singer, it can be used to add a general
brightness to the sound in dance accompaniment and solo
playing. For years I was scratching my head trying to
figure out why I couldn't get my rendition of "Here comes
the Sun" to sound like the Beatles version. It was because
the capo has to be on the seventh fret.
Some examples
1) Quick release spring action
2) Screw adjustment
3) Nylon strap with lever action. (the popular "Jim Dunlop"
style)
4) Stretch elastic strap
5) Traditional design featuring leather strap, nylon chord
and wooden peg.
